by Kevin Berrill, LCSW
Having meditated for many years, I have experienced significant benefits from the practice of mindfulness and I love sharing it with others, including our clients here at Ann’s Place.
Mindfulness has been described as intentional and accepting awareness of whatever arises in the present moment. With gentle and persistent practice, mindfulness has the potential to help us to develop insight, to work skillfully with physical and emotional pain, and to respond more flexibly to life’s challenges. Although mindfulness does not rid our lives of difficulties, it can help us to relate to them with greater balance and compassion. We become more intimate, accepting, and even friendly with this life—just as it is—including the experience of cancer, our own or that of a loved one.
Research on those who consistently practice mindfulness shows that the practice has the potential to foster greater self-awareness, greater attunement and empathy towards others, increased feelings of gratitude, an increased ability to modulate fear, and a heightened ability to understand the perspectives and realities of others. Mindfulness has also been shown to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression in people dealing with cancer.
On the Ann’s Place website, you’ll find information on cultivating a meditation practice, online resources on mindfulness, and common misunderstandings about mindfulness. I have also recorded and posted several meditations to help guide you through the practice. I invite you to listen to them to see if they might be of benefit to you.
If you or someone you love has been affected by cancer, you are welcome to join us at Ann’s Place for Midweek Mindfulness, our weekly meditation and discussion group. We meet on Wednesdays at noon at our location at 80 Saw Mill Road. If it’s your first time, please call to register.
If you have questions about Midweek Mindfulness or about mindfulness practice, please feel free to call me at 203.790.6568 or email me at kevin@annsplace.org