You need to chill out – and here are 3 pro tips to get you there

As we enter the third year of the pandemic, it can be harder to find a moment for ourselves to practice mindfulness and navigate through what can be a challenging time for many.  We sat down with clinical psychologist and mindfulness expert, Emily Toner, to share her 3-step guide to quietening internal chatter.  Step 1 – Recognising a wandering mind  The first step to quieting internal chatter is actually just becoming aware of it in the first place. Research suggests that for up to half of our day, we’re not truly paying attention to our external surroundings, or listening to what’s going on internally (Killingsworth et al, 2008). That’s half our life we’re missing out on!  Becoming aware of this habit requires self-reflection. For me, if I’m feeling average but don’t really know the cause, I have to pause and ask myself, ‘what was I just thinking?’.  Oftentimes, when we feel discomfort it can be due to a judgemental thought we’ve recently inflicted on ourselves, or because we’ve been caught up in worry or rumination.  Step 2 – Being present in the moment  The second step in quietening internal chatter involves analysing the constructiveness of thoughts. After taking the time to pause and become mindful of our thoughts, we then have to ask ourselves, ‘are these thoughts helpful?’, ‘are they assisting me in having the day, or life that I want?’.  If our thoughts are inhibiting us from feeling our best, we have to unhook from them and return to the present moment. Grounding, meditative… Read More