10 Minute Mindfulness

Most of us are so over scheduled and busy we hardly have to time to stop and think about what we are doing. Mindfulness is being intentionally aware of the present moment, while paying close attention to your feelings, thoughts and sensations (Davenport & Scott, 2017).
Since we are biologically wired for negativity bias, we naturally react to situations instead of being able to respond to them. Those whom have practiced mindfulness are aware of its benefits, and now science is backing that up. More and more studies are being conducted to explore the many ways mindfulness affects us both physically and mentally. We spend large amounts of time dedicacted to worry, either about the past or the future. And with the Adverse
Childhood Events (ACE)

Mindfulness is free, simple and easy to put into practice. This book brought forth new routines and good reminders that were easy to implement to help guide myself back to a more mindful approach in my everyday life.
Book
I selected 10 Minute Mindfulness:71 Habits for Living in the Present Moment by Barrie
Davenport and Steve Scott. I’d like to think of myself as a mindful person; however since returning to school fulltime, I have noticed myself becoming more caught up in the day-to-day, and less mindful overall, which I can feel on a personal level; I feel more scattered, less focused and like I am always rushing and reacting. I work in an inpatient addictions center and utilize mindfulness techniques daily in both my interactions with my patients as well as my patient teachings and groups.
IMPROVING MINDFULNESS
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Two Topics of Interest
According to a recent study, practicing mindfulness can help shrink the amygdala, which is the fear center of the brain (Davenport & Scott, 2017). The amygdala is our emotional center and part of our limbic system, which governs our ability to bond, form and manage

In a recent study at the University of Massachusetts, participants spent only 27 minutes a day doing mindfulness practices for eight weeks and researchers noted increased grey matter on MR images (McGreevey, 2011). This measurement which can be seen on radiographic images, fully supports the authors claims.
The authors claim that mindfulness can help promote mental health and happier relationships is also validated by numerous studies. At the University of Bergen, two-thirds of study participants that underwent mindfulness based stress reduction reported clinically significant changes in seasonal affective disorders (Keyworth et al., 2014). In a recent study of diabetic and cardiac patients using mindfulness interventions were reported to have improved sleep, greater relaxation through decreased cortisol levels and decreased worry (Hjeltnes et al.,
2017).
Practice Application
Mindfulness practiced by nurses has been proven to decrease the patterns of thinking that contribute to medication errors, patient falls and other diagnostic mistakes. It has also shown increases in patient satisfaction, which in a hospital setting is important not only for our