Breathe in to the count of 4, hold for 2, and then out for 6       

Practice mindful drinking

                                     

 

Practice saying, “I am having the thought that...”

One-mindfully worry about whatever you want for 5 minutes

Practice three mindful jumping jacks.

 

Send good wishes to any one person.

 

Notice your thoughts passing like traffic

 

Mindfully eat popcorn or chips

Practice mindfulness of any smells

Notice being supported by your chair or the floor

 

Hug a tree and feel the sensations of the embrace.

 

Describe an object using only facts

 

Notice the sense of touch against your hands

 

Notice your thoughts passing like a train

 

Nonjudgmentally describe a picture

 

Observe your hand and draw it

 

Write out your day with just the facts

 

Notice clouds in the sky as they pass

 

Practice mindful stretching for 1 minute

 

Describe a food you don’t like without judgment

 

Pick up something from the ground. Look at it closely, trying to see each detail.

 

Attend to the embrace of the sheets and blankets or comforters around you as you lie in bed.

 

Take a walk in nature and notice what comes in through all your senses

 

Notice your thoughts passing like clouds in the sky

 

Notice just the eyes, lips, or hands of another person

 

Practice noticing "should" thoughts and replying with "oh well."

 

Sit outside watching who and what goes by in front of you without following them with your head or eyes.

                                         

Tense and release your muscles, one at a time, from your head to your toes

                                              

Stroke your upper lip with your fingernail. Stop stroking, and notice how long it takes before you can’t sense your upper lip at all.

Write down or draw about unhelpful thoughts on sticky notes to put inside a designated Unhelpful Box

When walking, notice the sensations of walking—your feet hitting the ground and rising up and down. Sometimes walk very slowly and notice. Sometimes walk very fast and notice.

 

Take a moment and practice the “nothing-to-do” mind. Let yourself become completely aware of your present experience, noticing sensations and the space around you.

 

   

Notice the facial expressions and movements of another person. Refrain from labeling the person’s emotions, thoughts, or interests. 

   

   

Practice mindfulness of thoughts by writing down your thoughts for 30 seconds and then crumpling up the paper and throwing the thoughts away.

 

 

Observe taste and the act of eating. Before saying a bracha, put something near your mouth and keep it in your mouth. Pay attention to the taste. Notice all the taste sensations.

“Urge-surf” by imagining that your urges are a surfboard and you are standing on the board, riding the waves. Scan your entire body and notice the sensations. Where in the body is the urge?

Listen to music, observing each note as it comes and the spaces between the notes. Try breathing the sounds into your body and letting them flow out again on your out breath.

Touch something—the wall, a fabric, a tabletop, a pet, a piece of fruit, a person. Notice the texture of what you feel and the sensations on your skin. Try it again with another part of your body.

Step back from your mind, as if you are on top of a mountain and your mind is just a boulder down below. Gaze at your mind, watching what thoughts come up when you are watching it. Come back into your mind before you stop.

Focus your attention on the sensations in your chest, your stomach, or your shoulders. Focus your attention on the place in your body where you feel tight or tense. Focus your attention on the space between your eyes.

Awareness while washing the dishes. Wash the dishes consciously, as though each bowl is an object of contemplation. Consider each bowl sacred. Follow your breath to prevent your mind from straying. Do not try to hurry to get the job over with. Consider washing the dishes the most crucial thing in life.

 

When you begin to feel overwhelmed or frazzled, say, “Just this one moment, just this one task,” to remind yourself that your only requirement at the moment is to do one thing—wash one dish, take one step, move one set of muscles. In this moment, let the next moment go until you get there.

 

Begin to inhale gently and normally (from the stomach), describing in your mind that “I am inhaling normally.” Exhale in awareness, “I am exhaling normally.” Continue for three breaths. On the fourth breath, extend the inhalation, describing in your mind that “I am breathing in a long inhalation.” Exhale in awareness, “I am breathing out a long exhalation.” Continue for three breaths.

Each time you inhale and exhale, as you inhale, be aware that “I am inhaling, 1.” When you exhale, be aware that “I am exhaling 1.” Remember to breathe from the stomach. When beginning the second inhalation, be aware that “I am inhaling, 2.” Slowly exhale, and be aware that “I am exhaling 2.” Continue up through 10. After you have reached 10, return to 1. Whenever you lose count, return to 1.

Imagine that your mind is a conveyor belt and that thoughts and feelings are coming down the belt. Put each thought or feeling in a box, put it on the conveyor belt, and let it go by. You are sorting thoughts and feelings as they come down the belt. Label the types of thoughts or feelings coming by (e.g., worry thoughts, thoughts about my past, thoughts about my mother, planning-what-to-do thoughts, angry feelings, sad feelings). Put them in boxes nearby for another time.

Breathing in, notice your breath. Then, keep your breath in your awareness. On the next breath, notice your hands. Then, keeping both in your awareness, expand your awareness to sounds on the next breath. Continue holding all three in awareness at the same time. Practice this awareness of threes at other times, selecting other things to be aware of. Keeping your focus on what you are currently doing, gently expand your awareness to include the space around you.

Breathe normally. Determine the length of your breath—the exhalation and the inhalation—by the number of your footsteps. Begin to lengthen your exhalation by one step. Do not force a more prolonged inhalation. Let it be natural. Observe your inhalation to see whether there is a desire to lengthen it. Now, lengthen the exhalation by one more footstep. Watch to see whether the inhalation also lengthens by one step or not. Only lengthen the inhalation when you feel that it will be comfortable. After 20 breaths, return your breath to normal.

 

Observe your breath: Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on the movement of your stomach. As you begin to breathe in, allow your belly to rise to bring air into the lower half of your lungs. As the upper halves of your lungs begin to fill with air, your chest begins to rise. As you breathe out, notice your belly, then notice your chest. Don’t tire yourself. As you breathe in, notice the brief pause when your lungs have filled with air. As you breathe out, notice the brief pause when you have expelled all the air. As you breathe, close your mouth and breathe in through your nose, noticing the sensations traveling up and down your nostrils. 

Awareness while cleaning the house. Divide your work into stages: straightening things and putting away books, scrubbing the toilet, scrubbing the bathroom, sweeping the floors, and dusting. Allow a good length of time for each task. Move slowly, three times more slowly than usual. Focus your attention entirely on each task. For example, while placing a book on the shelf, look at it; be aware of what book it is; know that you are placing it on the shelf, and know that you intend to put it in that specific place. Know that your hand reaches for the book and picks it up. Avoid any abrupt or harsh movement. Maintain awareness of the breath, especially when your thoughts wander.

Make sure you are comfy and close your eyes all or most of the way, whatever feels better. Now, put your hands on your belly. With your first mindful breath, notice your belly going up and down as your breath goes in and out. Now, take a second mindful breath, noticing if it is cold or warm as it comes in and leaves us. With the third mindful breath, notice if it is quick or slow, but don’t try to change it; just notice it as it is. Take the fourth mindful breath and consider where it comes from as it goes in you and where it is going as it leaves you. Let’s take our fifth mindful breath, noticing that our breath is always with us, no matter where we are.