Mindfulness Practice
Mindfulness and the Art of Paying Attention
For many people, the word mindfulness immediately brings up an image of sitting perfectly still in a quiet room, attempting to empty the mind of all thoughts.
While meditation is one way to practice mindfulness, mindfulness itself is much broader and more versatile. It can be practiced while walking, eating, gardening, listening to music, spending time with someone you love, or simply paying attention to the experience of breathing.
And the goal isn’t to stop thoughts from occurring, even when you’re meditating. Minds think. Attention wanders.
One of the most important parts of mindfulness practice is noticing when that has happened and bringing your attention back. Then it wanders again. You notice again. You bring it back again.
That’s not failing at mindfulness. That’s practicing it.
Mindfulness is the practice of intentionally guiding your attention. Rather than allowing worries, distractions, responsibilities, and internal commentary to determine where your focus goes, mindfulness helps you become more aware of where your attention is and practice choosing where you want it to be.
Like any skill, it can be practiced, strengthened, and refined over time.
The Science of Mindfulness
One of the reasons I regularly recommend incorporating mindfulness into therapy and everyday life is that this deceptively simple practice has been studied in a substantial body of scientific research.
Researchers have examined mindfulness based practices in randomized controlled trials across a wide range of populations and outcomes. Results suggest that mindfulness training can support several aspects of cognitive functioning, including executive attention, sustained attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility.
Mindfulness based approaches have also been studied for their effects on stress, psychological distress, anxiety, and emotional wellbeing. Overall, the research suggests that mindfulness can be a useful way to reduce stress and psychological distress while developing greater awareness of our thoughts, emotions, and habitual responses.
Researchers are also investigating what may be happening beyond our subjective experience of mindfulness. One particularly interesting area of research involves telomeres, the protective structures at the ends of our chromosomes that are associated with cellular aging, and telomerase, an enzyme involved in maintaining them. Scientists are investigating the relationship between mindfulness practices and these processes involved in cellular aging. I find this research fascinating because scientists aren’t only asking whether people feel different after practicing mindfulness. They’re also studying measurable physiological and biological processes in the body.
The research continues to develop, giving us an increasingly rich picture of the ways mindfulness practice may affect both our psychological experience and our physical bodies.
Attention Is Finite
One of the most useful ways to think about mindfulness is to consider what we can do with our attention.
Your attention is finite. Worry, self-criticism, rumination, distractions, responsibilities, and the demands of daily life can consume an enormous amount of it without our consciously deciding that’s where we want it to go. Mindfulness practice helps you get better at noticing where your attention has gone and intentionally bringing it back.
That doesn’t mean forcing unwanted thoughts away. In fact, trying not to think about something can paradoxically give it even more of our attention. Instead, we’re practicing the ability to notice: This is where my mind went. Is this where I want my attention right now?
Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes there’s something that needs your attention. And sometimes your attention has wandered so far from the present that you’re eating dinner while mentally having tomorrow’s meeting, replaying yesterday’s conversation, and worrying about something that might happen next week.
Mindfulness gives you practice returning your attention to the life that is actually happening now.
The Brain, the Body, and the Present Moment
Our bodies can respond not only to what is happening around us, but also to what we’re remembering, anticipating, imagining, or worrying about.
Mindfulness gives us another source of information: what is actually happening in this moment?
Through sensory awareness, breathing, mindful observation, and other practices, we deliberately bring attention to direct experience—what we’re seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, or feeling in the body.
That can be especially useful during stress. Paying attention to sensory information from the present moment can help with grounding and can be one part of supporting nervous system regulation.
And this doesn’t require pretending that everything is fine. The present moment may be uncomfortable. There may be something you need to address. Mindfulness is about becoming more aware of what you’re experiencing so you have more information about what is happening and how you want to respond.
How We Use Mindfulness in Therapy
In therapy, we can practice mindfulness in very simple ways.
We pay attention to the breath.
Notice sensations in the body.
Observe thoughts as they come and go.
Spend time intentionally focusing on what is happening in the present moment.
These practices are simple. That doesn’t mean they’re always easy—or that they don’t matter.
If you sit quietly and pay attention to your breathing for a minute, your mind will probably wander. You may remember something you need to do, start composing an email, revisit a conversation, or suddenly realize that you’ve been thinking about something entirely different for the last thirty seconds.
The practice is noticing and returning.
We can also figure out how mindfulness can realistically fit into the life you already have. Sometimes I work with clients to create a mindful recharge menu: a personalized collection of brief sensory experiences and mindfulness practices that feel pleasant, grounding, or restorative to you and that you can use in different circumstances.
Some might take only thirty seconds. Others can involve more time when you have it.
You might pause long enough to really notice a scent you enjoy, step outside and pay attention to the air on your skin, listen closely to a piece of music, or give your full attention to something you’re already doing.
Thirty seconds counts.
For someone who is accustomed to moving from one responsibility to the next, even a very small intentional pause can be meaningful. It gives you an opportunity to experience what happens when, for a moment, your attention isn’t automatically going to the next task, problem, worry, or person who needs something from you.
These brief practices are small, practical ways to begin building a different relationship with your attention and your experience. Sometimes that very small experience gives us useful new information about what else might be possible.
Returning to the Life That’s Happening Now
One of the things I appreciate most about mindfulness practice is that it is ultimately a practice of learning to just be.
It invites us to spend time with our lives as they are happening, rather than constantly rushing ahead to the next task, the next problem, or the next demand for our attention.
It helps us return to the conversation we’re having, the meal we’re eating, the person sitting across from us, the sound of the rain outside, or the feeling of the sun on our skin.
Life gets busy, complicated, and unpredictable, and mindfulness does not change that.
What it can do is help us notice when we’ve mentally left the moment we’re actually in and practice coming back to it.
And in a world that is constantly competing for our attention, that is no small thing.
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Your questions, answered
Do I have to meditate to practice mindfulness?
Not necessarily. Meditation is one form of mindfulness practice, but mindfulness can also be developed through everyday activities such as walking, eating, listening, or intentionally engaging with your surroundings.
Why do you use mindfulness in therapy?
I use mindfulness because it is one of the most effective ways to strengthen awareness, improve emotional regulation, support nervous system health, and help people become more present in their daily lives.
Is mindfulness about emptying my mind?
No. Minds produce thoughts – that’s what they do. Mindfulness is not about eliminating thoughts; it’s about changing your relationship with them.
What if my mind wanders constantly?
That’s completely normal. The practice is not keeping your attention perfectly focused. The practice is noticing when your attention has wandered and gently bringing it back.
Why do you use mindfulness in therapy?
I use mindfulness because it is one of the most effective ways to strengthen awareness, improve emotional regulation, support nervous system health, and help people become more present in their daily lives.
Licensed Professional Counselor
Cheryl Zandt
Telehealth Counseling in Washington DC and Virginia
Cheryl Zandt is a Licensed Professional Counselor providing online therapy for women in Virginia and Washington DC. For more than 20 years, she has worked with women experiencing anxiety, burnout, panic, relationship challenges, life transitions, and other sources of stress and overwhelm.
Her approach is thoughtful, collaborative, and grounded in curiosity about why we think, feel, and respond the way we do. She brings clinical experience and research-informed approaches to the work while recognizing that each client is the expert on her own experience.
Cheryl helps clients better understand what has been shaping their experiences, develop practical ways to respond differently, and have more choice in what happens next.
