Talking About Self-Harm – Video from Mind
What is self-harm? – Talking about mental health In this video from Mind, four individuals – Zainab, Lechelle, Debbie and Ben – openly share their
An Introduction to Mindfulness & Meditation
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the practice of staying aware of the present moment and noticing thoughts and feelings as they come and go. It can help you to feel more present in your body and surroundings, making it a useful grounding technique.
Mindfulness encourages you to remain in the present, while noticing and acknowledging things that occur internally or externally, e.g. the feelings in your body or sounds you can hear.
The Purpose of Mindfulness
It’s human nature to think about the past or worry about the future, and sometimes these anxieties can be overpowering and keep us stuck. Mindfulness can help us let go of worries and ground ourselves in the here and now. For some people, tuning into their surroundings and inner experiences can ease overwhelming emotions and stress.
Mindfulness can also be used as a distraction technique to help move away from the urge to self-harm. It may lessen intense emotions or allow your nervous system to settle, which can reduce feelings of panic.
Mindfulness is a skill and developing it may take time. If you think mindfulness could help you, it’s worth persevering with the practice even if it doesn’t work right away.
What is Meditation?
Meditation is a structured practice that helps to cultivate and create a sense of mindfulness. There are lots of different approaches to meditation, and finding the right one for you may involve trial and error.
Some examples of meditation practices include:
- Body scans
- Mantra meditation
- Focusing on breathing
- Guided meditations
- Visualisation meditations
- Somatic exercises
These methods can help you build the skill of mindfulness, which you can then draw upon in different situations to help you feel calmer and more relaxed.
Tips for Using Mindfulness and Meditation
You can use apps such as Headspace to practice general mindful behaviour or Calm Harm to use mindfulness during self-harm urges. You can also find free meditation practices on music streaming services like Spotify.
If meditation practices don’t feel right for you, mindfulness can still be part of everyday life. Here are some ideas you might like to try:
- Use a breathing technique, such as box breathing or belly breathing, to help steady your breath.
- Notice your natural breathing and gently slow it down if that feels helpful.
- Stretch or try slow, gentle movement, such as Hatha yoga.
- Eat or drink something slowly, noticing the tastes, textures and sensations.
- Look around you and notice what you can see, smell, hear or feel.
- Use a colouring book to focus your attention and help your body slow down.
Research suggests that even short daily mindfulness practices of around ten minutes can be linked with improvements in wellbeing and reductions in depression and anxiety over time in some people.
Meditation and mindfulness aren’t right for everyone, and that’s okay. For some people, feeling connected to the body can feel challenging, so only engage in these practices if they feel safe for you. You’re doing the best you can right now, and it’s okay to move at your own pace and find what supports you.
Resources Archive
I want to stop hurting myself
Download PDF Resource A helpful guide to reducing and stopping self-harm. This resource can help you if you’re trying to stop self-harming. If you want to
Why do people self-harm?
Download PDF Resource A helpful guide to understanding some of the reasons for self-harm. There are many reasons someone might self-harm. Those reasons can change
What is self-harm?
Download PDF Resource A guide to understanding self-harm, for you or someone you care about. Please be aware this resource mentions ways people harm themselves. What
An Introduction to Mindfulness & Meditation
Download PDF Resource What is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is the practice of staying aware of the present moment and noticing thoughts and feelings as they come
First Aid for Self-Harm
Download PDF Resource This information is not meant to replace seeking medical advice or treatment. THERE IS NO SAFE LIMIT OR FIRST AID APPROACH FOR