Autumn Mindfulness for Difficult Days
Do you think of yourself as someone who meditates? Probably not! But, in fact, people who enjoy craft actually meditate on a regular basis. Every time you stop to make something with your hands and truly pay attention to the moment, you are allowing your mind to slow down and this can have the same positive effect as practising meditation. Even if your hips no longer allow you to get into child's pose!
And you don't need to have a creative project in your hands to experience this. The natural world offers all sorts of opportunities to practise the same gentle attention, particularly at this time of year. There is something about autumn that makes us more aware of change. The days grow shorter, familiar landscapes transform, and trees that were green only weeks ago turn brilliant shades of gold, copper and red. It's a beautiful season, but it can also be a melancholy one.
For anyone experiencing grief, anxiety or a difficult period of uncertainty, autumn can feel particularly poignant. Watching the natural world shift around you can be a reminder of life's impermanence, of things lost and of how little control you have over what happens next.
But autumn offers something useful, too.
Just as you might become absorbed in the colours and textures of a creative project, you can practise directing that same attention towards the world around you, too. Rather than trying to stop change, or forcing yourself to feel positive about it, you can simply notice what's here, right now.
And there's some fascinating science behind why this might help:
Why your mind struggles with uncertainty
When life becomes overwhelming, your thoughts have a tendency to travel in two directions: backwards, replaying events you cannot change, or forwards, worrying about things that haven't happened yet. Psychologists call repetitive, negative thinking about your experiences rumination. It's particularly common during periods of stress and emotional difficulty.
Both mindfulness and craft offer a way of interrupting this cycle. Not by suppressing difficult emotions or pretending everything is fine, but by gently directing your attention towards what is happening right now.
Why nature makes a difference
There is also evidence that spending time in natural surroundings can help interrupt repetitive negative thinking.
In a fascinating 2015 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Stanford University researchers compared people who took a 90-minute walk in a natural environment with those who walked through a busy urban setting.
The nature walkers reported less rumination afterwards. Brain scans also showed reduced activity in a region associated with this kind of repetitive thinking.
The researchers concluded:
"accessible natural areas may be vital for mental health"
It was a relatively small study, and it doesn't establish that a short walk will have the same effect. Nevertheless, it suggests that nature offers more than a pleasant change of scenery.
And autumn gives you an especially rich environment in which to practise, whether you walk or simply spend time sitting amongst the trees.
Try this: The Autumn Mindfulness Five Senses Walk
One simple mindfulness technique is called 5–4–3–2–1 grounding. Recommended by the NHS, it involves deliberately engaging your senses to bring your attention away from overwhelming thoughts and back to your immediate surroundings.
You don't need any special equipment, a peaceful woodland or even very much time. A garden, local park or tree-lined street will do.
Allow yourself five or ten minutes to walk slowly, or simply find somewhere comfortable to sit.
5 things you can see
Look around and identify five things that catch your attention. Perhaps a scarlet maple leaf, the delicate veins of a fallen beech leaf, or sunlight filtering through branches. Notice colours, patterns and shapes you might normally overlook.
4 things you can feel
Bring your attention to physical sensations. Feel the cool air against your cheeks, the ground beneath your feet, or the papery texture of a fallen leaf between your fingers. Notice the contact of your clothes against your skin.
3 things you can hear
Pause and listen. Can you hear leaves rustling overhead? Birds calling? Footsteps crunching on the path? You don't have to find peaceful sounds. Simply notice whatever is there.
2 things you can smell
Perhaps there's the earthy scent of damp leaves or woodsmoke drifting through the air. If nothing is particularly noticeable, that's fine. Just pay attention to the air as you breathe.
1 thing you can taste
Notice any lingering taste in your mouth, or take a sip from a flask of warm tea.
When you've finished, take a moment to notice how you feel.
You may feel calmer, or you may not. Either response is perfectly normal. The aim isn't to manufacture a particular emotion. It's simply to give yourself a few minutes away from the constant demands of thinking, worrying and planning.
A small practice for you...
Next time you feel overwhelmed, try stepping outside and finding a tree. Notice what's changed since you last looked at it. Pick up a fallen leaf and study its colour, texture and delicate structure.
For a few minutes, give yourself permission not to solve anything.
Your worries may still be waiting when you return. Your sadness may still be there. But perhaps you'll have created a little space around those feelings, enough to help you approach the rest of your day with a steadier mind.
Sometimes coming back to yourself doesn't require a dramatic transformation. Sometimes it begins with noticing a single leaf.
If you fancy indulging in an hour or two of woolly meditation, try our needle felting kit, Autumn. It is filled with glorious autumnal wool colours, needles and templates to help you make some sweet little decorations for fall.
Comments