 Welcome, everyone, to depression, to expression. Yes, I'm actually taking something off of the backdrop. Okay, we're going to talk about mindfulness today. And maybe I'll do an example here with a guitar, even though it's way out of tune. I want to talk about a few things. What mindfulness is? Let's cut the bullshit. It's not complicated. If you've had a definition or someone's told you about mindfulness and they confused you, they're wrong. I'm going to tell you a real simple definition, two definitions actually. And then I'm going to talk about why you need it, why it's so important, why it's going to completely change your life, why it's simple to integrate into daily activities. And then lastly, I'm going to talk about how it really helped me with creating a positive state and maintaining positive state of mental health and especially with anxiety. So let's do this. So here's a beautiful definition from our friend, John Kabat-Zinn, who really brought mindfulness to the West here. And just so I don't mess it up, I'm going to read it down here. Mindfulness is paying attention in a particular way on purpose in the present moment and non-judgmentally. So I want to focus on two words there, on purpose, the two words in that definition, on purpose. Because if you play a sport, for example, or you play guitar, let's say football. You don't need to really do a meditation and really practice mindfulness in that circumstance. Adrenaline moves you, instinct moves you. Your goal is to get the ball into the end zone without getting your ass kicked. That's it. So in that case, mindfulness isn't exactly necessary. And we practice mindfulness not even on purpose. So how many of you have drawn something, created something, built something, worked on a project that you're passionate about? Have you ever forgotten to eat because you've been so focused on a project that you absolutely love? I know I have. So we do these things not on purpose, but just because we love what we do, we are completely focused and involved at the task at hand. That's mindfulness. And you've practiced that since you were born. You just haven't known it. We just haven't attached this new, fancy name to it, mindfulness. But we do that all the time. When I play guitar, you get into the zone. It doesn't need to be on purpose. You ask musicians, they get into the zone. That's just what music does to people. That's what sports do to people. That's what art does to people. That's what working on something that you're passionate about does to you. So we've all practiced mindfulness before. It's paying attention in the present moment. That's it. I want to give you another definition before we get into the little nitty gritty gritty gritty gritty. Mindfulness is noticing what is happening right now. Well, that's an easy one. That adds simplicity to the definition. And I didn't lie. I told you it was easy. Mindfulness is noticing what is happening right now. Huh. So, as I said, when you're playing sports, when you're playing guitar, when you're doing something fun that you're passionate about, well, mindfulness is easy. But what about when you're doing the dishes? What about when you're walking to work? What about when you're vacuuming? What about when you're cleaning? Right? What about when you're getting dressed? What about when you're in the shower or brushing your teeth? Doing the everyday things that we really don't want to do. And we're usually removed from those things thinking about what we would rather be doing. Right? You're brushing your teeth in the morning. You're already thinking about what the first task you have to do at work is. You're already at work when you're brushing your teeth in your apartment condo or house. That's strange, isn't it? That's why we bring mindfulness into our days. We don't need it for the sports. We don't need it for the guitar. We don't need it for things that automatically grab our attention because they're awesome. We need it so that we can actually enjoy life and enjoy the things that we do every single day but remove ourselves from them. That's why. That's why. How could you ever say you lived when you're never actually in the present moment? You always want to be somewhere else. That's the power of mindfulness. Okay? So here's what we're going to do. Next time you do the dishes. Next time you do the dishes. Ask yourself the second definition. What is happening right now? Bring that definition into your mind. What is happening right now? And you could say, well, I'm doing the dishes. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. That's the umbrella definition. That's the action. What is happening while you're doing the dishes? I have a blue sponge in my hand and I'm gripping it gently. And there's suds running down my wrist. And in the other hand, I have this ceramic plate. And it's white. And the temperature is fairly warm. And as I rub the sponge on the plate, I see more suds appearing underneath. And now I'm going to go with my left hand and grip the faucet. Slowly turn it upward. And I feel the temperature of the water. And it's slightly cooler than the others. And I'm bringing the plate underneath. And I see all the suds falling off. Hitting the sink. Traveling down the drain. And that's one example. Now that's what's happening in the sink. And with your hands. But what are you hearing as all that's going on? Right? What are you feeling in your feet? What's the temperature of the floor? What are you also seeing outside the sink? I'm looking outside my window right now and it's cloudy and it looks very cool and windy. Well, that's another thing. What are you tasting as you're doing the dishes? See, we can bring attention to all of these senses. You think you're just doing the dishes. But there's so much more happening in the present moment. And that one word, happening. Not happened. Not is going to happen. But happening. Happening is the present. Right? Think about it. Happened. Happened. Future. Happening is the present. And that's just one task that you have to do every single day. Brushing your teeth. Focus on sensations. That's mindfulness. Focus on the sensation. What are you feeling? Not why are you feeling it. Not why this is happening to you. But what is happening? So we have two definitions of mindfulness and those are in the description below. Please remind yourself of those. We have a simple example of doing the dishes. And then thirdly, it's helped me so much with anxiety because of what I just said. It's the what versus the why. And if you've ever been anxious before and if you're human watching this, you probably have. Of course you have. It's a very normal and healthy emotion. We always ask why. Why am I anxious? Why do I feel this way? Why me versus what is happening? What is this feeling? What is going on in my body? What am I thinking about? What is happening in my mind? That is the difference, my friends. That is the difference. That is how mindfulness can help. When you're doing the dishes and completely aware of what the present moment has to offer, you're not thinking about what happened. You're not thinking about what might happen and what if in five years down the road, an hour from now, what you're going to do at work after you do the dishes, what show you're going to watch on Netflix next. No. You wash the dishes. That's what you do. That's what you are doing. That's the task at hand. Mindfulness brings you into the present moment. And no task is... No task is... I don't want to word this. No task offers such low stimulation that you can't bring mindfulness into it. Walking has enough stimulation for you to focus on a million things. Anything you do, you have senses to work on. As you're walking, what's happening with my feet? What am I seeing? What am I smelling? What am I touching? What's the feeling of the jacket on my skin, my t-shirt on my skin? What am I hearing? The sound of traffic. As you focus more, maybe I hear the birds. Maybe I hear people talking in front of me. That's the power of mindfulness. You take away the future. You take away the past. And you come into the present moment. What is happening right now? Do it on purpose. Do it non-judgmentally. Wash the dishes when you wash the dishes. Please like the video if you enjoyed it. My name is Scott from Depression to Expression. Please like. Please comment. Please subscribe. And I'll see you soon. Take care. Stay strong. Don't forget to express yourself and question everything.