Mindfulness Matters, For Ourselves and Our Communities

Mindfulness.  A word that is thrown about on a regular basis and a concept I thought I was utilising with success on a regular basis.  I had read Eckhart Tolle’s “Power of Now” and was deeply committed to my inner peace throughout my day.  I had just begun to read Rick Hanson’s “Neuro Dharma” prompting the release of my bias that meditation practices were reserved for the yoga studio.  As fate would have it, I then received an email inviting me to join the international “Search Inside Yourself” educator training for improved emotional intelligence.  What a game changer! 

When not juggling my home commitments (as many of us do), I currently work part-time as a speech therapist and as a transformational life coach.  Three years ago, I began to incorporate my coaching content centred around self-awareness, self-management and the pursuit of intent and purpose into my speech therapy practice with teenagers who stutter.  Specifically, I now begin each session (or meeting when possible) with three breaths. The first is for us to release where we have been prior to our time together. The second is to just “be” in the new space together. The third is for setting our “highest intention” for what we hope to achieve individually in our time together. In doing so, I have felt a deeper sense of peace, availability, and connection with all my client interactions.  Many of my clients have expressed a similar effect, teenagers included!  

I believe we can all benefit from a few of these “three extra breaths” throughout our day. It may not be practical in some circumstances to do this out loud.  Take those moments and improve your individual experience. Whether we are active in a parenting role, walking into a work-related meeting or just standing in a queue, taking three breaths, and focusing on being present sets a new standard for positive outcomes.  There are plenty of opportunities to connect to our devices, let’s be the change and improve our human connectivity, one exchange at a time. 

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Dr. Penelope Alison

Dr. Penelope Alison has a BA in Sociology with a minor equivalency in Psychology from UC Santa Barabara, an MA in Communication Disorders from Cal State Fullerton and a PhD in Speech Pathology, specifically Fluency, from Wits. Penelope was born in South Africa and immigrated to California as a young child, however, her love for South Africa brought her back year after year.In 2006, she took a giant leap of faith and returned to her roots. While she began in the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg, she now lives on a farm in the Midlands of KwaZulu-Natal with her husband and two children.

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• Mindfulness Matters, For Ourselves and Our Communities - March 7, 2024