“Mindfulness increases the awareness of the Nature of the Mind. If we learn to Control our Mind and Listen to our Souls we can consciously choose to be Joyful instead of sad, Peaceful and Loving, Alert and Relaxed.”~ Natasa Pantovic Nuit

Let me tell you about my first experience with mindfulness

Barely 4 years ago, I chose to take probably the greatest choice of my life. I quit my job in London working in Finance for one of the world’s biggest energy organizations and moved back to India where I grew up.

After years of a futile daily existence and a totally frenzied and unfortunate timetable, I concluded the time had come to truly assess what I truly needed from life. 

Within half a month of coming back, through pure chance, I ended up attending a workshop on mindfulness and mental wellbeing. Those 2 days were life-altering as I found out about how I work as an individual, how my brain works, and in particular, I found out about mindfulness.  We covered some basic methods of being mindful every day through breathing and practices, for example, careful strolling. 

My life was extremely fast-paced then and it was reflected by my thoughts and feelings. Mindfulness became the antidote to those racing thoughts. Mindfulness became my chance to pause for a few moments and enjoy the moment and become more self-aware of my mind and body.

Developing my practice.

This is how I practice mindfulness everyday, through simple exercises!

Mindful chai: In India, we love our chai! Furthermore, I discovered practicing mindfulness with my tea very relaxing. I would connect every one of my senses while having to taste my tea 

• Smelling the fragrances of the tea 
• Notice the unique flavors, for example, ginger or cardamom 
• Tuning in to any sounds in my mouth or throat as I drink 

Sensory mindfulness: This is something I would accomplish for a couple of moments at my work area to revive myself. Taking a couple of moments to check out the room getting mindful of the space around me along with any sounds and scents in the room. I would follow this with 3 deep breaths. 

Beginning to See the Advantages!

These activities above took under 5 minutes of my time but were very effective ways for me to practice mindfulness and give my mind a short break! I likewise saw a major distinction in my own standpoint towards life. I began getting looser consistently and ready to see more clarity in my own perspective.

As a person, I am generally very edgy or restless when facing situations. In the past few years, I have seen a major change in my outlook. I’ve slowly made it a habit when taking decisions or confronting situations to look at the bigger picture and make a choice whole-heartedly. This isn’t a change that has come quickly, bit simple things like taking 3 full breaths when I’m feeling restless helped me feel better.

Another big revelation for me through mindfulness was slowly becoming more aware of my body. For the first time ever, I was able to notice little things like when I had overeaten or was feeling the tension in my upper back due to bad posture.

Taking a couple of seconds to get mindful of my body and my state played a big role in this. Towards the end of the day, before sleeping I generally take 12 deep breaths following a ‘pranayama’ technique I learnt at a care retreat. 

Mindfulness and Physical Wellbeing.

Mindfulness has additionally encouraged me all the more as of late through a very testing period in my existence with my wellbeing. Two years ago, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition and an underlying leaky gut. For those of you familiar with autoimmune conditions and diseases, you will be aware that these conditions generally have no cure, they can be maintained through factors such as your diet, sleep and mental wellbeing. 

The first year was hard on me. My immune system started attacking my inner cheeks and gums and the inflammation resulted in several ulcers in my mouth that would often last over a month. It was painful physically and challenging mentally.

The lack of control over the situation and being subject to flare-ups with no pattern made me anxious which further aggravated the issue.

My condition is chronic and I still have periods of severe inflammation. But I have seen a link between the times when I meditate regularly and my physical health. 

Moving from Practicing Mindfulness Myself, to Helping Others.

In 2018, as I deepened my practice of mindfulness, I also started connecting with meditation teachers and wellness experts; and together we started facilitating mindfulness and personal growth workshops for working professionals. Over the course of 2 years, I facilitated workshops for over 600 individuals and right from college students to CEOs.

Mindfulness seemed like a practice with a universal appeal. 

About a year ago, I finally decided that this is something that gave me immense satisfaction and I committed the next 5 years of my life towards helping people with mental wellbeing and personal growth. I launched a startup called Evolve and our mission is to make mental wellbeing simple and joyful! And mindfulness is a big part of it! 

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