The Counseling Center will teach students to become more “fully aware of the present moment” during a workshop series beginning this week.
The technique, called mindfulness, will be explored during an eight-week series of workshops beginning Thursday. They will be held from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. in Glen Esk.
Michael Bombardier, a doctoral intern at the center, will lead the sessions. He explained mindfulness is a method of focusing on the present, not the past or future.
“Mindfulness is a unique way of paying attention that involves being fully aware of the present moment without judging your experience or wishing it were different,” Bombardier said. “It means simply attending to the bare experience of life, without clouding your mind with mental chatter [like] thoughts and judgments.”
The techniques of mindfulness are applicable to all people, Bombardier said. They do not conflict with religious or spiritual beliefs.
The techniques can be applied to any activity. In the workshops, participants will practice mindful eating, walking, breathing, stretching, sitting, and other actions.
“Usually our minds are clouded by explanations, judgments and relentless commentary,” he added. “Mindfulness allows us to clear away these clouds and simply be with the raw experience of life, in a direct and immediate way.”
Bombardier has practiced mindfulness meditation for about six years. Towson began offering mindfulness workshops last fall.
“Both programs were highly successful and received rave reviews from students,” Bombardier said. “We hope to make mindfulness training a permanent fixture here.”
The center’s literature calls the technique a “powerful tool.”
“Mindfulness is not an idea, it’s a practice and a lifestyle cultivated by making a commitment to it over time,” the center said.
The Counseling Center offers an online self-help guide to mindfulness at http://www.towson.edu/counseling/. The site also offers research links and resources about the practice.
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