How Mindfulness Can Help You Build Resilience

As health care workers, we’re often faced with difficult, life-changing events. How we bounce back from these tough situations and build resilience may be different for each of us. There are many paths to becoming resilient. 

Each quarter on Employee Connections, the Resilience Committee will present one pathway to a more resilient life by starting with a single word. It will act as a springboard for reflection and discussion to help you incorporate resilience into your daily life. You’ll find opportunities for support through activities, challenges, inspiration from your coworkers and advice from experts – all beginning with just one word.

This quarter: Mindfulness

Please see the resources below for ideas and inspiration, and don’t hesitate to share them with your colleagues!

Employees Reflecting on Mindfulness

People have different ideas of what “mindfulness” means.

Greater Good, a magazine that explores the science of a more meaningful life, defines mindfulness as “maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations and surrounding environment through a gentle, nurturing lens.”

The video below showcases how your Methodist coworkers define it.

Practice Mindfulness with These Exercises

Mindfulness can be practiced anywhere in as little as three to five minutes.

Try one of these three exercises to get started: walking in the grass, mindful eating and grounding techniques for the five senses.

Learn more.

9-Minute Meditation

Some think that meditation means sitting on the floor cross-legged with your palms facing the sky, completely focused on your breath. However, meditation is really the practice of focusing your active mind to be present in the current moment – and it can be done wherever you are: at your desk, at your dining room table or while relaxing by the pool. Sessions can vary in length, from three minutes to 30.

Don’t be discouraged if you find your mind wandering as you begin to meditate. Give yourself grace and enjoy the journey of gently coming back to the present moment through your breath.

Reflections on Reslience is brought to you each quarter by the Methodist Hospital and Methodist Women’s Hospital Resilience Committee.