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Hazelbrook Community Center Colorado
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Hazelbrook

Techniques for Staying Centered in Your Recovery: Mindfulness Practices for Sober Living

Mindfulness is a practice that helps you stay focused on the present moment and become more aware of your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings. It involves paying attention to your thoughts and emotions without judgment, and accepting them as they are, rather than trying to change or suppress them.

Think of it like taking a mental break from the chaos of daily life to check in with yourself and tune out distractions. It’s a way to slow down and be more intentional in your actions and reactions – especially stress and negative emotions.

Here are 5 ways to practice mindfulness:

  1. Incorporate mindful breathing into your daily routine to boost your present-moment awareness and improve your mental state. This is done by stopping for a moment and simply focusing on your breathing. The natural rhythm of the inhale and exhale of your breath.

  2. Try a body scan meditation to identify areas of stress or tension in your body and reduce physical discomfort. Start by getting comfortable in a seated or lying position. Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Begin to focus on different areas of your body and see if you feel pain, tension, or stress. Becoming aware of what is happening in your body is a great way to get better sleep, decrease stress and increase your self compassion.

  3. Take a leisurely walk and practice walking meditation to connect with nature and feel more grounded in your surroundings. By slowing your pace and being aware of the movements of your body such as your foot lifting up and then striking the ground first with your heel and then transferring the weight to the ball of your foot, you become more aware of the mechanics of your body. This is a great way to learn more about how your body moves and works for you.

  4. Boost your positivity and improve your outlook on life by reflecting on the things you are thankful for in a gratitude meditation. You can do this by writing things down in a gratitude journal, or by sharing them with someone else.  Challenge yourself to come up with 100 unique things to be thankful for! 

  5. Practice loving-kindness meditation to cultivate empathy and compassion towards yourself and others, which can be especially beneficial in your recovery journey. Slow down and intentionally think first about receiving loving-kindness. Bring to mind someone who has shown you support. Imagine receiving that from them again. Now start thinking about others: someone you care about, someone who is neutral in your life, and then someone who is difficult. 

Check out these free Meditation Apps

There’s an app for that! Check out these FREE meditation apps to help you with your mindfulness.

  1. Insight Timer – www.insighttimer.com
    Grab this app to receive meditations and talks led by the world’s top meditation and mindfulness experts. 
  2. Mindfulness Coach – https://mobile.va.gov/app/mindfulness-coach  
    Are you looking to learn about and embrace mindfulness as a healthy coping strategy and lifelong skill? This is the app for you! Designed to help service men and women experiencing PTSD, it is now available for anyone to download. 
  3. Smiling Mind – www.smilingmind.com.au
    With the desire to help every mind thrive, this app uses evidence-based tools to support people in improving their mental health in fun and interactive ways.
  4. Healthy Minds Program – hminnovations.org/meditation-app
    This app uses scientific research to provide tools that train your mind to unlock the four pillars of well-being, based on decades of research by HMI: awareness, insight, connection, and purpose.
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