Physician wellness, season extra: Mindfulness exercise

Taken from episode 2 of the 2024 TrendsMD podcast series on Physician Wellness, this mindfulness exercise is led by Dr. Charlotte Howard, a licensed psychologist and founding member of Deep Eddy Psychotherapy in Austin, Texas.

This quick exercise can help you remove judgement from an experience, a feeling, or a thought and remain open and curious in the present moment.

Access this 6-minute exercise at any time to practice (or learn) this mindfulness technique.

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Additional episodes in this series:

Episode 1: Physician wellness and burnout

Episode 2: Mindfulness

Episode 3: The science of self-compassion

Season extra: Self-compassion break

Episode 4: Physician healing and getting the most out of therapy

Charlotte Howard: Okay. So, let's slow it down a little bit here and close your eyes. If you're in the middle of doing something, you can try practicing the other way that we just talked about, which is to keep doing it, but also taking my cue simultaneously around orienting toward what you're experiencing. But if you're in a place where you can do this, we're going to close your eyes. There's just so much data from the outside that it'll help us with the practice to go internally if we have our eyes shut. And take a couple slow deep breaths.
 

You can feel your diaphragm descending and ascending, massaging the organs.
 

You might feel the air coming in through your nostril.
 

You might notice the temperature in the room or anything touching your skin like your clothes or where your feet are on the ground or your bottom of the chair. Just noticing any physical sensation that you're having.
 

Continuing to breathe deeply and bring your attention to that.
 

You might also notice some feelings. At least check inside to see if there are some.
 

You might notice physical feelings like you're tired. Or sad. Or tension in the chest or in the belly. Or maybe you notice openness. Relaxation.
 

But whatever you're feeling, it's okay. And that's the key here. So, you can feel it. No matter what sensations you're feeling, it's okay with you. You're not judging them. They're not positive or negative. They just are.
 

So, if you're a little cold or a little warm, a little too bright or too dark, or your tummy hurts or your shoulder hurts, or whatever you're feeling, or maybe you feel a positive or open, relaxing feeling, it doesn't matter. You're just noticing. Letting them be okay, it's just a sensation. You could even say, oh isn't that interesting, like, oh my back hurts, or, oh, oh, isn't that an interesting sensation, and you're just really okay with it, you're making space to just let it be.
 

Continuing to breathe, letting your breath ground you and your body, bring you back to sensation.
 

And you might notice your thoughts, and if they wander, or you're thinking quickly, or slowly, or whatever you're thinking, you just notice those thoughts, and notice how non-judgmental you can be with them. Oh, okay. Thoughts. Isn't that interesting? My mind wandered. And coming back to the breath, you're noticing sensation, non-judgmentally.
 

And if you find yourself judging a sensation or a feeling, then you just notice that, oh, isn't that interesting, I was judging. And that's okay, you're just not judging the fact that you're judging.
 

Take some time scanning your body, your heart, surrendering to whatever is in this moment. Embracing it, let it be, just noticing, no judgment.
 

This is the only moment that you'll be this age, in this day of the week, at this time of day, and you're just noticing, what's that like?
 

No right or wrong way to be in this moment, all you have to be is exactly what it is.
 

Taking a few more slow, deep breaths, noticing the sensation of breathing, being alive in this moment, what it's like to be you, knowing everything is okay.
 

And continuing your attention in the present moment but opening your eyes. And ready to continue your day relaxed and refreshed.

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