The A.V. Department - August 2023

For the second instalment of the AV Department I've selected a video that isn't exactly current, but some ideas are timeless. I intentionally wanted to post a video about mindfulness and its benefits. Mindfulness (next to sleep, exercise, and eating well) is one of the best things you can do for your mental health. I've been practicing mindfulness for years, after I was introduced to its benefits in the early 2000s; it's also one of the central skills that are taught in DBT (dialectical behaviour therapy - the approach to therapy that I have the most training and experience with).

There are a lot of good videos out there about mindfulness. It's become pretty mainstream at this point. But there are also a lot of bad videos out there - it's a band wagon that quite a few influencers hopped on a few years ago. The trendiness of mindfulness amongst some content creators, and the poor quality of many of those videos, is not a reflection of it's value.

Mindfulness is a practice that has been around for centuries. Modern researchers have found it's beneficial for a number of things, like mental health, addiction, cardiovascular health, chronic pain management etc. Neuroscientists have been very interested to learn about the ways that regular mindfulness practices help to rewire our brains and how we respond to things. That means that there are also a lot of videos out there by scientists that are really good, but not necessarily geared toward helping the average person know how to apply it to their own lives.

So, I've selected this video from the Twill account. They have a lot of good resources about mental health and mindfulness. If this video piques your interest, I encourage you to check out more of their content! And if you'd like to know how a mindfulness practice might be beneficial to your mental health, I encourage you to speak to a licensed therapist who uses mindfulness in their practice. If you live in Alberta, Canada and you'd like to discuss it with me, feel free to check out my website, Calder Mental Health Services, and to book a session.