I have a similar routine almost every morning. Since I do the same thing over and over again, I am rarely mindful of what activity I am participating in. It has become automatic. Often I am thinking about if the weather and how it changes so often in Chicago. I might be thinking about what I need to pack in my backpack for the day. I might be wrapped up in thoughts about how I would rather be in bed. It is common to not be aware or mindful of what we are doing in the moment if it is an activity that occurs every day. Normally, this would not create problems for me. One morning recently, my lack of awareness and mindfulness created some personal distress.

I was brushing my teeth as I normally would: wet toothbrush, unscrew cap of toothpaste, squeeze toothpaste on to toothbrush bristles, screw cap back on, proceed to place toothbrush in mouth, and brush teeth in different sweeping motions. Often, this flows without any problems. One particular morning, my mind wandered elsewhere and I did not notice that I had mindlessly placed sunscreen on my toothbrush instead of toothpaste. As I began to brush my teeth as normal, I noticed an intense bitter taste in my mouth and I was overwhelmed by the urge to immediately rinse out my mouth. In that moment, mindfully participating in brushing my teeth without letting my mind wander would have been effective in avoiding acquiring the knowledge of how my sunscreen tastes.  

Mindfulness can be its own separate practice. At the same time, this example shows how mindfulness can also be a lens we apply to everyday activities, like brushing our teeth. Once mindfulness skill taught in Great Lakes Therapy Center’s DBT skills groups is the what skill of participate. Mindful participation involves throwing yourself one mindfully into the moment without judgement. You brush your teeth to brush your teeth. You drink your coffee to drink your coffee. You take a walk to take a walk. It removes the thoughts of accomplishing a checklist or being distracted with what other tasks need to be done. Mindful participation is what we do to become grounded in the moment instead of our mind wandering to the past or to the future. 

Ways you could practice the participate skill on your own could be drinking your morning coffee without looking at your phone- throwing yourself into the sensory experience of drinking coffee. Another option could be fully participating in listening to your favorite music instead of having it on in the background during other tasks. If you are interested in learning other ways to apply the participate skill in your own life, contact Great Lakes Therapy Center to schedule an intake appointment for individual or group therapy.