The video below presents a serious message in a funny way. It is important to know warning signs of a heart attack, stroke, as well as serious illnesses which are life threatening if not caught early. The reason it is crucial is so that prompt and appropriate medical care can be sought. Without that second step, the first becomes meaningless.

The scenario in this video brings to mind a misconception about mindfulness meditation. Many people have begun using the term mindfulness synonymously with simple attention to something as in the idea of being “mindful” or “aware” of whatever one is doing. Even a quick Google search will bring up a variety of mindfully-related terms ranging from mindful eating, cooking, and gardening to mindful speaking, working, and playing. These terms are all offshoots of the mindfulness meditation revolution. While the terminology may be similar, the meaning of the terms may be vastly different when arising simply from an advertising ploy attempting to capitalize on the mindful movement. The result- people are confused as to what mindfulness really is and more and more often I hear people saying they practice being “mindful.”

As a therapist I often hear people reference a variety of character quirks. They may admit that they are angry, anxious, type A, OC, tend to waste time, or some other flaw. Then, invariably, they add some variant of “that’s just the way I am” or “I have always been that way.” This later part, I have learned, is to let me know that they don’t expect their way of being to ever change. If betterment simply required being mindful these individuals would have already overcome their difficulties as one might argue that they were being “mindful” in their awareness. However, effective change rarely seems to come solely from awareness. In fact, without that second step of taking action, one can sit in awareness for quite some time. I have seen it time and time again in clients, friends, and even myself.

Even with awareness as a central tenant in the use of mindfulness, the action is inherently important. One might even argue that the “awareness” itself is an active process. When one is practicing awareness, one is tuning into all the senses. Let’s consider at the example in the video. The actress playing the role of busy mom portrays a woman who is “aware” at least on some level of her symptoms. We see her untucking her shirt, wiping sweat, and guzzling a handful of antacids. By the size of the bottle we can even guess that discomfort is not an uncommon experience for her. Yet she continues on, despite her awareness even in the face of symptoms that are brought to her “attention” by family members. Even as the mom speaks to 911 about her “little heart attack” we are privy to hints at her consciousness and thoughts of cleaning the house being in conflict with her bodily feelings and information consistent with her having a heart attack. The next step in true mindfulness is to notice the “all” of the situation, including the self-awareness of the bind, in order to set the stage for change.

So it seems to ring true, that it is futile to practice mindfulness without intention. This can be intention toward the breath…intention to bring wandering thoughts back…intention to sitting through uncomfortable feelings. Perhaps then, a crucial aspect of true mindfulness practice is taking responsibility by setting an intention and creating change, along with the act of noticing.

For further ideas of setting an intention to create change check out our article “Want Your Goals to Stick: Toss Out Your Goals and Set an Intention.”