Exploring Mindfulness to Help Steady Bipolar Disorder

A mini course to help you understand and practice mindfulness.

Let’s go on a mindfulness journey. | Image made by author with Canva AI.

Hi there!

Two white metal deck chairs sit behind my garden shed. When I sit there, all I can see is trees, wildflowers, and gray squirrels. Too many squirrels. For a few minutes, the rest of my neighborhood doesn’t exist.

One afternoon, tuckered out from 90-degree (32.2 C) heat and 3 hours of mowing, I trudged back to my sanctuary and collapsed into a chair. Moments later, my mind lost in reviewing the chores still on my to-do list, a tan and brown hawk came and landed on the birdbath only a few paces away from me.

My bird friend and I just looked at each other for a long moment. Then he (she?) took a few drinks of water and flew away. For those few seconds, my world was only me and the hawk. The other stress I was fighting quietly slipped out of my thoughts.

That’s when the power of mindfulness finally sunk into my thick head.

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What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to the present moment on purpose, without judgment.

Think of it as hitting the pause button on your busy mind. Instead of letting your thoughts jump between the past (what you did in third grade) and the future (where you will live when you’re 85), mindfulness brings your focus to the right now. It’s noticing what is going on with your body, your environment, and your breathing.

You can practice mindfulness by noticing:

• The feeling of your breath going in and out.

• The sounds you can hear around you.

• The sensation of your feet on the ground.

• One thought in your head. (And only one!)

When your mind wanders off into other thoughts (which mine always does), gently recognize the diversion and gently bring your attention back to the present moment.

Mindfulness is not about stopping your thoughts, but rather observing them one at a time.

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How can mindfulness help you?

Mindfulness is a useful tool for people with bipolar disorder. It can help you reduce stress, improve focus, and stop the start of a panic attack.

Mindfulness helps me slow down the racing thoughts spinning in my mind. When I consciously focus on one thing, such as the sensation of my bare feet in the grass, my brain takes a step back. Any overwhelm feels lighter, the thumping in my chest less violent.

It’s impossible to focus on two things at once, so when you force yourself to focus on one, everything else becomes less intense.

Are there any risks to mindfulness or meditation?

Generally, no. Teaching your mind to slow down and be fully present has many benefits, such as decreasing depression symptoms, lowering heart rates, and relaxing tight muscles.

The one caveat comes from meditation. In one study, test results suggested some meditation could trigger psychosis, especially if the individual is in a manic cycle.

This possibility doesn’t close the door to your practice of mindfulness, but it is an item to consider. A few variations can decrease the chances of triggering psychosis. One suggestion is to focus on breathing and the things in your nearby surroundings rather than trying to explore more complex philosophies or cosmic energy.

While we will touch briefly on meditation this week, the main focus will be on mindfulness, and that’s useful for everyone.

How can you practice mindfulness?

Many ignore mindfulness because they don’t know how to do it. Not wanting to appear ignorant, they never learn more.

Truth be told, I was one of those people for a long time. To me, mindfulness was for hippies and stoners.

Then I learned a grounding technique, and it completely changed the way I deal with panic attacks.

5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Exercise

This exercise uses your five senses to bring you back to the present moment.

1. 5 Things You Can See: Look around you and name five things you can see. It can be anything, like "a blue chair," "a floor lamp," "an oak tree outside the window," or "my hand."

2. 4 Things You Can Touch: Notice four things you can physically feel. This could be "the texture of my shirt," "the ground beneath my feet," "the smoothness of the table," or "the warmth of the sun on my skin."

3. 3 Things You Can Hear: Listen carefully and identify three sounds you can hear. It might be "the sound of traffic in the distance," "birds chirping," or "the hum of the refrigerator."

4. 2 Things You Can Smell: Bring your awareness to two things you can smell. This could be "the scent of coffee," "the smell of soap on my hands," or "the fresh air coming through the window." If you can't identify two smells, you can instead think of two scents you enjoy or dislike, even if they aren't present now. I always try to remember the smell of sheets dried outside on a clothesline.

5. 1 Thing You Can Taste: Notice one thing you can taste. This might be "the lingering taste of breakfast," "the taste of your own mouth," or "a piece of gum." If you don't have a taste, try to think of your favorite taste to bring that sensation to mind. (Chocolate, anyone?)

Take deep, slow breaths throughout the exercise, and focus on each sense one at a time. When you get down to things you can taste, you should feel noticeably calmer.

What’s next?

We’re not done with mindfulness. Tomorrow (paid subscribers), we’ll cover more ways to practice mindfulness and how to use each option. Later this week, we’ll cover how to add mindfulness to your daily routine, and how doing so can improve your relationships.

Monday’s Journal Prompt: How do you currently handle stress? What would your life be like with less anxiety?

Until next time, keep fighting.

Scott Ninneman

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Scott Ninneman is the author of Speaking Bipolar’s 30 Days of Positivity and the writer behind SpeakingBipolar.com. Living in the mountains of southeast Tennessee, he spends his days crunching numbers as a tax preparer and his nights caring for his mother and writing stories about bipolar life. (And he loves pandas.)

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