How effective is mindfulness, anyway?

Once a spiritual process, now a common health practise found all over the world and within the literature of mainstream research. When I search meditation or mindfulness, it is undeniable how widely used it is, but is it trusted enough to be labelled as intervention?

Results are inconsistent, much like grounding. For the free thinkers out there, is it because meditation is widely accessible, free with low to no risk and notable gains? Through a clinical lens there is a need for further research before determining the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions on ADHD however the most meaningful benefits seen consistently are the reduction of stress and anxiety. And why would we not want that for our kids?

For children there is much literature to support that mindfulness teaches core skills such as attention and focus, emotional regulation and impulse control, which are also all executive functions. Also, that mindfulness supports children building tolerance to task switching and initiation. I see mindfulness as a tool for life but do get asked a lot how long it will take to see the benefits of practise. I think the answer varies greatly from person to person, however through researching its links to early intervention I noticed several articles stating that 8-week programs saw notable gains in children learning the skills of mindfulness.

A U.S doctor and spokesperson for the Centre for Whole-Child Education advocates for meditation as early intervention by providing kids with a psychological toolkit. The toolkit framework has been introduced to bridge the gap for kids with emotional regulation challenges and social anxiety. The framework focuses on co-regulation first and foremost and using some basic strategies to return to calm like breathing, naming it to tame it and grounding.

That feels good.

I tend to see meditation like mindfulness, and mindfulness much like interoception, it isn’t about sitting still for prolonged periods of time but more about noticing what is alive in the body, and the mind. Being with the silence, and the sensation rather than trying to elude it through distraction. 

Most schools incorporate some type of mindfulness into their classroom through apps like Smiling Mind. As mentioned on my Facebook page, the Calm app has an ADHD support series which focuses on learning to meditate, as an adult or young adult living with ADHD. 6 sessions, 5 minutes each, includes interoceptive content and makes a point of trying to bring light to the ‘upside’ to living with ADHD instead of focusing on the challenges. 

That also feels good.

To learn to meditate there are more traditional Zen Centres running in-person programs at Dhammaloka Centre, north of the river. Bodhinyana Monastery in Serpentine host a Sunday morning offering, attending to listen to a Dhamma talk can be a gentle, cultural experience for older children. East Fremantle and Kenwick run Sunday schools for children to attend in small groups, usually with a parent present. A small fee is often exchanged to support the program and volunteers that run it. City of Perth Library and local council libraries (Stirling, Fremantle and Cockburn) regularly run free mindfulness and yoga for kids sessions, especially during school holidays. Check their "Events" pages online.

For the itty-bitty workshoppers we include the well-known lion breathing exercise. Older kids get to deep-dive into the Interoception Curriculum with us guiding them. The mindfulness component in the older age groups is conversational and there are plenty of opportunities for introspection, and most importantly.. there are no wrong answers in the space.

We hope this has brought you some insights into the practise of mindfulness. In my experience as a parent and educator I would recommend mindfulness as a highly effective low risk, evidence-based tool to work alongside any primary intervention at any age.