HSC Mental Health Memo Contributor
Joyce Becker, MS, OTR-L
Life Skills Coordinator/Psych Rehab Occupational Therapist

The Power of Mindfulness
A Core Skill in Psychiatric Rehabilitation at HSC

What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is “paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.” – Jon Kabat-Zinn (2003)

At its heart, mindfulness means being aware of what’s happening right now without trying to change it or judge it. It’s the opposite of going through the motions or living on “autopilot.” You may have experienced mindlessness when driving a familiar route and realizing you remember little of the trip or eating chips while watching a movie without noticing you'd eaten the whole thing. Mindfulness helps us wake up from this automatic mode and tune into our inner and outer experiences with clarity.

Why It Matters
Mindfulness is a core component of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and forms the foundation for other essential DBT life skills, including:

• Distress Tolerance
• Emotion Regulation
• Interpersonal Effectiveness

As part of HSC’s Life Skills program, mindfulness is taught to empower individuals in their recovery and support long-term wellness.

How Do We Practice Mindfulness?
Mindfulness can be practiced anytime, anywhere. It involves:

• Observing with your senses – noticing what you see, hear, feel, taste, or smell
• Participating fully – engaging in the moment with purpose and intention
• Doing one thing at a time – known as “one-mindfully”
• Not judging – avoiding comparisons or self-criticism
  
  

This can be done during everyday activities like breathing, eating, walking, or even showering.

Benefits of Mindfulness
The list of benefits continues to grow. Some of the most well-documented include:

• Improved focus and concentration
• Greater emotional regulation
• Mood stabilization
• Enhanced well-being
• Sharper memory
• Decreased rumination
• Better task completion
• Increased self-awareness
• Improved compassion for self and others
• Healthier relationships
• Stronger stress management skills

“Mindfulness allows us to become more aware of what we are sensing, to truly know what is going on both inside of ourselves, as well as around us, to listen more carefully, to pay attention without trying to change anything and to be less driven by habits of reaction by being more responsive.” -  Joyce Becker  

Mindfulness at HSC
At HSC, mindfulness is part of the evidence-based education we offer in our psychiatric rehabilitation program. Through structured life skills classes, our patients learn how to incorporate mindfulness into daily routines helping build skills that promote long-term healing, emotional balance, and meaningful change.

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 The mission of the Human Services Center is to provide individuals with a mental health or substance use disorder or both with effective, individualized professional treatment, enabling them to achieve their highest level of personal independence in the most therapeutic environment.

The mission of the Division of Behavioral Health is to support quality clinical treatment, recovery supports, prevention and crisis services with integrity to obtain positive outcomes for individuals with behavioral health needs.

To read previous editions of the Mental Health Memo visit https://dss.sd.gov/keyresources/news.aspx#mhmemo