About Urban Mindfulness

Welcome to Urban Mindfulness, a website devoted to the practice of meditation and mindfulness for those of us who live in urban areas, particularly New York City.

Here you will find a variety of downloadable resources to help you along the path of cultivating peace and personal growth while immersed in the chaos and busyness of city living. Everything is provided free of charge (recession-friendly!).

In case you’d like more information on mindfulness and urban mindfulness in particular, here is an explanation from my inaugural blog post on Psychology Today:

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness has been described as “nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment” by Jon Kabat-Zinn. This refers to our ability to notice what we’re experiencing right now without critique or analysis. Thus, mindfulness is different from thinking. It’s the difference between thinking, “Oh, no! I’m late!” vs. noting that “Oh, no! I’m late!” is passing through your mind. The difference is subtle, but it can make a big difference in terms of our resultant emotional reaction and overall stress level. In fact, studies of mindfulness have shown that it is helpful in reducing stress and anxiety, alleviating chronic pain, and preventing relapse of depression.

The origination of mindfulness can be attributed historically to Buddhism. However, there is nothing particularly Buddhist about paying attention. In fact, people from all faiths and backgrounds can practice mindfulness in ways that deepen their own spiritual practice.

What is urban mindfulness?

Urban mindfulness refers to the practice of mindfulness in a city environment. Living in the city presents many unique benefits and challenges to the cultivation of mindfulness, which will be addressed in this blog. We have access to many unique experiences that can be used to develop our mindfulness practice. We can learn to meditate on the subway or cultivate compassion and gratitude for our city’s sanitation workers, for example. We also can use technology and local resources to support us, by using iPhone mediation programs or taking a mindfulness class.

Unfortunately, urban living presents many obstacles to the practice of mindfulness as well. Our senses are overly stimulated with sights, sounds, and smells of the city, thus making it hard to simply focus and pay attention. Our ready access to goods and services can be a drawback at times too, if we use it for distraction.

Interestingly, many of the wonderful writings on mindfulness come from people who live fairly cloistered lives. Within Buddhism, the practice of mindfulness and meditation developed in monastic settings in which monks were often cut-off from the outside world. This is an interesting—and ironic—development given that the historical Buddha’s own insights were based on his observations once he left his isolated and pampered existence within palace walls. Even our Western contemporary writers of mindfulness typically live in rural settings, which probably is not a coincidence. So, where does this leave the rest of us?

Having lived in Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and New York City, I’ve seen the rise of yoga studios and meditation venues, which IMO reflects our innate desire for relief from the busyness of urban living. I’ve also heard people talk longingly about their next opportunity to leave and attend a rural retreat. However, mindfulness need not be compartmentalized to these experiences or time spent in the countryside. We can—and should—develop ways to practice and incorporate mindfulness into our daily routines, whether riding the subway, having lunch at our desks, passing homeless people on the street, listening to street performers, or spending time on the playground with our kids.

Together, I am hopeful that we will develop a productive dialogue to help us cultivate peace, awareness, and purpose in the middle of it all.

Who is Urban Mindfulness

Jonathan Kaplan

founded Urban Mindfulness as a resource for all of us who struggle to maintain inner peace and sanity while living in a stressful environment. Professionally, I work as a psychologist and Director of the Stress Management Program at the American Institute for Cognitive Therapy in Midtown, Manhattan. My personal interest in mindfulness and meditation has grown since I studied Asian cultures at Tufts in the late 1980’s.

Later, while in graduate school at UCLA, I first formally introduced these practices to patients at a psychiatric hospital in South Central Los Angeles. Since that time, I found them to be helpful for people from many different backgrounds and with many different complaints. Recently, I won an award from the American Psychological Association for my work in this area.

Over the years, I’ve practiced various forms of meditation and endeavor to cultivate mindfulness in my daily life. This website grew out of my experiences–both personal and professional–on the difficulties of maintaining mindfulness while living in a chaotic, city environment. I welcome your feedback and sincerely hope that you’ll find interesting, helpful resources on this website.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Kaplan

kaplan [at] UrbanMindfulness.org

Blog Contributors

Jennifer Egert

is a clinical psychologist at the NY VA hospital and in private practice in Manhattan. She works from a mindfulness-informed perspective, and specializes in issues related to life transition, illness, and loss. Dr. Egert became interested in mindfulness through the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn, Mark Epstein and G.I. Gurdjieff and has taken classes with Dr. Ron Seigel in mindfulness and psychotherapy. She has had her own mindfulness practice for several years, is an avid photographer and artist, and enjoys exploring the connections between mindfulness practice and art

Irene Javors

is a licensed mental health counselor in private practice in NYC. She is a Diplomate of the American Psychotherapy Association. She is Adjunct Associate Professor, Mental Health Counseling Program, Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University. She has specializations in the areas loss and bereavement, companion animal loss, creativity, and aging across the life span. She practices insight meditation and is interested in the uses of mindfulness in counseling. She loves jazz and the syncopated sounds of NYC.

Rob Handelman

is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice at Union Square. He works from a mindfulness-based perspective, and specializes in stress, relationships, parenting, and career issues. In graduate school, he became interested in Eastern psychology while through the writings of Ram Dass (i.e., Journey of Awakening). Dr. Handelman has found that the power of being present is often the most healing, and that being mindful and accepting of our experiences is a true path to wholeness.

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