Mindful Awareness
Mindful awareness helps you to be aware of thoughts and feelings, and to focus on the present and what is most important to you.
Read An Introduction to Mindful Awareness
Why is mindful awareness important?
Mindful awareness is at the heart of Whole Health. It can help you live your life more fully, with all its joys and challenges. In general, mindful awareness may:
- Improve your quality of life, helping you experience more moments of your life.
- Help you see things as they are and observe—but not judge—your experiences.
The resources offered here will help you learn about and practice mindful awareness.
Whole Health Handouts
Mindful Awareness Practice in Daily Living
Precautions with Using Mindful Awareness Practices

What is Mindfulness?
Part 1 of the five-part series on Mindfulness from the clinical staff of the VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

Why Mindfulness for VA?
Part 2 of the five-part series on Mindfulness from the clinical staff of the VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

Four Ways to Cultivate Mindfulness
Part 3 of the five-part series on Mindfulness from the clinical staff of the VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

Beginning a Mindfulness Practice
Part 4 of the five-part series on Mindfulness from the clinical staff of the VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

Mindfulness and Compassion
Part 5 of the five-part series on Mindfulness from the clinical staff of the VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

The Complete Introduction to the STAR Well-Kit
From VA's War Related Illness and Injury Study Center.

Mindfulness Meditation STAR Well-Kit
Veteran Patrick Crehan discusses the benefits of mindfulness meditation.
These meditations are tools to help you raise your awareness of present and what is most important to you.
- Introduction to Meditation with Dr. Greg Serpa (5 mins.)
- Grounding Meditation (5 mins.)
- Mindfulness of Breathing Meditation (10 mins.)
- Mindfulness of Sounds Meditation (10 mins.)
- Compassionate Breathing Meditation (10 mins.)
- Loving Kindness Meditation (10 mins.)
- Body Scan Meditation (15 mins.)
- Body Scan with Loving Kindness Phrases (15 mins.)
- An Intro on Mindfulness and Using the Personal Health Inventory (22:16 mins.)
- Paced Breathing (7:15 mins.)
- Mental Muscle Relaxation (5:01 mins.)
- Mini Mental Vacation (7:39 mins.)
Mindfulness Coach App
This app provides a gradual, self-guided training program designed to help Veterans’ understand and adopt a simple mindfulness practice.
Mindfulness: Embracing the Moment
Veteran’s experience with mindfulness.
Evidence Map of Mindfulness
From VA’s Health Services Research & Development.
Comeback Yoga
Free yoga classes to help military personnel, their families and supporters develop resiliency in response to their experience.