Everyday Mindfulness Practices Can Help Manage Stress and Anxiety

In today’s stressful society with news reports and events occurring that can lead us toward an ever-increasing amount of stress and anxiety, one approach which can help is that of mindfulness to help address the uncertainty," Mark A. Mahoney wrote in a guest-opinion column published Feb. 17, 2026 (updated 7:19 a.m. ET) in the Tallahassee Democrat. Mahoney frames his piece as practical and prescriptive and directs readers toward a short, teachable technique recommended by Dianna Winston, director of mindfulness at the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center.

Dianna Winston is quoted directly in Mahoney’s column: "Most of the time, our minds are locked in the past and future. Mindfulness puts you in the moment. Most people are OK in the here and now. If you can put yourself in the present, you can handle difficult thinking." Winston’s line appears alongside a brief stress-management tool she recommends to interrupt worry quickly.

The column presents the STOP acronym as a concise on-the-spot exercise recommended by Winston. Mahoney reproduces the steps exactly: "S: Stop. When you notice that you are feeling anxious and you need a moment: stop." "T: Take a breath. If you find yourself worrying about the future, bring yourself back to the present. Take a breath, pause, feel your feet on the ground." "O: Observe what is happening inside yourself. Does your stomach hurt? Is your heart racing? Ask yourself, 'How am I right now?' Bring yourself back to the moment." "P: Proceed with more awareness of yourself and what will help you. Connecting with a friend, or having some daily quiet time outdoors, can help."

Mahoney notes his piece "largely mirroring" a prior column and that those tenets "bear repeating" amid rapid social change. He pairs the STOP tool with broader evidence from institutional sources compiled alongside the column: the American Psychological Association reviewed more than 200 studies and found mindfulness-based therapy "especially effective for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression," and MBCT has been shown to reduce relapse in people with prior major depression.

Clinical and physiological benefits cited in the compilation include Mayo Clinic findings that mindfulness can lower cortisol, ease anxiety by reducing worry loops, affect pain processing, improve sleep, help manage blood pressure and blood sugar, and support focus and emotional balance. Practical exercises from Jerry Kosmin’s July 24, 2024 piece include body-scan practice and progressive muscle relaxation, "as you’re moving your attention from your head to your feet, you consciously tighten and relax each muscle one by one", and Kosmin lists apps such as Breathe2Relax and Headspace (available in Google Play and the Apple App Store) as tools to build routine practice.

Kosmin also cautions that while "mindfulness can be as effective as anxiety medications" for some people, "every individual is different" and mental health professionals often recommend combining mindfulness with prescribed medication when appropriate. Mahoney closes with a summation of purpose: "In these times of uncertainty where we worry about what may happen tomorrow, mindfulness can play an important role as a useful approach to assist us in paying attention to the present moment in a purposeful, receptive, and non-judgmental way. Using mindfulness techniques can be instrumental in reducing stress and promoting positive psychological (and physical) outcomes, something that can benefit us all.