MANSFIELD — Annamarie Fernyak wants to bust some of the myths around mindfulness.
For Fernyak, it’s more than a stress-relief technique or passing wellness fad. It’s an intentional, transformative way of being.
“It’s really about stopping and taking a moment, in every moment of your day, and being curious,” she said. “Am I living this moment in the best way that I know how to live it?”
Fernyak is the founder and CEO of Mind Body Align, an organization focused on helping students, teachers and families develop emotional awareness, self-regulation and focus.
She’s also the author of The Right Side of Happiness, a guide on how mindfulness can help people live healthier and more purposeful lives.
Fernyak described the book as part manual, part memoir.
“I use myself and my own experiences because I’m just kind of a normal person,” said Fernyak, a mindfulness practitioner and educator.
Fernyak said many people turn to mindfulness and enlightenment during times of turmoil. But the practice has benefits outside of life’s hardships and upheavals.
That’s why her book focuses on the relevance of mindfulness in the course of everyday life — when it’s tempting to get stuck in ruts and live on autopilot.
“We’re doing the things that are expected of us. We’re believing the things we’re taught and we’re never really questioning whether or not this is who we need to be in order to make the most impact on the world,” Fernyak said.
“I wanted to offer this book as a way for people to think of mindfulness from a different perspective — which is really about just being present in your life, about paying attention to what you’re believing, what you’re thinking, who you’re being in the world.”
But mindfulness also means noticing the world around you, becoming more compassionate and aware of the needs of others.
“It’s really about taking full responsibility for the choices you’re making and being completely aware of how the choices that you’re making are affecting the world,” Fernyak said.
Fernyak will host a book talk on Friday from 4 to 5 p.m. at 101 Tea Company (formerly known as 3rd Cup Tea).
The free event is open to anyone and will include a short reading followed by a time for questions and discussion. Fernyak will end the event by leading a mindfulness exercise.