"Here and now': the new frontier of rehabilitation is mindfulness

Prevention is not only about examinations and diagnosis, but also about listening deeply to oneself. This is the core of the session 'The journey of prevention', part of the event 'Destination Health', organised by Gruppo San Donato in collaboration with Gruppo 24 Ore.

The protagonist of the session is Michela Galizzi, physiotherapist and physiotherapy coordinator at Punti Raf, with consolidated clinical experience and specific training in mindfulness applied to rehabilitation and pain management. She will be joined by Natalia Gera, health coach, postural trainer and creator of the Intensive 21 method, who will speak on the topic of good habits and postural balance.

On this occasion, the audience is involved in two hands-on sessions, each lasting about half an hour, where exercises in mindful movement, breathing and listening to the body will alternate. Techniques such as mindful stretching and mindful movement help participants improve their posture, reduce muscle tension and acquire tools to deal with chronic pain. All through the lens of mindfulness, 'here and now', as Galizzi herself recalls, citing the basic principle of this age-old practice.

'To really change something in our daily habits, we first need to become aware of how we are now, in body and mind'. This, according to Galizzi, is the key to any transformative process: recognising the present state, with its tensions, its automatisms, and then acting in a targeted and sustainable way. It is not a matter of imposing a difficult goal on oneself - like suddenly starting to run every day or quitting smoking - but of starting with small gestures, anchored in awareness.

Mindfulness, in this context, becomes a concrete tool: it helps to distinguish between the physical sensation of pain and the emotional response that often amplifies it, it allows you to breathe better, relax stiff muscles and change your relationship with your body.