Cowritten by Nathalie Boutros and Tchiki Davis.

Mindlessness is a state of unawareness, of going through the motions without being consciously aware of your surroundings or your inner states. It can be described as being on autopilot or responding robotically, without conscious awareness of what you are doing, thinking, or feeling. It can be difficult, perhaps even impossible, to identify when you are in a mindless state—almost by definition you are not aware when you are mindless. As soon as you become aware of your mindlessness, you are no longer mindless.

Generally, mindlessness is considered an undesirable mental state to be in. Being unaware of the present moment, or being focused on something other than what you are doing may increase anxiety and........

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