Mind Over Matter BY Anna Claire Howard
Making a habit of mindfulness and meditation
Life can be overwhelming, whether you’re navigating the untested waters of adulthood as a first-time adult on a college campus, embracing the daily grind as a new graduate, hustling as an experienced parent or accepting the silence of an empty nest. No matter what life chapter you’re in, it’s important to slow down and appreciate where you are at that moment, both for your mental and physical health. Mankind practiced meditation for thousands of years, often as part of a spiritual or religious practice. More recently, however, mindfulness has become a popular way for people to reduce their stress and improve their overall well-being. Furthermore, research shows that it’s effective. Psychologists have found that practicing mindfulness and meditation changes our brain in positive ways that improve our overall mental and physical health. But first, what are meditation and mindfulness? Meditation is a way of training your attention to achieve a mental state of calm concentration and, if possible, positive emotions. Just nothing too exciting or stimulating. Your goal is serenity. Mindfulness is similar in that it is a form of meditation, but it has two main components – attention and acceptance. It’s all about intensely focusing on what’s happening in the present moment; directing awareness to your breath, your thoughts, the physical sensations in your body and the feelings you are experiencing. The acceptance piece involves observing those feelings and sensations without judgment and letting yourself experience them. Instead of responding or reacting to those thoughts or feelings, the goal is to acknowledge them, feel them and let them go. It’s helpful to relax your hands, close your eyes and listen to soothing sounds and/or wear noise- cancelling headphones when practicing mindfulness
or meditating to block out any outside distractions. You can also walk through your five senses to ground yourself in the moment. What did you see and hear before closing your eyes and tuning out the noise, what do you smell, what do you physically feel and what do you taste? Then, let yourself be, and allow your mind to wander. This can be done for any amount of time, but it is helpful to set a timer in case you fall asleep or become deep in thought. You can practice these methods in any position that is comfortable – laying down flat, in various yoga poses, sitting down with your legs crossed, sitting in a chair with your feet planted firmly on the ground … really in whatever way feels good. It’s also helpful to take slow, deep, calming breaths and to be aware of your inhale and exhale, preferably in through your nose and out through your mouth. Try placing your hand over your heart or your belly to feel those breaths and shift your focus to your body. Moreover, you can do this anywhere – at home, in your parked car, outside or even during your lunch break at work. It doesn’t have to be a long period of time, either. Think quality of the time spent over quantity. Mindfulness and meditation practices can be done alone or with others. The most important thing, however, is to maintain serenity. After this period of reflection, you should feel relaxed, rejuvenated and more centered. Take your time bringing awareness back to your body by slowly wiggling your fingers and your toes, gently opening your eyes, taking account of where you are and slowly sitting or standing up. You can also stretch to encourage blood flow throughout your body, particularly to your limbs if you were in a seated or resting position. Take one last moment to honor what you felt during this meditation or take notes to reflect on later, and then resume your day.
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