Mindfulness As an Activity #JusJoJan

Posted on by Astrid

Hi everyone. Happy New Year to you all! I’m happy to read Linda has given #JusJoJan another go and I’m going to try to participate again. Today’s prompt is “mindfulness”, which really speaks to me.

When I first learned about mindfulness, I was in dialectical behavior therapy for my emotion regulation issues. All I remember of it at the time were rather abstract concepts like imagining your thoughts are like clouds in the sky. I couldn’t put these concepts into practice at all. I mean, observing my thoughts felt so completely alien to me. Same for mindful breathing exercises. I’ve tried them, a zillion times, mind you, but I always end up being distracted.

Then, a few weeks ago, I was listening to a podcast episode of one of the ADHD podcasts I listen to occasionally. Not that I have a diagnosis of ADHD, but I relate to many of its traits. The episode was about seven different kinds of rest. In it, the podcaster described seven different ways of rest that we all need, including physical rest, mental rest, spiritual rest, etc. None of these in her particular experience involved napping. Also, by doing just one activity, the podcaster said you could be resting in more than one way.

For example, she mentioned going on a walk and, while on her walk, being conscious of every red thing she saw. This is mindfulness in a totally different respect than imagining your thoughts are clouds. It totally spoke to me!

Now of course I’m totally blind so counting or naming red objects doesn’t work for me. But I’m sure the same principle can be applied to sounds or any of the other senses. I’m going to give it a try when I next go on a walk.

Breathe: Using Meditation for Self-Care #AtoZChallenge

Posted on by Astrid

I originally intended to write today’s post for the #AtoZChallenge yesterday and schedule it for this morning, but somehow I didn’t get down to writing it at all. I hadn’t even decided on a topic yet, although several floated through my mind. Eventually, I decided to continue with the self-care theme. B is for “breathe”.

Deep breathing is often hard for people at the best of times. It can be a real challenge if you’re anxious. That’s why you may benefit from breathing exercises while you’re calm. Then you will train your body to breathe properly, so that it comes more naturally when you’re stressed.

That being said, the first step to learning to breathe deeply into your belly is to be aware of your breathing. You can use meditation for this.

Beginner’s guided meditations often focus on being aware of your breathing without the need to change anything about it. You will learn to notice each inhale and exhale without judgment.

Once you are aware of your breathing, you can learn to control your breathing more consciously. Often, it is recommended that you take a long, but not too long, inbreath through your nose. Then you are advised to hold your breath for a few seconds and then do a long outbreath through your mouth.

Another common meditation practice is the body scan. This allows you to feel each sensation in your body systematically without judgment. Start by feeling your toes, feet and ankles. Then gradually move up through your legs, lower abdomen, upper abdomen and chest, hands and arms, shoulders, neck and finally your head. Most body scan meditations have you check in with your mental processes at the end. Remember, this is a check-in. You don’t need to change anything.

You can add other aspects of meditation to your practice, such as mantras or visualizations. I like to use affirmations as mantras. I also love visualizations, such as visualizing the colors of the rainbow.

There are tons of good meditation apps out there that offer guided meditations and often a timer to practise on your own. I have tried a few and must say my favorite is Insight Timer. This app has thousands of guided meditations by a variety of teachers. Most guided meditations are free. The premium plan offers additional content, such as courses. Right now, the app has a specific category called For Uncertain Times that’s geared towards coping with the COVID-19 crisis.