Simple mindfulness strategies
One individual may benefit from brisk walking meditation, while another from slow. Another individual may find that chanting or utilizing a mantra anchors them, while another the breath.
Walking meditation is one of the activities I recommends for cultivating awareness. “It can be applied to normal activities one does in a day, such as opening a door or walking between classes or brushing one’s teeth or washing clothing,”
You can use two types of walking meditation:
We all have unique patterns of how we respond when we are distressed and a unique set of stressors I recement to journal on the following questions:
Behaviourally — crying, yelling?
Emotionally — sadness, depression, anger?
Cognitively — negative thinking patterns?
Or some combination?
The past, present or future?
What are your experiences with past, present and future thinking?
Walking meditation is one of the activities I recommends for cultivating awareness. “It can be applied to normal activities one does in a day, such as opening a door or walking between classes or brushing one’s teeth or washing clothing,”
You can use two types of walking meditation:
- One involves lifting, moving, placing … where the individual focuses on being mindful of each aspect of the movement as they perform it slowly.
- The other type involves counting while walking at a comfortable pace, so it can happen as part of daily activity rather than as an isolated formal practice.
We all have unique patterns of how we respond when we are distressed and a unique set of stressors I recement to journal on the following questions:
- When you feel stressed out, how does the stress manifest in you?
Behaviourally — crying, yelling?
Emotionally — sadness, depression, anger?
Cognitively — negative thinking patterns?
Or some combination?
- Notice how much time out of the day you feel out of control, overwhelmed and stressed.
The past, present or future?
What are your experiences with past, present and future thinking?
You may find helpful this activities:
- Mindful hand exercise. Hold your hands together tightly for 10 seconds and release. Pay attention to the sensations of tension and release.
- Mindful writing. Find a favorite place and focus on the sounds, smells and tactile experiences around you. Write these down in as much detail as you can. This helps you to be fully present in the moment rather than racing to the past (depression) or to the future anxiety.
- Mindful awareness. This is similar to mindful writing, but instead of writing about the things around you, simply slow down and take in every detail in your surrounding area. Look at things as if you are seeing them for the first time.
- Stop and breathe. As your mind wanders, bring yourself back to focusing on your breath.
- Mindful balloon. When something challenging is bombarding us, using [our] breath can also get us unstuck and help us move on rather than ruminating.
