More Mindful Tips To Help During Stressful Times
We have received many requests for stress management resources during the coronavirus pandemic we’re all facing. If you feel like your stress is more than you can handle right now, we encourage you to reach out for support. Contact your Employee Assistance Program at work or seek out a licensed therapist. They would be the best ones to help you if you’re feeling overwhelmed.
If you feel like you just need to take better steps to prioritize and manage your stress, we hope our mindful tips can help. Especially during uncertain times like these, practicing mindfulness can help us learn to release our worries about the future and focus with a sense of calm acceptance on the present moment. With practice you’ll be able to reduce your stress by becoming more aware of your thoughts. You can then step back to create more space from your thoughts and not take them so literally. That way, your stress response is not initiated in the first place. You’ll also notice that you won’t immediately react to a situation. Instead, you’ll have a moment to pause and come up with the best solution — or the best response. Ultimately, if you really think about it, the present moment is the only place where life may be fully lived. Mindfulness can help us live in the here and now and help us become more aware of ourselves.
We received positive feedback from our first Mindful Tips post so we’re back to offer more easy ways to incorporate present moment awareness in your day. In case you missed our previous post, we wrote about practicing a mindful activity, pausing between actions, and noticing your mental time travel. Here are 3 more mindful tips we’re trying to incorporate:
Mindful Tip #4: Walk mindfully. Turn this everyday action into an opportunity for greater focus and awareness. To try this out, find a space that allows you to walk back and forth for about 10-15 paces. Make sure you won’t be disturbed. Stand tall and notice your breath for a few moments. Then walk very slowly noticing your body and mind as you lift one foot, moving the foot forward, and placing the foot back on the floor. Shift your weight onto your forward leg, while you slowly lift your back foot off the ground. Intentionally and deliberately move this foot forward and place it on the ground. Continue for 10 to 15 paces, moving slowly and taking small steps.
As you walk, try to focus your attention on one or more sensations that you would normally take for granted, such as your breath coming in and out of your body, the movement of your feet and legs, or their contact with the floor below you. When you notice your mind wandering, simply focus back on your walking. See if you can practice mindful walking for 10 minutes.
Mindful Tip #5: Set an intention at the start of your next meditation. Sometimes this is the most important part of a meditation practice. Your intention could be to relax, notice your breath, be present, whatever you’re most needing at that moment.
Mindful Tip #6: Practice mindfulness while you wait in line. Instead of taking your phone out, notice the sights and sounds around you. Accept the situation that you’re in. You’re waiting in line and it is not fun. Try to stay present and notice your thoughts. Are you creating stories about how awful it is to be waiting? Most likely you’ll find that when you notice and investigate your thoughts further what you’re telling yourself is based on assumptions. Lastly, offer yourself compassion for having to wait. Perhaps waiting may result in you being late for something else. So offer kind words for what you’re going through.
For additional resources on stress management, we encourage you to check out the following:
U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2020). Stress: https://medlineplus.gov/stress.html
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. (2020). Stress: https://nccih.nih.gov/health/stress
National Institute on Mental Health. (2020). 5 Things You Should Know About Stress: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/stress/index.shtml
Books that may be of help:
When Things Fall Apart: https://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult-ebook/dp/B00BBXJH2C
The Upside of Stress: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1101982934/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Workbook: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1572247088/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For more formal mindfulness practices, check out our InsightTimer page.
Mindful Tips Resources:
Beach, S. (2019). WAIT: A Mindfulness Practice for Waiting in Line: https://leftbrainbuddha.com/wait-a-mindfulness-practice-for-waiting-in-line/
Greater Good at Berkeley. (2020). Walking Meditation: https://ggia.berkeley.edu/practice/walking_meditation
Miller, R. (2017). Give Your Meditation Practice Staying Power: Set an Intention: https://www.yogajournal.com/meditation/set-intention-consistent-meditation-practice