Mindfulness is an ancient Buddhist practice that aims at achieving awareness and true presence in life’s every day moments. It asks you to pay close attention to your body and mind and be aware of what each are telling you in a given moment. Meditation is at the heart of this practice; and although many shy away from the mere mention of it, studies show that practicing some form of meditation or mindfulness can have positive effects on both your physical and mental health.
One of the main ways meditation can help is through stress reduction. And dealing with stress is something that all of us Collegiettes could use a little help with. Here at school, we are under enormous amounts of pressure and our bodies are constantly activating our stress system, which releases the harmful stress hormone, cortisol, into our bodies. This activation and release contributes to all sorts of health problems. But we can help avoid this constant stress activation by practicing meditation.
Meditation can actually help lower activity in the parts of the brain, like the amygdala, that are part of the body’s stress system. With continued practice, meditation can become a tool that prevents you from reacting to situations that might have activated your stress system in the past.
But what if you don’t know how to do it?
You can find countless books on meditation with exercises, websites with guided meditations like calm.com/, meditation apps on your iPhone, and local wellness centers that offer meditation training classes.
But, if you are like me, traditional meditation can be difficult. It’s hard to just sit for an extended period of time and try to focus on nothing. I end up thinking about all of the things I have to do later and stressing myself out more. But I have found something that works: yoga. Yoga gives you other things to focus on while being mindful, like the positioning of your body and your breathe, so your mind doesn’t have to strain as hard to clear itself. So if you don’t want to start meditating right away, head to the Plex and try one of the many yoga classes that are offered first.
Photo Source:
http://casnocha.com/2012/08/reflections-and-impressions-from-a-10-day-meditation-course.html