What is mindfulness? Mindfulness is being completely present in your environment, your senses and your body. This type of intentional awareness can aid you in confronting your emotions and thoughts, which surprisingly requires a bit of training. You might find out something about yourself that is quite unexpectedly pleasing, opening several doors to new mindsets, goals, and hobbies.
Mindfulness is a certain curiosity of your mentality and physicality that aims to heighten your senses in the present moment.
How do we begin? I am so glad you asked! Mindfulness is a skill that you and I both can eventually master. I’ve mustered up a list of five beginner ways to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness can take many forms and appear through various methods including breathing, meditation and prayer. Let’s begin!
- Stretching First Thing in the Morning
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I know some of us ladies are not the most flexible or active, and that is totally alright! However, stretching not only improves our overall muscle health but also improves sleep, relieves stress and kick-starts our day with some much-needed self-care. Stretching first thing in the morning always prevents me from crawling back into bed without fail, and keep in mind that I can NEVER get out of bed in the morning. When you stretch, try your best to really feel your body and heartbeat. Maybe stretch in front of a window and gaze at whatever is outside. Stretch with some music on while closing your eyes. I always try to pray while I’m stretching, and I list off things that I am hopeful for in the day and things I am grateful for from yesterday.
Original illustration by Roya Aldi - Practicing Gratitude
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We have all heard it before. As cliche as it is, practicing gratitude can lead you closer to God, patience, kindness and more. Every time you feel stressed and complain about a certain assignment, task, or situation, name one thing that was genuinely GOOD. It can be as simple as the weather. It can be someone that smiled at you in the grocery store. It can be a yummy snack you ate that day. It can be your attendance in a class or meeting. It can be anything you want. Practicing gratitude can also be a very valuable form of prayer. Even if you’re not religious, it is so important to be thankful for the beautiful nature and world that surrounds us. If you are religious, stating a simple “Thank you God” under your breath every time you see something that makes you smile can make all the difference in the world.
- Speed Journaling
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A cool little trick I learned a few years ago is speed journaling. What is it? Speed journaling, as some call it, is writing non-stop for a certain period of time. There are numerous methods you can use. For example, you can set a timer for a minute or so and write whatever comes to mind. Or, you can number off a list of words that you can think of until you get to the bottom of the page. The purpose is to dump all your thoughts, so you’re left to interpret the pieces. When you try it, keep these questions in mind: Did any words surprise you? What do you think this means? Is it just gibberish? Is it interesting?
Original illustration by Roya Aldi - No Phones Allowed!
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Do you ever walk into a building or an event and immediately go on your phone? Same. This is such an awful habit that is not easy to break. Nonetheless, try doing at least one action a day without your phone easily accessible to you. When you sit down for breakfast or dinner, try to not scroll through social media while you’re eating. Instead, really absorb the food on your tongue. How does it taste? Do you like it? Would you eat it again? We don’t really think about these things when we’re eating. For me, half the time I eat when I’m bored, not hungry. Try walking to class, driving to the mall, or sitting outside without your phone. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell?
- Meditation or Prayer
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Finally, we have the ultimate mindfulness test. Meditation is honestly so difficult, and I’m tired of hearing people praise how easy and “life-changing” it is. In a world where we are constantly doing something or multi-tasking, sitting still while doing nothing but BREATHE is so awkward at first and surprisingly hard. If you are like me and can’t sit still, I would suggest praying. Even if you are not religious or atheist, praying to something or someone and laying out all your worries, dreams and expectations can truly benefit your mindfulness. What was crappy about today? What was exciting about today? You can even pray FOR something or someone because manifestation too can be a form of prayer. What is something you want? What is something you wish for?
Original illustration by Roya Aldi
