I had a wonderful opportunity to do a professional development session for
my local school district, which is going to begin focusing on mindfulness.
In doing my research, I came across numerous case studies: This stuff works!
One particular exercise I found and i
Rear view of happy family walking together in an autumn forest.
mmediately realized I needed to share
here with you!
Before I do, I want to help you see HOW mindfulness helps us all.
When you get in a car & first start it up, the engine runs a little faster.
They call this the car’s “idle“.
By letting the car warm up for a moment — that idle starts to go lower.
Well, the same thing happens to people! Mindfulness helps to lower our
“Stress Idle” — meaning we don’t REACT to things, but instead RESPOND!
My story:
After 3 weeks of doing 1 minute of meditation, at 9pm one night my dog
got out. I live in the boondocks meaning forest, bears, and no streetlights!
My reaction was strangely CALM.
Instead of running around, freaking out like I’d been known to do in the
past, I calmly opened the back gate, turned on the outside lights, & waited.
She was scratching at the back door within 15 minutes!
Again, because my “Stress Idle” was lower, I RESPONDED to the situation
instead of REACTING.
Here’s a great 2-minute video I found that explains this in a fun way!
So, here is today’s LifeTOOL that works great for kids (and adults too!)
Breathing Buddies
Step 1 Have a child pick a favorite stuffed animal!
Step 2 Laying on their back — they put the animal on their belly.
Step 3 Tell them to breathe in and make the belly rise so the “buddy”
moves up & as it does they are to count 1-2-3. As they breathe out,
they lower the “buddy” and count 1-2-3. Repeat for 2 minutes.
Use at least 1 x daily
Now, us adults can use this same technique!
If you don’t have a favorite animal — how about a favorite book? Or use
anything else that’s a favorite!
Go ahead & give it a try — you have nothing to lose except anxiety!
~ To Living Well TODAY! ~
via Esperanza – Hope To Cope
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