The pressure of modern life can take a big toll on us as human beings, with the stresses and strains of the day to day routine making us feel anxious, fatigued and generally run down. Whether you’re a student trying to make it through the school week or an adult trying to make ends meet, the 21st century can be a challenging place to live in.
When we’re overstressed, we can become unfocused and unbalanced and it can result in anxiety-related issues like insomnia and panic attacks. The good news is that there is a highly effective way of minimizing the effect of this modern stress and it comes in the form of mindfulness meditation.
However, before you write meditation off as something that’s only for experienced people sitting crossed-legged in yoga clothes, we’re here to tell you that it’s a hugely misunderstood practice that can be used by the whole family - even if they’ve never done it before!
Practice Meditation as a Family
Mindfulness meditation - as the name would suggest - focusses attention on being mindful of your breath, body and surroundings through meditation and it can be practiced by absolutely anyone, anywhere. It can be a great social activity too, as it can be helpful to practice with other family members as part of strengthening relationship bonds.
If you set a particular part of the house aside as your meditation area and agree on the time of the day when you all get together and meditate, you’ll find that you’ll associate that place and that time with feelings of calmness and joy. It’s important to note that there are no rules to this - simply choose the time and area that works for you. Whether it’s together in the living room before school or alone in the evening upstairs before bed, select whatever works for you and go with it.
The Benefits of Mindful Meditation
When you practice meditation as part of your or your family’s routine, the benefits to health are numerous. Let’s take a look at just a few of those now:
- Improves sleep quality
- Reduces feelings of stress
- Increases focus and attention span
- Elevates feelings of contentment
- Assists in managing chronic pain
- Improves relationships
- Encourages a healthy lifestyle
Regular meditation is something that will help you feel more balanced, rested and ultimately more content with your life in general. Whether you’ve got a child with sleep issues or you’re someone who struggles to deal with stress, mindfulness meditation gives you the capacity to turn things around and take control.
Why Not Try It for Yourself?
The great thing about meditation is that it’s accessible to everyone and it’s simple. The misconception of meditation only being for hippies, yoga gurus, or Silicon Valley executives is something that’s stopping so many from enjoying the benefits of a mindfulness practice. We're here to tell you that it begins with pausing for just a beat to experience the present moment. Even if you can only spare two or three minutes, every little bit makes a difference. Now take one deep breath in and out. See, you're good at it!