Page 41 - Natural Health (February 2020)

IN FOCUS

practice is crucial to being able to make blocking my throat, but I stayed with the My main takeaway from my week of
the most of opportunities that arise in breath to the end of the session. When I meditation? There is power in the breath;
public spaces.” finally opened my eyes, I looked out onto whatever you are feeling this week, be it
So, the next day I opted for a lunch time a stunning sunset, and as I took one last sadness, anger, anxiety, loneliness, fatigue
session with the Headspace app. I tried the breath, I felt a sense of grounding. We will – take a few deep breaths, in through the
10-minute happiness course, which involved all have to endure disappointments and nose, out through the mouth and notice your
plenty of deep breaths, body scans and change throughout our lives, but it’s not mindset shift from frenetic to settled. And,
visualisation techniques. During this guided about silencing these thoughts or getting if we can all bring a few more settled
meditation, I was encouraged to notice rid of these feelings, it’s about shifting our moments into our lives, for just 10 minutes
the sounds around me, which seems like a perspective so that we can see them in a a day, imagine what we could achieve from
simple and obvious task, but once I tuned different way. a place of calm.
into my surroundings, I was amazed by how
much I picked up on: the clock ticking, a
microwave dinging, footsteps from the office
above me, the coughs from a colleague HOW TO MAKE mindful reminders. If you ind
next door and the continuous rumble from EVERY DAY yourself feeling extra-stressed, the
people typing on keyboards. These sounds app feature reacts to your needs
will have filled most days at the office, but MEDITATION EASY by suggesting which particular
meditation practices would beneit
when rushing from task-to-task, I realised Christi-an Slomka, Calm’s
most of us go about our days in a mindless you most at this anxious time.
Community Manager and
busyness. As I completed my meditation,
mindful movement teacher
a final thought popped up on screen: “As INCORPORATE IT INTO
shares her top tips
you go through the day today, notice which YOUR DAILY COMMUTE
experiences leave you with a genuine feeling Anyone can incorporate meditation If you feel like you’re too busy to set
of contentment.” into their daily lives, and after all, time aside, why not use those hours
Surprisingly, I found that I returned practise makes perfect. As our whiled away zoning out on the bus or
to my desk refreshed, less stressed and lives seem to get busier, it’s harder train to use this precious time more
in a more positive frame of mind for the to stick to habits. These tips will productively. Sneak in more time for
remainder of the day. hopefully show you just how easy meditation, and arrive at work feeling
Two days in and I still wanted to make it is to ensure you ind your inner rejuvenated and ready for the day
my practice easier, so I turned to Will once calm to the best of your ability. ahead – not only will you feel great
more: “Get your first one in before work,” mentally but you’ll also ind yourself
he said. “Once your working day starts, it’s more productive and creative!
IMMERSE YOURSELF
not your own anymore, and starting the
IN NATURE
day in a great frame of mind puts you in a
Whether it be taking in the sounds SWITCH OFF
better place to keep the habit going.”
of nature or positioning yourself Don’t just switch on Do Not Disturb
With this in mind, I chose a five-minute
near an open window, listening mode - turn your phone of. In order
morning session the very next day. This
to the sweet sounds of children to become fully present with the
was by far the easiest meditation I’ve tried
playing or water trickling from a mindful task at hand, you need to give
thus far, as it was quick and consisted of
nearby fountain can help foster yourself a break from distractions that
various stretches and breathing techniques
relaxation by soothing the senses you can control.
to really wake up the body – all from the
and calming the mind. Nature is
comfort of my bed. By the time I hit the
the perfect inspiration for your
shower, I felt more bright-eyed than
meditation practice.
usual and with an overarching optimism Calm is a leading global health

to begin the day. and wellness brand with an
By the end of the week, I was a little MOOD CHECK-IN app for sleep, meditation and
tired, hormonal and deflated after a few To help combat everyday stress, relaxation. With hundreds of
personal disappointments. So, feeling Calm has introduced a new ‘Mood hours of original audio content,
more emotional than usual, this was the Check-In’ tool to help us be more the Calm app helps users cope
perfect time to turn to meditation instead mindful of our feelings. A visual with some of the most important
of comfort food. I tuned into how I was representation of our moods can mental health issues of modern
feeling and sought out a meditation for help reveal a lot more about our living including anxiety, stress
sadness from Headspace. As I completed mental wellbeing than we might and insomnia. See calm.com
my body scan I noted a tight chest, shallow have thought. Check-in with for more details.
breathing, and it felt like something was yourself by logging and setting
NATURAL HEALTH 41