With the school season fast-approaching in just three week's time, I can already feel the academic jitters setting in as I cross-off the days on my calendar, all culminating to that all-important first day of classes. I have bought all my color-coded notebooks, folders and pens. I ordered all the required books for my classes. I have written out and organized my schedule into easily manageable one hour blocks. Heck, even my bag is packed and sitting in the corner of the room! I'm ready.
But even with all this preparation, I can still feel the nervousness and anxiety ride in with those waves of excitement for the impending semester. After a scouring the Internet, I believe I have found the best meditation app out there to help manage this stress, both before and during the school year!
According to the app's official webpage, Stop, Breathe & Think is "a friendly, simple tool to guide people of all ages and backgrounds through meditations for mindfulness and compassion." Not only is this app available on both the App and Google Play store, it is accessible through their webpage, as well!
When you open the app, you are guided to make a profile on their database, filling in simple information like you're name, age, gender and email. After that, your profile is done and you are free to explore the app.
Color separated for ease, their main page offers sections for meditating, your progress, learning how to meditate and the list of meditations they offer.
Click 'begin' and you are asked to dim your screen for 10 seconds to focus on calming your mind and body for the upcoming meditation. You can repeat this process as many times as you need until you feel centered enough to continue. Once you're ready, click onward!
You then check-in with the app about your mental and physical health, watching as the little brain and meditation animation change with your answers!
And from there, you are given a selection of meditations to choose from! Settle down, breathe and give your body the chance to relax. School will be there tomorrow. Stress will be there tomorrow. You are here right now. Breathe and let yourself appreciate it.
