Over the past few weeks, our country has been tense with opposing opinions and expectations about our future. It's inescapable, on every social media site, and every TV channel. People are turning to deleting their social media profiles to escape the frenzy.
Personally, I take on the world and all of it's madness with eyes wide open. It's so important to be aware of these things and take different perspectives. Obviously, with this mind set, I deal with a lot of anxiety.
Like many college students, I already have a great deal of stress in my life between work, school, social life, etc. so any added stress tends to lead to a breakdown. I think proactively, and for the past few months I have been meditating daily.
I know what you might think-HOW do you sit down and turn off the world? Don't you have roommates? When do you have time?
I started meditating after my yoga practices, which I usually do solo. By the end of my practice I feel calm and ready to let go of any tension I might be holding. This makes it easy to close my eyes and focus on nothing.
On a daily basis, it may be harder to get into this mindset. On these days, I turn to an app called Stop, Breathe, Think. The app is designed to find you a helpful guided meditation that is less than 10 minutes long.
When I first found out about this app, I was overjoyed because I was finally able to share the rewards of meditating with my friends, who had found it more difficult to concentrate on a meditation.
Here are my top 5 reasons to meditate everyday:
1. It helps me keep track of my mental health.
Sometimes life gets so hectic that you forget to stop and check in with myself. I have gone a full day without realizing that my anxiety was high until I sat down and meditated. It just takes 10 seconds to close your eyes, breathe slowly, and do a full body scan to see if you're holding tension or letting a thought creep into the front of your mind. In the Stop, Breathe, Think app, it keeps track of your mental health and how you reported feeling everyday.
2. I can think through situations with a clearer mind.
When an issue comes up, it's easy to panic and say or do the first thing that comes to your mind. Meditating has helped me use this 'stop, breathe, think' mindset in my day to day life. It's easy to let something stress you out, or turn to your fight or flight human instincts. I have learned to take on new situations without judgment or expectations, and go about dealing with them in a healthy way that helps everyone.
3. My attention span has grown.
I wouldn't say that I find it hard to concentrate, but I do get distracted like every human being does. While meditation is relaxing, it is also teaching you discipline and helping you train your mind to not wander for long periods of times. Some meditations can be as short as two minutes, and some have been as long as an hour. By building this mental strength to avoid distractions, I have been able to pay attention for longer in class, and focus on assignments better.
4. I hold less tension in my body.
As a yoga student, I already have the tools to release any tension or pain that I hold up in my body due to stress. However, there are places that you can't exactly stretch out or relieve of tension in one yoga practice. For example, sometimes I find myself holding tension between my eyes, in my temples, between my shoulder blades, or even the base of my spine. While I go through my full body scan before a meditation, I am able to actively work on releasing these muscles and letting my body simply relax while my mind does the leg work.
5. I have a better relationship with myself.
It's easy to blame a lot of things on yourself, or start to feel anger, guilt, or regret. On days that I don't feel good about myself, meditation is my saving grace. It helps to look at the situation from the outside looking in, and delve deep into what the real issue is. I feel like I have a better understanding of myself because I spend time meditating everyday.
So, I hope I could convince you to try it out yourself! Happy meditating!
