From nationwide shut downs of businesses to lockdown quarantines, we have all been impacted in some way.
Since March 2020, we have all had to live with the far-reaching and intrusive impact of the COVID-19 virus. From nationwide shut downs of businesses to lockdown quarantines, we have all been impacted in some way.
Stress is already prevalent amongst Americans of all ages, and now having to learn how to navigate this “new normal” is a new challenge before all of us. If left unmanaged, stress can lead to serious medical issues, such as mental health disorders (like anxiety and depression), cardiovascular disease (with increased risk of strokes and heart attacks), and many other illnesses.
One way to alleviate stress is to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is defined as “the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.”
Take the time to understand mindfulness to reduce your stress, benefiting you and your loved ones.
Practicing mindfulness is an effective and powerful way to relax our minds and remove the stressors of everyday life, but many people need guidance in order effectively practice and achieve mindfulness.
Luckily, there are several high-quality apps that are designed for just this purpose:
- Aura – Aura is an app that guides users through quick three-minute meditations. It also encourages users to keep gratitude journals.
- Buddhify – A popular and robust app, Buddhify allows users to customize their mindfulness activities based on the time of day.
- Calm – Calm is a popular app that utilizes calming ambient noises (such as the sound of falling rain) with short meditations to help users relax, meditate, and sleep.
- Headspace – Headspace provides users with guided meditations that are designed to be used for ten minutes per day.
- Stop Breathe & Think – Stop Breathe & Think is an app that is designed for children and adults who are new to meditation, and provides users with short exercises to help set the foundations for effective mindfulness practice.
If you are feeling apprehensive or skeptical about the advantages of mindfulness, you may want to learn more about its benefits, such as improved memory, concentration and performance, better emotional reactivity, happier relationships, improved sleep, pain relief, and increased self-esteem. We found this article for you to enjoy, listing 20 benefits of mindfulness, including an easy eight-step plan for how to practice your newfound self-care skills.
If you would like to read more about mindfulness, its benefits, and how to most effectively practice it, we also found this article that provides a list of 20 books on the subject to guide and enrich your new habits.
Taking the time to understand the emerging practice of mindfulness will reduce your stress, allowing for improved health and more attention and time for you and your loved ones.