Spring: The Season of Renewal

Spring is finally here… and so are opportunities for renewal– a time to shed an old coat (i.e. old habits, old perspectives, dated thoughts) and embrace a new one! This Winter I completed a couple of coach training classes, and continue on to more this Spring that will allow me to expand my Wellness offerings. This Winter I explored concepts such as wellness rituals, mindfulness, loving kindness and other meditations, the mind-brain connection, gratitude, eco-psychology (the relationship between us and the natural world), epi-genetics (how our environment can influence/change our genes), and the importance of sleep and customized sleep camps. I gathered numerous practical applications that I am excited to share with my clients and students.

My intention for this Spring is to live FULLY MINDFUL! One of the classes in which I am taking currently is a Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) class through UCSD Center for Mindfulness. I am finding this class valuable and validating; engaging in different meditation practices to help down-regulate my system, and increase focus and awareness in the moment, and in everyday life. My teacher is a former student of Jon Kabat-Zinn– one of the major proponents of Mindfulness as a science and practice. I feel very grateful to have her lead me on this journey. Besides down regulating our systems, mindfulness is shown scientifically to increase compassion and structurally change the brain. Many great results are found cultivating mindfulness in your life.

Here is one mindful meditation that I experienced in my Mentorcoach Wellness class called “Just this..”.

• Find yourself in a comfortable position. If sitting, make sure your sitting tall, with your back supported and your shoulders down.
• Close your eyes, or find a focal point on which to center around.
• Inhale a deep breath through your nose, filling your lungs up with fueling air as much as you can.
• Exhale through your mouth, slowly, extending the exhale for as long as you can.
• Feel your abdomen or chest rise and fall with each inhalation and exhalation.
• On the next inhale, as you breathe through your nose think the thought “just” (and the number 1).
• On the exhale, as you release through your mouth think the thought, “this” (and the number 1).
• Repeat this process, incrementing the number by 1 each time (i.e. just 2, this 2, just 3, this 3…).
• Repeat the process until you get to the number 10… just 10, this 10.
• Return to normal breathing and open your eyes.
• Ask yourself, how does my body feel? How does my mind feel? How do I feel over all?

Sometimes our bodies and minds need a moment to slow down and rest for a moment. In our hectic world, taking care of things and multi-tasking as much as possible, this break can bring a lot  of relief– if only for 10 seconds or more. However, investing those 10 or so seconds can have an effect on the rest of your 24-hours.

When you are in a stressful situation… take a moment and do this meditation. It will help you stand back from the stress, and gain a new perspective. If you do use this, let me know how you liked it. If you wish to learn more about this field, contact me. I’d like to chat and figure out how to help you cultivate this kind of practice in your life.