In a way, it appears as though mindfulness/meditation is just the newest trend. But, after jumping on the bandwagon and attending our first class, we can’t think of a better way to de-stress. And here’s why we think you should try it too…
NOTE: if you’re now rolling your eyes, just cross out the word ‘meditation’ and think of it as making time to give yourself a breather. Everyone needs it from time to time.
Why we think meditation has become SO popular
We can only talk about our experience and the so called Millennial generation, but many things may resonate either way. We’ve all read tons of articles that state that social media is to blame for the “spike” in depression, severe anxiety, panic attacks and burnouts, but that’s really just the tip of the iceberg.
Yes. Seeing everyone posting the best bits of their lives may cause anxiety, but that’s not the whole story. Add: student loans, low-paid jobs, which have to be combined with something else to make a ‘decent’ living, expensive housing, which means paying rent for life (a rent that increases at a faster rate than our salaries), and the fact that we have a short window of time to sort all of the above, if we want to start a family and add the new set of expenses that come with it.
Which brings us back to the real problem: an incredible amount of pressure to grow professionally and make money before we’re 30 something, in order to ‘start living’. Unfortunately, there’s not much we can do about it (rearranging whole economies and systems can’t be done in one day). But, we can make sure to stop for a little bit to work on our mental health. For example, meditating everyday or at least once a week.
Tips to this new journey
We asked our teacher why was incorporating meditation into our lives so important. Here are a few phrases that stuck with us:
- “The importance of meditating everyday is to avoid a build up.”
- “If you’re not willing to ‘be with yourself’ for five minutes, who will be.”
- “Relaxation is just a secondary effect of meditating. The main purpose is learning how to separate your mind and body, which then can be applied to everyday actions, like: breathing and calming yourself before saying something you’ll regret.”
5 simple steps to de-stress
No funny clothes or strange poses needed!
1.Find a comfortable spot: either sitting on a floor cushion with your back against a wall or laying down (to avoid falling asleep, put a couple of pillows under your head, so you’re not completely flat). You can have your legs crossed or stretched, whatever works best for you, and your hands either comfortably wresting on your knees or by your side (facing up), if your laying flat.
2.Set your timer: instead of checking your watch every two seconds or setting an awful alarm that will make you jump, download the ‘Insight Timer’ App and use the timer tool. Here, you can set the duration of your meditation, warm up time and interval bells that will help you re-focus in case you’re falling asleep. Choose ‘Basu’ for starting and ending bell, and wooden block for intervals.
3.Break the silence: you can do these exercises in complete silence, but putting on some binaural beats on Youtube can help you relax and meditate more easily. These were recommended by our teacher: Marconi Union-Weightless, Unknown-Deep Focus Music, Moby, Sleep & Calm.
4.Optional: spritz a bit of essence in the room or on your wrists to help the brain focus on what you’d like to work on. For example: Lavander= Relaxation (best for meditating), Mint= Concentration and Productivity, Citrics/Orange= clear the mind and induce a state of happiness.
5.Focus on your breathing: close your eyes, slowly inhale for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 4 seconds, slowly exhale for 4 seconds, and hold your breath again for 4 seconds. Repeat this for three, five or ten minutes, depending on how you’re feeling and the time you’re able to set aside. If your mind starts to wander off, recognize it, and then focus again on your 4 second count. Deep breathing will lower your cortisol levels and relax your mind and body.
Tip: to know if you’re breathing right, place a hand on your diaphragm and feel how your stomach distends. If you can’t notice any movement, you’re probably not breathing deeply enough.
After our class, we’ve been incorporating these steps into our night time routine. Just before going to sleep, we sit on our bed and do the breathing exercises for five minutes. And let us tell you that unwinding this way has improved our sleep.
Any thoughts? Will you try it? Or, do you have any more tips for beginner’s?
We took our class at Felicity, a new meditation center in Mexico City. Paulina Martínez, founder and teacher, specializes in anti-stress techniques. If you’re interested, you can reserve a class online at felicity.mx.
Not sponsored/class gifted as PR experience.
