Beat Stress This Monday with a Mindful Body Scan
The benefits of practicing mindfulness aren’t a secret. Mindfulness is a way of regaining balance when life feels shaky. It can bring you back to center and steady you again. It also provides a variety of health benefits, such as improving your focus, decreasing anxiety, reducing depression, and boosting your immune system.
Have you ever read a paragraph and had to re-read it? Or had the feeling your mind was whirring along without you? Mindfulness gives you a moment to step off the treadmill of your thoughts and be in the moment. It’s simply the suggestion that doing one thing at a time can be better for your overall wellbeing than doing many things at once. Try it!
Here’s a simple technique to help you unravel the stress that often builds up in your body. From tight shoulders to tense toes, a body scan mindfulness practice might be just the thing.
- Find a place to sit quietly or lie down.
- Starting at your feet or your head, focus your attention one-by-one on each of your body parts.
- Notice any feelings of tension or discomfort. Imagine each area softening and relaxing.
- If a thought or emotion arises, notice it without judging, then let it go.
- Relax.
For a more in-depth practice, follow along with this 5 minute meditation led by Kathleen Sanders.
Mindfulness practice has been researched and results suggest it effectively calms you down, reduces stress, and can help you feel more present or in the moment. Make Monday about learning some useful tools to regain your balance in a hectic world.
We’d love to hear about your mindfulness experiences so reach out to us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and let us know!