Ocean of Syllabus. Never ending lectures. Social media distractions. Exams. Life as a student is full of stress, and more often than not, we feel it physically as well as mentally. Don’t worry we all feel it.
Although the stress response begins in the tiny little brain, it is a full-body phenomenon. What happens when you that roller coaster ride is about to drop down? Your brain encounters a threat — the brain triggers a cascade of stress hormones. The heart pounds, muscles tense, and breathing quickens.
But you surely can counter your daily stress. It’s very simple folks. Just pay attention to what is going on. That may sound silly, but paying attention is the first step toward cultivating mindfulness — a therapeutic technique for a range of mental health problems (and physical ones).
No Don’t multitask
Mindfulness is the opposite of multitasking. The practice of mindfulness, which has its roots in Buddhism, teaches people to live each moment as it unfolds. The idea is to focus attention on what is happening in the present and accept it without judgment. Mindfulness is a powerful therapeutic tool. Studies have found, for example, that mindfulness techniques can help prevent relapse in people who have had several past episodes of major depression.
DIY Methods
Yes! One of the best things about mindfulness is that it is something people can try on their own. Let me help you out to get started:
Center down. Sit on a straight-backed chair or cross-legged on the floor. Focus on an aspect of your breathing, such as the sensations of air flowing into your nostrils and out of your mouth, or your belly rising and falling as you inhale and exhale.
Open up. Once you’ve narrowed your concentration, begin to widen your focus. Become aware of sounds, sensations, and ideas. Embrace and consider each without judgment. If your mind starts to race, return your focus to your breathing.
Observe. You may notice external sensations such as sounds and sights that make up your moment-to-moment experience. The challenge is not to latch onto a particular idea, emotion, or sensation, or to get caught up in thinking about the past or the future. Instead you watch what comes and goes in your mind, and discover which mental habits produce a feeling of suffering or well-being.
Stay with it. At times, this process may not seem relaxing at all, but over time it provides a key to greater happiness and self-awareness as you become comfortable with a wider and wider range of your experiences.
Practice does makes a man perfect!
Mindfulness is something to cultivate and practice, on a regular basis. Make a commitment. Aim for doing 20 to 45 minutes of mindfulness practice, most days of the week. (If that sounds like a lot, remember that a key part of mindfulness means letting go of expectations.
Make small changes. It’s hard to make big changes. It’s better to start slow and build gradually.
Mindfulness really does not have to be more complicated than learning to pay attention to what is going on around you. But this “simple” advice is often hard to sustain in a busy world. Try making the effort to become more mindful — and you may find the results make it worth it. And you can thank us later! Bye
Urmi Joiser
Content Team
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