Stress Reduction and Mindfulness
This is a guided meditation to take you on a journey of relaxation. You will clear the clutter of your mind to calm you.
It will reduce your stress level, as well as improve your overall health and well being when practiced regularly.
Guided Meditation Slide Show
What is mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a type of meditation in which you focus on being intensely aware of what you're sensing and feeling in the moment, without interpretation or judgment. Practicing mindfulness involves breathing methods, guided imagery, and other practices to relax the body and mind and help reduce stress.
Spending too much time planning, problem-solving, daydreaming, or thinking negative or random thoughts can be draining. It can also make you more likely to experience stress, anxiety and symptoms of depression. Practicing mindfulness exercises can help you direct your attention away from this kind of thinking and engage with the world around you. ~ Mayo Clinic ~
Guided Meditation for Teens
Meditation to relieve stress and anxiety.
In today’s rush, we all think too much—seek too much—want too much—and forget about the joy of just being.
Eckhart Tolle
There are many simple ways to practice mindfulness.
Some examples include:
Pay attention: It's hard to slow down and notice things in a busy world. Try to take the time to experience your environment with all of your senses — touch, sound, sight, smell and taste. For example, when you eat a favorite food, take the time to smell, taste and truly enjoy it.
Live in the moment: Try to intentionally bring an open, accepting and discerning attention to everything you do. Find joy in simple pleasures.
Accept yourself: Treat yourself the way you would treat a good friend.
Focus on your breathing: When you have negative thoughts, try to sit down, take a deep breath and close your eyes. Focus on your breath as it moves in and out of your body. Sitting and breathing for even just a minute can help. ~Mayo Clinic~
Leaders At Their Best: Mindful Michigan
As a part of the "Leaders At Their Best" initiative, the University of Michigan Counseling and Psychological Services offers a guided mindfulness exercise to increase emotional wellness and well-being.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
This video is brought to you by Counseling and Psychological Services at the University of Michigan.
You can also try more structured mindfulness exercises, such as:
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Body scan meditation: Lie on your back with your legs extended and arms at your sides, palms facing up. Focus your attention slowly and deliberately on each part of your body, in order, from toe to head or head to toe. Be aware of any sensations, emotions or thoughts associated with each part of your body.
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Sitting meditation: Sit comfortably with your back straight, feet flat on the floor and hands in your lap. Breathing through your nose, focus on your breath moving in and out of your body. If physical sensations or thoughts interrupt your meditation, note the experience and then return your focus to your breath.
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Walking meditation: Find a quiet place 10 to 20 feet in length, and begin to walk slowly. Focus on the experience of walking, being aware of the sensations of standing and the subtle movements that keep your balance. When you reach the end of your path, turn and continue walking, maintaining awareness of your sensations. ~ Mayo Clinic ~
20 Minute Yoga for Youth
with Nicole Cardoza, in a practice designed specifically to teach kids how to pay attention to their body and the world around them.
The Meaning of Yoga
The key to understanding the meaning of yoga is in understanding yoga as a verb rather than a noun. Verbs are actions, conditions or experiences.
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To Engage
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To Get Involved
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To Participate
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To Connect
Yoga is a process. It’s active. It’s the way you engage with the world to create harmony. Yoga is how we participate and create relationship. Yoga means togetherness; the act of bringing the body and mind together. ~ One Flow Yoga ~
Yoga instructor Lisa Winters Cox demonstrates hip-opening yoga poses to increase flexibility and reduce low back pain
Yoga Ed
A 15-minute teens yoga class for beginners with Yoga Ed, created for ages 13-18.
Tips for Kids and Teens
After a traumatic event, it is normal to feel anxious about your safety and security. Even if you were not directly involved, you may worry about whether this type of event may someday affect you. Check out the tips below for some ideas to help deal with these fears.
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Talk to and stay connected to others. This might be:
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Parents, or other relatives
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Friends
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Teachers
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Coach
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Family doctor
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Member of your place of worship
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Talking with someone can help you make sense out of your experience and figure out ways to feel better. If you are not sure where to turn, call your local crisis intervention center or a national hotline.
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Get active. Go for a walk, play sports, play a musical instrument, or join an after-school program. Volunteer with a community group that promotes nonviolence or another school or community activity that you care about. These can be positive ways to handle your feelings and to see that things are going to get better.
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Take care of yourself. Try to get plenty of sleep, eat right, exercise, and keep a normal routine. By keeping yourself healthy, you will be better able to handle a tough time.
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Take information breaks. Pictures and stories about a disaster can increase worry and other stressful feelings. Taking breaks from the news, Internet, and conversations about the disaster can help calm you down.
Coping With Stress
Everyone—adults, teens, and even children, experiences stress. Stress is a reaction to a situation where a person feels threatened or anxious.
Stress can be positive (e.g. preparing for a wedding) or negative (e.g. dealing with a natural disaster). Learning healthy ways to cope and getting the right care and support can help reduce stressful feelings and symptoms.
After a traumatic event, people may have strong and lingering reactions. These events may include personal or environmental disasters, or threats with an assault. The symptoms may be physical or emotional. Common reactions to a stressful event can include:
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disbelief, shock, and numbness
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feeling sad, frustrated, and helpless
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difficulty concentrating and making decisions
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headaches, back pains, and stomach problems
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smoking or use of alcohol or drugs
Maintaining Your Emotional Immunity During Covid-19
How to Create a Sense of Calm
in Uncertain Times CLICK HERE
Healthy screentime for 21st Century kids!
More than a million kids do yoga, mindfulness and relaxation with Jaime on the Cosmic Kids YouTube Channel.
Parents and teachers report significant improvements in self-regulation, focus and empathy. The videos are BRILLIANT FUN so kids love doing them!
Accessing Cosmic Kids
The easiest way to access Cosmic Kids is to subscribe to our YouTube channel! We put all our videos on there. It’s free and always will be.
3 Minutes Body Scan Meditation:
Mindfulness For Kids And Adults
In Mindfulness for Kids, Shamash Alidina describes the body scan as a way to get in touch with the body, let go of feelings of needing to get stuff done, and release pent-up emotions. Just like other forms of meditation, the body scan also trains attention. The body scan alternates between a wide and narrow focus of attention; from focusing on your little toe all the way through the entire body. The body scan trains your mind to be able to move from detailed attention to a wider and more spacious awareness from one moment to the next.
Mindfulness for Kids:
What does being present mean?
In this video, our classroom takes you through what being in the moment means. #Mindfulness is all about living in the moment. We live in an age of distraction and spend the better part of our lives planning over the future or ruminating over the past. Inadvertently, we pass on these skills to our children as well. I often hear my children speaking about some space in the future, making stories, building plans. Yet, one of life's sharpest paradoxes is that our "future" hinges on our ability to live in this very moment.