Gratitude Walks

Carve out some time in your day to go for a walk. It can be long or short, however much time you need and have will do. During this walk make a mental list of all that you are grateful for. With each step think of one small thing you feel grateful for. It could be a beautiful day, the time to go for this walk, your coffee in the morning.

As you continue to walk allow your gratitude list to focus on the big things in life you are grateful for such as being able to breathe, being alive, being healthy and well. It’s natural for other thoughts to pop up during this walk. Allow them to come and go and then return to your gratitude walk. Continue along this path in your mind, taking time to pause and refreshen your breath with moments of feeling energized with gratitude.

Make time in your week to have more focused gratitude walks, before you know it the simple act of walking will trigger this remembered response and you will start to feel lighter, more appreciative of life, and is a wonderful way to take a break from your day.

A BLANK PAGE

Journal Prompt Exercise

I encourage you to stare at a blank page in front of you. Set your timer for 10 minutes and free write. A blank page allows the words to spill out in front of you. A clean slate to explore whatever comes up. Allow this time and space to be free from judgments. Free flowing thoughts will help you dissolve trapped emotions that may be stuck. Without the intention about writing about something in particular, allow these journal prompts to absorb into your mind. Do not try and answer the questions at first, just allow them to start churning the wheels in your mind. Then begin free writing. Making the words on the page appear one by one…remember no judgment!

Journal prompts:

How do I want my life to unfold?

What am I doing in my life that I am proud of?

What do I want to improve in my life?

What am I truly grateful for?

What brings me joy?

Do I find surrender from moment to moment accepting what is?

What am I afraid of?

How can I let go of what no longer serves me?

What boundaries do I create the prevents me from experiencing love?

Do I feel calm? If so, what relaxes me?

Do I feel stressed? If so, what worries me?

How can I make today a better day?

Am I overly positive or negative with my views?

Do I set realistic goals?

Am I too hard on myself?

Once you have completed your journal exercise. Take a few minutes to center yourself. Find your breath. Take a few big deep breaths here. It’s important to check in with yourself from time to time and see where you are. See if you can find time every day to free write even if for a few minutes. Staring at a blank page is a symbol for each new day. Imagine how you will write the story of your life every morning you wake up.

Stillness

That moment in meditation where you find stillness. You begin to notice the sensations in your body from the pulsing of your heartbeat, to the sudden swift of air that passes through your nose. Your body is still reflecting the stillness in your mind. Your heartbeat is steady. Your breath is natural. In and out, flowing effortlessly.

 Now imagine that you can see the reflection of the moon, the luminous light casting down to a lake, as clear as if you were looking up into the night sky. You can see this reflection clearly when the water is still. This sort of stillness is what you may find when your thoughts begin to settle. Imagine your mind as the water and the moon as your soul.

 Wherever you are right now, close your eyes and tune into your natural breath. Begin to imagine your mind as a lake of calm waters. What do you notice when thoughts arise? What sensations do you feel in your body? Notice the pauses between your breath.

 PRACTICE:

Inhale fully through your nose. Pause for 3 seconds. Notice the stillness within that pause. Exhale completely out your mouth until you have squeezed that last bit of breath. Pause at the end of your exhale. Begin again.

CALM practices

CALM practices

If you looked up CALM in the dictionary you would find “the absence of wind.” When you think of your mind as an ocean and your thoughts as the wind it can make perfect sense why the cessation of thoughts can leave a calm mind. It’s natural to have a constant flow of thoughts, but there needs to be time in between these rushing thoughts to allow the mind to have a break. When you pause and start to build awareness around the many thoughts you may have you begin to notice a slight gap between thoughts. Let your awareness sink deeper into this gap. There are a variety of tools you have within that can bring you to this state of calm.

 Here are a few calm practices that you can do in a few minutes:

Meditation – sit in a quiet place. Begin to notice your breath. Accept your thoughts as they come and go and continue to focus on the natural rhythm of your breath. Even just a few minutes can help.

Mindful Breathing – breathe in for a count of 4 and release slowly for a count of 8. Repeat as much as needed.

Yin Yoga – start in a seated position, bring the soles of your feat together with your knees open like a butterfly and begin to lower your body gradually towards your feet. Let gravity hold you here and continue to breathe naturally in and out through your nose.

Journaling – Set a timer for 5 minutes and free flow journal – allow whatever is on your mind to come up. Do not judge what you write, just allow it to be.

Reflexology – your body is full of natural pressure points that can make you feel calmer. Take a break and give your feet some TLC. Use a calming lotion such with lavender or chamomile ingredients and gently massage your feet focusing on different areas.

Cup of Relaxing tea – go to your favorite health food store and look for a calming tea. There are plenty of stress-relieving teas that you can use as your go to calming source. When you find yourself feeling stressed, put on a kettle and make yourself a relaxing tea. You can even enjoy tea in the summer - if it’s hot out then cool it on ice!

BREATHE

Use your breath as an anchor to pull you into the present moment. By focusing on your breath for even a few minutes you can alter your nervous system, activating a calming feeling throughout your body. There are many different breathing exercises you can do to activate this calm feeling. Numerous studies have shown when your exhale is twice as long as your inhale it activates your parasympathetic nervous system.

Try it:

Breathe in through your nose for a count of 4. Pause at the top of your inhale.

Exhale slowly out your nose for a count of 8. Pause at the bottom.

Repeat.

If this exercise is too much for you to start, try gradually extending your exhale. Starting with a breath of 4, breathe in through your nose, exhale slowly for a count of 5. After every inhale, add on another count for the exhale until it has doubled.

I find whenever I start doing active breathing exercises it can sometimes make me feel anxious if I have to force my breath in a certain way. Know that you can return to your natural breath at any time if you begin to feel uncomfortable.