keep it going
Every mindfulness practice has a day one. For us, meditation was a hard rhythm to kick into when we had so many other things going on. It seems that life always finds a way to discourage "unproductive" time. A few minutes to sit with yourself may seem like a luxury, but you really get a bang for your buck with mindfulness! At first, a few minutes in silence takes forever. Then, you begin looking forward to that time.
We started with a full 30 minutes everyday because that was recommended to us by a professional. However, there were plenty of days when we found ourselves breaking that up into 3, 5, or 10 minute chunks. We each have our favorite methods and exercises, but we found that the more often we practiced mindfulness, the easier it was to "reset" ourselves during the day.
When Isabel is overwhelmed, she likes to go outside for 5-10
minutes to just sit with her eyes closed and take in her environment. Focusing on the warmth of the sun, the shuffle of crowds brushing past her, and attention to her breath helps realign her thoughts and come back to work with more resiliency. Kaylin prefers to practice first thing in the morning or at night so that she can mentally prepare herself for the day, or review and reflect upon it. She finds that time helps her regroup and focus on her mental well-being.
We are lucky that we were able to start our practices together and hold each other accountable. Now that we have a supportive foundation, we feel confident that we will be continuing our mindfulness practice indefinitely. Reaching out to a mindfulness group or getting a community started is a great way to socialize your practice and connect with other mediators.
"The real meditation practice is how we live our lives from moment to moment to moment."
- Jon Kabat-Zinn
62