Welcome to our new series, Mindful Mondays.
It feels that over the past three weeks or so our world has been turned upside down. When this happens our personal lives don’t seem to make sense. Our daily routines, activities, and life as we knew it falls quickly out of our grasp. As human beings, we scramble to seek certainty in the unknown. Our stress level soars, grief sneaks through the backdoor, and we are left wondering why the tears are streaming down our faces at the most inopportune time. Last week on the first of our Mindful Monday series, we discussed that COVID-19 has swept through our nation leaving us to collectively grieve as a nation. Grief is not meant to be outrun, only faced. Grief takes you on a roller coaster ride of emotions. Throughout this time of crisis, remember that whatever you are feeling is perfectly ok. Our feelings must be felt in order to be healed.
This week, we are introducing Mindful Mantras. A mantra is a statement, word, phrase, or sentence that is repeated frequently when it feels like your mind has taken you for a ride and is speeding off the tracks. Your mantra has the ability to bring you back to the present moment and remind you of your inner strength. It can be helpful to place your hand over your heart and if you are comfortable you can close your eyes. With a few deep cleansing breathes and repetition of your word or phrase, you can watch as your heart begins to settle, your breathing begins to ease, and your hands begin to loosen the grip of the metaphorical harness you’ve been holding so tightly to. The ride begins to slow and you can choose to get off until your next go around. A mindful mantra isn’t meant to take your worries away but it is meant to remind you that you are able to manage whatever twists and turns (and maybe even loops) that come your way.
We have created a free list of mindful mantras for you to download and we’d love it if you shared your own with us in the comments. Click here to download our 5 Mindful Mantras.
Until next week,
Kristin
Director of Community Development & Grief Services.
