THE IMPACT OF MINDFULNESS

School life is the most exciting and joyful phase of life. However, it can be a little stressful for some students. They may feel stressed out about exams, changing schools, coursework deadlines, and not getting along with friends. In these stressful situations, students can benefit from mindfulness. Mindfulness is the act of paying attention to the moment, on purpose. It involves acceptance without any judgements.  A study suggests that when studies practise mindfulness, they experience

• Lower stress
• Better cognitive functioning
• Positive influence on academic performance

INCREASING MINDFULNESS AMONG CHILDREN

If you are are a student, here are some useful insights  on practising  mindfulness by one of the leading CBSE schools in Kolkata:

 ▷ Start Your Day with a 5 Min Meditation Session
One of the effective ways to practise mindfulness is to start your day early with a meditation session. It could be for  5 to 10 minutes. Meditation is a process of focusing all your attention on a particular object; it could be an image or on your breath. Practising deep breathing can relax the body and mind.

 ▷ Go on a Nature Walk
You can go for a nature walk. Connecting with nature is the best way to calm down your senses. Whenever you feel stressed out, go for a walk. While walking pay attention to the trees or chirping of the birds and experience the power of nature .

 ▷ Plan a Digital Detox Day
In today’s digital world, you cannot totally refrain from using electronic devices.  However, remember it has been found excessive use of digital devices can lead to anxiety and even depression. Also, holding digital devices for too long can cause pain in the hand, neck, and shoulder. b Forgo digital detox at least for a few hours of the day.  Refraining from using digital devices can help you use your time more productively.

 ▷Practice Gratitude
Gratitude is a feeling of being thankful. Gratitude is a positive emotion to show appreciation of little or big things in life. The best way to feel gratitude is to do random acts of kindness. You can compliment a friend or you can help someone in the family to run errands or send somebody a ‘thank-you’ or appreciation note.

 ▷Eat Mindfully
Doing anything mindfully means paying full attention to it without any judgement. Eating mindfully is enjoying your meal with all your senses.  Pay attention to the textures, shapes, colours and smells of the food. The best way to eat mindfully is to sit alone or with family without any distractions such as TV or smartphones.