Anxiety is one of the most common mental illnesses in the US and is prevalent around the world. While many people turn to medication or try to ignore their anxiety completely, mindful meditation is a proven way to manage your anxiety.
What is mindful meditation?
Let’s start with the bigger picture: what is mindfulness? Mindfulness is the state of being aware of the present moment, which allows you to calmly acknowledge your feelings and manage negative emotions. Mindful meditation is simply a manifestation of mindfulness. It’s a form of meditation that encourages you to connect with yourself in the present moment, fostering a deep sense of reflection.
How does mindful meditation help with anxiety?
#1 Embracing your feelings
Mindful meditation encourages you to embrace your emotions without fear. You’re able to reflect on negative situations with a calm sense of awareness. This helps you gain a better understanding of what happened without choking on the fear and anxiety associated with the memory. It’s only when you calmly embrace these negativities that you can move forward without fear.
#2 Understand your stress
Building on point 1, mindful meditation not only allows you to embrace your feelings but also helps you understand them. This is a great way to dig deeper and understand the underlying causes of your anxiety. As a result, you can understand where your stress comes from and moving forward, avoid triggers.
#3 Take a step back
Dealing with anxiety is a heavy task. Anxiety often envelops you and lingers in your mind throughout the day. As a consequence, you might find it difficult to go a day without worrying about your triggers. But with mindful meditation, you can learn to tame your thoughts. This creates a safe space every day where you are free from your worries and confident enough to deal with negative emotions. Taking this step back is incredibly important for your mental health.
How can you use mindful meditation to manage your anxiety?
The beauty of mindful meditation is in its adaptability. You can choose to practice it however you choose – but here’s the crux of it:
- Focus on your breath and try to clear your mind.
- Slowly allow your thoughts to run but keep tight control on their pace. Deal with one thought at a time and take your time to acknowledge what each idea means.
- Refocus yourself on the present and remember that whatever has happened cannot affect you at this moment.
You can do this for however long you wish. Even better – you can do this while sitting, standing, or even walking. Mindful meditation does wonders for people with anxiety and it’s a low-commitment routine for you to implement every single day. If you’d like, you can even use a mindfulness tool like a Timeqube to maximize the effectiveness of your daily meditation sessions. A Timeqube is a mindful timer that changes color with the passing of time. This means no distracting buzzing or anxiety-inducing alarms. It’s a fun, unobtrusive tool to help you use mindful meditation to battle your anxiety.
Give mindful meditation a go and take control of your anxiety today!