5 Way to Feel Calmer Instantly

Feeling panicked and overworked? Stressed out all the time and struggling to focus? You just described pretty much the majority of the population.

 

Unfortunately, being stressed and burned-out is rapidly becoming the ‘new normal’ in a world where we have too much to do and not enough time to do it in. The good news is that with the ubiquity of this issue, there is also a large array of options when it comes to treating and solving it. Here are five ways you can feel better almost instantly.

 

Tidy

 

You can go Marie Kondo on your home, or you can just do a little spring clean. Whichever you choose, you’ll find that having a more organized space can instantly help you to feel better about your current predicament.

 

If you only have five minutes, then just clear your immediate area. It’s often enough!

 

Eat

 

If you’re feeling very anxious, it might well be because you have allowed your blood sugar to drop. Something as simple as eating a meal can help to boost it back up and significantly improve your mood again. Our moods are tied extremely closely to what we eat, due to the link between our blood sugar and the release of cortisol and serotonin (the stress and feel-good hormones respectively!).

 

Go for Walk

 

Walking helps to engage the ‘default mode network’ – the network of brain regions that spring into action whenever we’re not doing something highly active. The result is that your mind wanders and you feel calm and creative. Fresh air and scenic views will do the rest. A five-minute spin around the block is all it takes!

 

Meditate

 

Just five minutes of meditation can be more than enough to help boost your mood and help you to feel better. The aim of meditation is to calm your brain by focussing on something other than the negative thoughts you’re currently experiencing – even if that ‘something else’ happens to be nothing at all!

 

Just set a timer for five minutes, and make an effort to push all concerns out your brain. It’s that easy!

 

Exercise

 

Another way that you can overcome stress and anxiety is to exercise. This stimulates the release of serotonin, not to mention being extremely good for distracting yourself!

Again, five minutes might well be enough. Just take a moment out and do 30 push ups. You’ll get the blood circulating and feel better in no time.

How Meditation Can Help Creativity

How do you encourage creativity?

 

The unfortunate irony, is that the more you try to ‘force’ your creativity, the less likely it is to come. The less likely you are to have that ‘aha’ moment.

 

The reason for this, is that when we try and force anything, we become stressed – physiologically aroused. We produce more adrenaline, cortisol, and other stress hormones. And as such, we narrow our focus onto the thing we think is most pressing.

 

Creativity on the other hand, happens when we are relaxed. This in turn allows the mind to wander – to explore different memories and knowledge and to make unique connections out of those disparate topics. They say that all new ideas are just recombination of old ones!

 

A 2000 study from Slovenia shows that ‘coherence’ in the brain is critical for creativity – that means disparate brain areas working in unison. 

 

Meditation can help greatly in encouraging this then. When you meditate, you will be able to encourage a state of calm, that will allow you to access novel ideas and connections.

 

What’s more, is that you can use specific types of meditation in order to encourage this. One example is Cal Newport’s ‘Productive Meditation’. This is a form of meditation where – rather than completely empty your mind – you focus on a particular problem or creative pursuit and then try to come to a solution.

 

When was the last time you just sat and thought about something that was important to you?

 

When you do this, you will be able to actually practice using the parts of the brain we use for imagination and creative thinking. These include the ‘default mode network’. This is the network of brain regions that fire when we are not engaged with a task.

 

Interestingly, studies seem to show that we need to utilize a combination of both the default mode network and the executive control network in order to come up with useful ideas. In other words, freeflowing nonsense that occurs when you’re falling asleep or drunk is not useful. But ‘mulling a topic over’ on the other hand can be extremely useful.

 

So, the next time you have a challenge, or you want to come up with a creative solution to a problem – take a moment out and ‘think on it’. Meditate on the subject, then let your mind just wander. 

 

A creative solution may just come to you.

 

How to Meditate ALL Day for Amazing Results

When we think of meditation, we tend to think of the most common form of the practice – or at least the one we see most commonly depicted. That is of course, the kind synonymous with the image of a sage guru sitting cross legged, hands perched on their knees, with their minds calm, chanting ‘OM’.

 

While this is one example of a form of meditation, it is far from the only one. Just as beneficial in fact – if not moreso – is practicing focussing the mind during your daily activities. 

 

Because what meditation is really, is nothing more than focus. Meditation is what happens when you choose to focus your mind on something, rather than letting it bounce from one thing to the next. And the result is that you stop feeling so panicked and forget all those unhelpful thoughts that may have been racing through your mind before.

 

Many of the activities we engage in daily can already be considered as ‘meditative’. A good example is reading a book, or even watching a good film. Have you ever been to an amazing film at the theatre, then been completely disoriented when you exit? Because you aren’t sure what time it should be, or how long you’ve been in there? That’s because you’ve been so transfixed on what you were doing, that everything else fell aside.

 

The same thing happens when you read a good book. Put it this way: you can’t be engaged in an enthralling read and worrying about what tomorrow might bring. These two activities are mutually exclusive.

 

Now your objective is to bring that same sense of calm focus into other parts of your life. 

Take ironing for example. While you might be ironing while you watch TV, you may also find that at times, you iron as you allow your mind to go blank. You focus purely on the activity itself – the ironing – and everything else seems to fall away.

 

There’s something about the repetitive motion of moving an iron back and forth that can be perfectly meditative. You just have to let it! So, calm your mind and choose to think about nothing else. If you can do this, then you will be able to turn ironing into meditation.

 

From there, the next step is to try becoming meditative while you’re washing the dishes. Then maybe while you’re walking.

 

How to Overcome Social Anxiety With Mindfulness

Social anxiety is something that can be crippling for some people. This prevents us from being able to talk in public, meet new people, or in some cases even go to the shops. It’s also one of the most common forms of anxiety there is.

 

In fact, almost all of us will experience it to some degree.

 

But while there’s no simple cure to this complex problem, using mindfulness can certainly make a huge difference. 

 

What is Mindfulness and How Can it Help?

 

When we think of mindfulness, we might think of mindful meditation. In fact, though, this is only one facet of a larger topic. 

 

Really, mindfulness just means being more mindful and aware of your own thoughts. It means being a little ‘self-reflective’. 

 

In the case of a phobia or an anxiety like social anxiety, that effectively means learning to better recognize the stress-inducing thoughts that are causing your anxiety.

 

An example might be that you think:

 

“I’m going to stutter, and everyone will laugh.”

 

Or perhaps:

 

“What if what I say is stupid?”

 

The first step is in identifying precisely what it is that you’re afraid of. And from there, you can go about tackling it head-on.

 

Cognitive Restructuring

 

That then, is when the next part comes in: cognitive restructuring. This is the process of understanding your negative thoughts, and so deciding that you’re going to get rid of them.

 

How do you do this? One way is by disproving them.

 

So for instance, if you’re afraid that if you stutter everyone will laugh, then you should try testing that theory. This is called ‘hypothesis testing’. Build up the courage to allow yourself to stutter, or just observe the next time it happens naturally. Do people laugh? Or are they kind?

 

You can also try something called ‘thought challenging’ to just pick apart the statement and see how accurate it’s likely to be.

 

Are your friends the sort of people to laugh at you?

 

Do you normally say stupid things?

 

Of course, this still takes a lot of time and practice. Actually, changing your beliefs is extremely hard. But using these tools it is possible to overcome your fear. 

 

And one last tip: try adding in new beliefs. For example: what does it matter if people laugh at you anyway? Are you that wrapped up in your own ability to speak? If you’re training to get better, then let a few idiots laugh!

 

How to Start Meditation in 3 Easy Steps

More and more people are now beginning to appreciate the amazing power of meditation. No longer does the average Joe or Josephine view meditation as being some kind of black magic – it’s now understood as a highly scientific and practical tool that anyone can and should use for better brain health.

 

But how do you start? It’s still a daunting and somewhat abstract concept. So, to help you overcome that notion, here’s how to start meditation in 3 easy steps.

 

Find a Quiet Place

 

Meditation can be done anywhere, but it’s certainly easier when you are free from distractions. And that’s especially true for beginners. So, find a quiet spot, and if you want to make this a regular practice, try to make it somewhere that you will be able to come too often.

 

Now sit down however is comfortable. Don’t lie down though – only because you risk falling asleep if you do!

 

Set Some Time

 

The next step is to set yourself some time out. You can do this by setting a timer – which means you won’t need to keep checking your watch, or worry about overshooting and missing some appointment.

 

If you’re starting out for the first time, then ten minutes is more than enough. But in all honesty, you can even get benefit from just five minutes. This is what many people don’t realize when they make excuses for not starting. We all should be able to find five minutes of quiet in our day. If you cannot, then the issue is deeper routed than perhaps you realized!

 

Focus

 

Finally, the next step is to focus. That means focussing on something like breathing or perhaps repeating a word or phrase. You can also try focussing on something in the environment around you. A popular practice for instance is to focus on a single flame.

 

Then there’s the option to focus on emptying your thoughts, or perhaps to focus on reflecting on those thoughts in a dispassionate manner. 

 

Whatever the case, all you are trying to do is to take conscious control over your attention and to direct it towards something that is non-stressful, and that will help you to recover a little energy and mood. That’s all there is to meditation and it’s really rather simple.

 

If you’re still struggling, then at this point you may wish to consider using a guided meditation – like something from Headspace. These guided meditations talk you through a script that will help to direct your attention for you. 

 

Meditation and Creativity – How One Helps the Other

Meditation is heralded by many as being a ‘cure all’ – a panacea that can prevent all of your woes and help you to find peace and enlightenment.

 

They’re not wrong per say. Compared with many other strategies, meditation is certainly one of the most effective when it comes to overcoming anxiety and getting a better perspective on things. But unfortunately, nothing is perfect. That includes meditation.

 

Meditation is all about getting ‘out of your own head’ and focussing. It’s about being in the moment and not reflecting on problems. 

 

But here’s the thing: reflecting on problems is useful. Even a little bit of stress is useful – it’s called eustress.

 

And the biggest potential casualty when it comes to meditation is creativity and the default mode network. The default mode network is the selection of brain areas that light up when you daydream, or think about your own future. People associate this part of the brain with a) being distracted from what’s happening, and b) being negative.

 

But the truth? The default mode network is also where many of us come up with our very best ideas – including Albert Einstein. Daydreaming about the future is how we learn more about who we are, and what we want to accomplish.

 

So, the risk is that we throw the baby out with the bathwater.

 

The good news is that meditation isn’t to blame. The problem is with the way it is sometimes pedalled – by people who claim we should always be in the moment.

The truth is that the brain has many different states and we perform best when we’re able to choose those states and jump between them as needed.

 

So we need to be ‘in the moment’ when delivering a speech or spending time with friends, but there’s no harm in letting our mind wander when we’re going for a stroll and thinking about writing a great story.

 

This is where something called ‘productive meditation’ comes in. Suggested by author Cal Newport in his book ‘Deep Work’, this form of meditation means you are focussing on a problem or a creative endeavour. Instead of thinking about nothing, you are thinking about something you want to work on. 

 

And in fact, this kind of meditation agrees with what some new research suggests: that we are most creative when we active both the ‘daydreamy’ default mode network and the focussed ‘executive control network’. When you focus on being unfocussed, amazing things happen.

 

The Power of Awe for Life Changing Mental Transformations

Meditation is a tool that anyone can use to tap into a sense of calm as and when they need it. You can think of meditation almost as a ‘place’ that you can go to in order to get away from it all. The only difference is that this ‘place’ is always there, and you don’t have to leave your house!

 

But meditation is just one example of a tool we can use to ‘reset’ our mental state as it were. Another that is just effective – though slightly less convenient – is to seek out moments of ‘awe’.

 

What do we mean by awe?

 

Essentially, any moment where you feel overwhelmed by the scale and beauty of what you’re seeing. Perhaps the most classic example is when you emerge at the top of a mountain hike to discover a beautiful vista unfolding beneath you. That moment where your breath is taken away – is a moment of awe.

 

So, what exactly is going on here? What’s the brain chemistry? Why is it good for us? And what is the evolutionary function of such a mood? 

 

As far as the best guesses go, we now believe that this sense of awe is triggered by the release of hormones in response to massive restructuring of the brain’s neural networks. In short, you suddenly feel ‘small’, and what you’re seeing is forcing you to rethink your position.

 

That’s why we can equally feel the same way when looking at something of supreme beauty, or when gazing at the stars. At this moment, the bar has been reset and we are forced to look at things differently. The need for such restructuring will come with a cascade of neurotransmitters and hormones that will support this change. And that’s what makes us feel good in that moment.

 

But in the long term, this is extremely good for us, because it helps us to restructure neural connections that might otherwise have been negative – and to get out of our own heads for a moment. 

 

To put it another way, it’s a great way to get your life in perspective and to remember the grand scale of the world and universe around you. It’s harder to think that the interview you have tomorrow is the worst thing in the world when you’re forced to remember that you are not even a speck on the cosmic canvas.

 

So, head out for a walk. And if you can’t do that, then just spend some time thinking deeply about a topic that amazes you.

 

Top Types of Meditation

Did you know there is more than one type of meditation? In fact, there are countless forms of meditation – each of which has different goals and methods. 

 

The question then, is which type of meditation is right for you – and how do you get started with the one you choose? This guide will help you to understand more and decide.

 

Mindfulness Meditation

 

We’ll start with this one, only because it has become so popular recently that it’s the type many people may be familiar with. 

 

Mindfulness meditation comes from cognitive behavioural therapy – a psychotherapeutic approach in psychology. The idea here is not to empty your mind of thoughts – as it is in many other forms – but rather to try and detach yourself from those thoughts and not be affected by them. Note which thoughts float by, but don’t try to change them.

 

Body Scan Meditation

 

Closely linked to mindfulness meditation is body scan meditation – this is a form of meditation that involves focussing on each part of your body and progressively relaxing. It’s great for refreshing the brain and chilling after a hard day.

 

Transcendental Meditation

 

This is another of the more popular and well-known forms of meditation. The goal here is to clear your mind and to do so usually by focussing on a mantra or perhaps an imaginary point in space. Doing this can help you to eventually close down areas of your brain while retaining consciousness.

 

Loving Kindness Meditation

 

Loving kindness meditation is a form of meditation that involves focussing your mind on a specific feeling – in this case love and kindness! By doing this, you will feel happier and you will become better at forgiving people. It also feels fantastic in the moment. 

 

Kundalini Yoga Meditation

 

Kundalini yoga meditation is a form of moving meditation. The idea here is to move gently into different positions while focussing on controlling your breathing and staying calm and focussed. The result can be highly relaxing while also improving your overall health and wellness.

 

Religious Meditation

 

Religious practitioners can engage in meditation by focussing deeply on a passage of text from their scripture, or on a prayer. 

 

Zazen

 

Zazen is a form of meditation associated with Zen Buddhism. It must be taught under the leadership of an instructor and involves a number of specific steps. However, the objective is once again to focus primarily on detaching yourself from your thoughts and letting go of judgement. 

 

How You Can Build Confidence Through Meditation

Confidence is a fantastic byproduct that comes from meditation, yet few people ever talk about it. Meditation can have a significant impact on your self-confidence when practiced daily. Real reflection means being able to let go of everything. Along with the many health benefits that you can gain from meditation, it can also stop the negative self-talk that can destroy your self-confidence. Meditation shows you that you don't have to listen to your inner voice, especially when it focuses on the negative. Follow these three steps to start building your confidence through meditation. 

 

Step 1: Learn How to Meditate

 

When you are first starting out, basic mindfulness meditation will be the best to practice because it is easy to do. Mindfulness meditation revolves focusing on the physical sensations of the present moment. The easiest way to accomplish this is by focusing on your breathing. Here are the steps you need to do to begin practicing. 

 

* Sit down in a chair or on the floor and maintain tall, erect posture.

* Set a five-minute timer on your phone.

* Begin by breathing through your nose. 

* Hold your breath to the count of four, then exhale. 

 

Focus on the cold air as it enters your nose with each inhalation. Notice how your belly rises with each breath. As you exhale, feel the warm air as it exits your nose and how your body begins to relax. If your attention starts to wander, refocus on your breathing on the next inhalation. 

 

Step 2: Build a Habit of Meditation

 

If you want to reap all the benefits of mediation, you have to do it more than once or twice. To keep your mind quiet and confident, you have to create a consistent practice of meditation. The most effective way to create a daily habit of reflection is to make it an essential part of your daily routine. You can do this by committing to practicing first thing in the morning, or right before you go to bed.

 

Step 3: Use Mindful Breathing

 

When you follow the first two steps, you'll begin to develop quiet confidence that will stay with you no matter what. However, there are always times when we'll start to feel anxious. When you begin to feel anxious and catch yourself getting lost in negative thoughts, stop what you are doing and focus on your breathing. Relax your body and decide to take action.

 

Practicing in regular meditation can help you banish negative self-talk and build your confidence up. The key is to learn how to practice simple meditation and turn it into a daily habit.

 

Meditation as a Way to Reduce Stress and Improve Your Life

Meditation is all the rage these days. So many people are taking advantage of its benefits and allowing it to work in their lives to create true change. For those who are skeptical about how sitting still in the quiet can help them, it may seem like a waste of time to sit around and be inactive for long periods of time when they could be going out there and getting things done. 

 

While it is fair to think so, the truth is that being still and completely quiet is something that is often missing from our daily lives. It can be impossible to give ourselves a chance to reflect on the things that are happening to us in the moment, which can sometimes lead to the wrong choices being made or inaccurate snap judgments occurring. 

 

However, when we utilize meditation as a way to improve ourselves and let go of things that can continue to trouble us, it can truly open our lives up for better possibilities. Stress is often a result of not having enough of a chance to sit back and smell the roses, so to speak. Relaxation can be a great way to improve your health and state of mind, particularly if you are the kind of person who rarely slows down. Meditation is a way to force yourself to make the time you need to make to let your mind shut down for a quick reboot so that your processing power is even more powerful. 

 

For the naysayer, meditation can prove to be productive as well. It doesn’t have to be a situation where you are simply sitting still on the floor wasting your time. It can actually be a great way to improve yourself and find solutions to problems that are plaguing you or your work. Meditations can be guided toward self-improvement, achieving success, and problem solving. Meditation can help us to focus on the things that we care about most and relax our minds enough to come up with the answers to very difficult questions and situations that might seem impossible. During the quiet of meditation, it is common for the mind to finally give us an alternative approach to a problem that we may be having. Something that might otherwise be impossible to figure out under stress.

 

It can be common for people to dismiss the idea that meditation can help you, but both scientific studies and successful people in all fields will say the same thing. Meditation works, and it can be an incredible tool for anybody who is seeking to better themselves and benefit their lives.

 

12 Tips for Nurturing Your Personal Freedom

There’s a lot of pressure to conform to society’s definition of success. Right from school, you hear that there is pretty much one path. A good job, a one-way upwards career trajectory, a family, big house, lots of money. But your personal freedom doesn’t get mentioned. Nor does inner peace. But you don’t have to step too far outside your regular life to allow space for greater contentment, and freedom from the anxieties and pressures of modern life. 

 

There are some key things you can do right now to nurture your personal freedom and achieve greater contentment with your life. 

 

• Let go of past hurts and sufferings, acknowledging what you have learned along the way.

• Believe in your heart that you deserve love and good things in your life and that you wish these for the other people in your life. 

• Act kindly in your interactions with other people, whether it’s friends, family, colleagues or the person you walk past in the street. People will remember how you treated them long after they have forgotten your words.

• Be kind to yourself and acknowledge that you mostly do the best you can. And when you make a mistake, you learn from it and do better. 

• Acknowledge that you have control only over your actions and reactions. You can’t control other people, but you can control how you respond to them.

• Own your past mistakes but do not let them define you. 

• Be at peace with change and accept that it is part of the ebb and flow of life. 

• Set goals to achieve what you want out of life but be flexible and prepared to adapt to changing circumstances. 

• Don’t compare your life to others, especially as they present themselves on social media. People always display their best sides and rarely acknowledge weakness or when things are going badly. 

• Choose to be compassionate. Most people are trying to do their best most of the time. 

• Be grateful for where you are, and what you have right now. Don’t get caught up in a dissatisfaction loop where the other guy’s life looks better. Chances are you are already living an abundant life.

• Learn to relax and allow things to be, rather than try to second guess all the time. Adopt the Buddhist philosophy of detachment, breathe, and let go of anxiety. Allow and trust that the Universe will give you what you need.

 

You Don't have to Become Some Sort of Mystic to Benefit from Meditation

There's a lingering stereotype about people who practiced meditation or some form of mindfulness. In the eyes of too many people, mindfulness practitioners are entering some sort of mystic or religious space. They believe that if you close your eyes or you recite an inaudible or silent mantra that you are necessarily praying or engaging in some sort of religious or spiritual activity. Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

Mysticism is very different from meditation. Typical meditation, and I’m not talking about meditation derived from spiritual practices, I’m talking about basic meditation, is all about becoming aware of your body and your mind in the present moment.

 

Mysticism is about awareness that is beyond you. You're reaching out to some sort of greater truth that can either extend back in the or forward into the future. These are two totally different things. People are comparing apples to oranges.

 

When you engage in mysticism, you engage in external truth that may have been written a long, long time ago or is actually timeless. Regardless of whether you approve of mysticism or not, I think we could all agree that this is a totally different animal from mindfulness or meditation.

 

When you're being mindful, you don't care about the past. You really don't. This is why meditation is so awesome to a lot of people who are trying to overcome some sort of trauma.

 

Maybe your father wasn’t there when you were growing up. Perhaps you were abused by your mother. Possibly, your ex-boyfriend or girlfriend abused you or cheated on you or betrayed. Maybe people laughed at you in the past.

 

Whatever the case may be when you practice meditation, you let go of the past. You're no longer going through your mental closet and unraveling very painful or traumatic memories only to put them back into the closet again, and then you repeat the process over and over. You take a break from that. You really do.

 

When you practice mindfulness, you are focused on one thing and one thing alone. You are focused on the present moment, nothing else.

 

The same applies to worries. If you are a worrier, meditation may be the solution you're looking for because instead of obsessing and wasting tremendous emotional and mental resources thinking about stuff that has yet to happen, you focus on what is.

 

You realize that the air coming out of your nostrils is real right here, right now. You are aware of how you’re breathing right here, right now. Nothing else.

 

This is why if you are still on the fence about meditation or mindfulness, understand it has nothing to do with mysticism. You don't have to become some sort of mystic. You don't have to become some sort of Shaolin or Buddhist priest. You don't have to do any of that. You just have to focus on who you are right here, right now.