India reported an alarming 90% increase in the daily COVID-19 cases after a steady decline
In recent days the number of COVID-19 cases have seen a spike across the country. The development comes around the same time when the country was witnessing the deadly second wave of coronavirus last year. India reported an alarming 90% increase in the daily COVID-19 cases after a steady decline. The news may cause anxiety issues among some of us since the chances of another lockdown becomes more and more real.
However, it is imperative that we address our mental well-being during these times. Too much stress can also end up affecting your immunity and hence making you more vulnerable to catch the virus. To help you tackle these anxious times, practice meditation and mindfulness techniques.
According to Mindful.org, mindfulness is the basic human ability to be completely present and aware of where we are and what we are doing. This practice allows us to not be overly reactive or overwhelmed by what is going on around us. Jon Kabat-Zinn, Founder of Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, describes this phenomena as “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally.”
Follow these three steps to practice mindful meditation:
- Use your six senses to pay attention to the present moment. Keep in mind that our aim is to bring attention to our experience in a wider and more open manner. Do not go with selective attention to your surroundings but surrender yourself completely.
- Focus on how you inhale and exhale. Now you focus your attention on breathing in one region of your body.
- Bring your attention to your body and become aware of sensations in the body as a whole, sitting with the whole body, the whole breath. This way we move back to a wider space of attention for our experience.
It should be noted that mindfulness meditation techniques may not work for those who have serious mental health conditions. It is recommended that these practices can accompany your main medications and treatment that has been planned by a professional medical expert.
