Mindfulness

Build Your Relaxation Response

Build Your Relaxation Response

Many of us push our minds and bodies to the limit, often at the expense of our physical and mental wellbeing. The response to our daily activities may include an increased heart rate, high blood pressure, and an accelerated breathing rate. In this week’s blog we discover practices to effectively reduce stress.

Why is a Mindfulness Practice Important?

Why is a Mindfulness Practice Important?

The science is sound. Research shows that mindfulness practice has many benefits –improved focus and decision-making, strengthened relationships, resilience, and increased creativity. It can reduce stress, improve sleep, and help you quickly overcome challenges and setbacks. Let’s take a look…

Making Mindfulness a Habit

Making Mindfulness a Habit

From the beginning, the Levelhead approach to developing a mindfulness practice was based on the assumption that people have busy lives and need to be able to practice whenever, wherever it fits their lifestyle. We realize that people are time-starved and have a limited desire for practices that require more than 5 minutes. Take a look at what recent research says about what is needed to develop a mindfulness practice…

Goodbye 2020

Goodbye 2020

Very few of us would say that 2020 was a great year. And it might be hard to find something good about this last year. However, if we look at it through the lens of post-traumatic growth, we might discover that we have gained valuable lessons that will help us in the years to come.

Celebrating is Good for Our Mental Health

Celebrating is Good for Our Mental Health

This year, weddings, birthdays, graduations, and other celebrations were canceled or remarkably subdued. Because of that, it might be tempting to downplay the holiday season like we have with other celebrations this year, especially with surging COVID cases. If you are in that mindset, you might want to rethink that decision. Based on an abundance of evidence, it is even more critical for our mental well-being that we engage in rituals of the holiday season, while observing the limitations needed to keep us safe from the virus.

The Awe of a Child

The Awe of a Child

Do you remember the holiday season as a child? Can you recall the anticipation and excitement of what Santa might bring you? Or better yet, if you have children now, can you feel their excitement for the upcoming holidays? When I think of my childhood holiday experiences, the word that comes to mind is “awe”. This year, many of us may not be feeling full of awe, however. So, how do we get these feelings back?