Mindfulness with Teens

How sad are these pictures below? Unfortunately this is where our young people are headed. I saw the middle picture on FB, a and it really resonated with me. The other two pics are my son and his posse. Is there hope for our children? Will they be present enough to appreciate the world around them? Will they be able to have engaging face to face relationships? We can’t stop the madness but there things we can do to help them.

Mindfulness is something we can use to counteract being out of touch with life, and bring us back to the present moment, so we can enjoy and appreciate our what is going on around us.

Not only do our kids desperately need this, so do we. All the stimulation of technology coming at us 24-7, is causing us to be on overload leading to chronic high stress levels. Hence the popularity of mindfulness, at a time when we are all losing our minds.

Here are some tips you can use with yourself, child or teen.

1. Break the screen addiction. Explain to them that the phone is addictive and a huge time suck. Put some parameters around screen use for you and your child. Have some time each day when you leave the phone in another room where you are not a slave to it.
2. When posting to social media, ask yourself, what is my intention when I post this? Maybe even post after the fact, so you don’t ruin the moment that you are currently experiencing by checking “likes” or comments.
3. Get teens to appreciate the little things in life. The trees are gorgeous, notice them!
4. When stressed, breathing is key. A few deep breaths can go a long way. Even a one minute meditation focusing on your breath can bring you back to the present moment.
5.Explain to them that they don’t have to believe their thoughts. Our thoughts take us out of the moment and can make us crazy. We frequently worry about things that will probably never happen to us, yet they cause anxiety. Focusing on the present moment will relax us because in this moment, there is usually nothing we can’t handle.

Come to the Greeley PTA meeting to find out how to counteract the craziness of life. Everyone is welcome.