6 Mindfulness Practices During The Pandemic

While the majority of us have a little extra time during the pandemic right now, I’d like to share six simple mindfulness practices that will help ease and relax your mind, body, and spirit during this uncertain time.

Let’s back up for a minute, in my last article, we talked about the Everyday Mindfulness and below are a few simple ways to incorporate everyday mindfulness practices into the seemingly mundane daily rituals and routines you already have.

So this mindfulness thing, it’s actually super easy and during the pandemic, I bet you have time to practice.

It is so easy!

Pick your favorite mindfulness exercise and do it every day for 30 days.  One day at a time.

Pop-culture says 21 days and deeper studies say it takes 60 days to form a habit but either way, pick something and do it consistently.  Let me know how it goes!

Set reminders in your phone, on your calendar, or post-it’s on your bathroom mirror- whatever works for you.

Below is a list of everyday mindfulness practices that truly work and I adore them.

I’d love to hear yours – please leave your comments below!

6 Everyday Mindfulness Practices To Try During The Pandemic

Mindful Eating

• Mindful eating can start when you are preparing your food.  I totally started getting into preparing meals because of this practice!  As you gather your items, think about the water, air, and sunshine that went in to create the vegetables you are about to get down on.  Think about the soil and the beautiful balance of life and how our planet provides for us.  Be grateful for the accessibility we have when obtaining our food during the pandemic, grateful for the workers who contributed to us receiving it, and gratitude for our supply-chain in general.
• As you take a delicious bite of pure bliss (the level of bliss is dependent on who’s cooking, of course) chew with gratitude for all of the aforementioned reasons.  Express your gratitude for how our food nourishes our bodies.  This food is converted into energy by our bodies and the more positive energy we can bring to the preparation process and eating – the more positive energy will begin to multiply inside of our bodies and minds.
• It’s a love-fest in your mouth!  Wait, that didn’t come out right…

Mindful Morning Coffee or Tea

• This one is very easy – at least it is for me because I LOVE my coffee in the morning.  I mean, coffee is a lifeforce for me… If I didn’t have coffee Lavender Mandala surely wouldn’t exist.
• As you prepare your coffee, even in a Keurig, do so with mindfulness.  Give thanks to the coffee fields, the magical coffee fairies, and the planet for growing such an amazing little bean of delight.  I mean, where would we be without coffee?
• As you sip, sip slowly, and with gratitude.  Be present in the moment and monitor your breathing as you sip.  Our lives are so precious, taking a few minutes to sip mindfully is the least we can do.

Mindful Breathing

• This is a gamechanger when dealing with someone that doesn’t match your good vibes or when you are having to listen to someone who is trying to suck the positivity right out of your body.  These days, I find myself doing this while watching the news.  It is extremely effective in the moment of high-stress situations when we are feeling fear and anxiety.
• At any given moment take a deep breath in through your nose and out.  Feel the air at the tips of your nostrils and you breathe. It’s that easy.
• One of my favorite spiritual teachers, Thich Nhat Hanh often says, “say to yourself ‘Breathing in, I know I am breathing in’ and out ‘Breathing out I know that I am breathing out’.”  Try this as you’re breathing to give your mind something to think about.
• If you do this multiple times a day there are literally tons of health benefits. One being, that your body reacts to the long in and out breaths – it goes into a state of calm and out of a state of anxiety or stress.  Our bodies produce chemicals that support stress and chemicals that support calmness – so it is as easy as breathing.  Wouldn’t you want to breathe mindfully to support the overall calmness in your mind, body, and spirit?
• For more information on the mind, body, and spirit benefits of breathwork, check out this article from The Chopra Center.

Mindfulness in Meditation

• You don’t have to do it alone in silence! Use an app to guide you if silence isn’t your thing.  There are so many apps, my favorite is Omvana by Mindvalley.
• Take a few minutes every morning before you get out of bed and before your brain “wakes up”.  Or take a few minutes during lunch or at the end of your workday.  An evening practice as part of your sleep hygiene routine is a great time as well.

Mindful Walks or Walking Meditation

• Meditation and mindfulness don’t have to be practiced just on a cushion or in a serene setting, as we’ve talked about in other articles.
• Try applying mindfulness practices on your walks: take in all the scenery and nature as you walk, notice the wind in the trees, the flowers that are blooming that day, and as you see neighbors or fellow hikers send them love and light with your heart as you never know just what they are going through.  We are all going through a lot and we are all against the same enemy.

Mindful Driving

• Ok, so I live in Atlanta and typically the traffic here is worse than waiting in a line at a music festival in 100-degree heat and desperately having to use that awesome port-o-potty at the front of the line. Ok, maybe it’s not that bad, all the time. Right now we have a reprieve so take advantage!
• During the pandemic, sometimes it’s just nice to get out of the house and go for a drive.  Bring quarantined for so long really makes us enjoy a beautiful day and a drive with the windows down and the music on.
• When we drive sometimes we allow our subconscious minds to drift, which can be a good thing, but many of us stay in this state and don’t “think” to break free.  Use mindfulness to bring you into the present moment and use the windshield time to practice.
• Take a few deep breaths, all the way into your belly and breathe out – long and deep.  Take a look at the cars around you – think about the human beings inside of those cars and send them love and light – they might really need it in that moment.  Look at the trees and scenery alongside the road, the sky and what the clouds look like that day. If it’s raining, think about the beautiful blue sky above those clouds and be grateful for how our planet restores herself.  Come from a place of love, see the beauty in the ordinary and express gratitude wherever you can… and be safe about it!
• Please make sure to keep your eyes on the traffic around you and don’t get into an accident!

So in a nutshell, if you breathe, or drink coffee, or eat food, or go for walks, or drive a car, you can practice everyday mindfulness easily.

These everyday mindfulness practices have made a tremendous impact in my life and I continue to add more on my journey.

Where are you in your mindfulness journey?  What mindfulness techniques work for you?

Please leave your comments below and if you think someone would benefit from this article, please share it!