Here’s how mindful meditation can rescue you from anxiety

The way I see it, the opposite of anxiety is mindfulness. If you learn to live in the present and savour it, you are already dealing with your anxiety. Mindfulness is not a bundle of techniques; instead, it’s an attitude, a conscious shift in becoming more present.

The idea of mindfulness and the science around it has been popularized by Jon Kabat-Zinn, an American professor and founding father of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). A type of meditation therapy, MBSR has been shown to help alleviate symptoms associated with chronic illness, anxiety, pain, burnout, cancer and other stress-related conditions.

All meditation practices have mindfulness built into them, whether it’s about focussing one’s attention on a specific idea or the act of mindfully just observing one’s breath, actions and thoughts.

I’m often asked about how long one should meditate; clients tell me they find it difficult to sit still for even five minutes. If that sounds like you, begin by setting a timer on your phone and meditate for as little as one minute, and gradually increase the time.

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Some tips if you are just beginning:

• Use a meditation app. The directions and soothing music will help you relax and focus. (Try: Guided meditation with 7 Days of Nirvana, right now!)
• If you are uncomfortable using an app, begin by sitting in a comfortable position with your eyes closed. Relax your back and shoulders. You can sit on a chair or a yoga mat, whatever is comfortable for you. Place your hands over your legs and begin with a deep breath.
• When you breathe in, your stomach expands like a balloon and when you exhale, your abdomen muscles move inward. Just become aware of your breath. Based on your readiness you can do it for a couple of minutes to begin with.

People struggling with anxiety often find themselves caught in a space where they begin to feel uncomfortable with their thoughts, feelings and even bodily sensations. Mindfulness-based visualization can be very calming at such times.
Visualize what seems like a safe space for you and choose to allow yourself to stay in that space. This is very comforting and stabilizing for a lot of individuals.

On some days, when the task of writing the book seemed extremely overwhelming, I would turn to a practice recommended by writer Allison Aubrey in her NPR article. She writes, “If you’ve got a nagging thought that won’t go away, just picture a cloud. Visualize that nagging thought being attached to the cloud. Now watch it float away.” I found it quite effective.

Pause rituals in my daily life
Over the last few years, instead of taking long breaks, I have built daily pause rituals in my life. Almost all of them have scheduled time attached to them:

• Exercise twice or thrice a week
• Evening or night-time mindful walks without music or podcast playing
• Meditation ritual at least ten to fifteen minutes (and minimum thrice a week)
• Schedule less work on one day of the week; take a day off to build a sense of pause
• Scheduled free time to do nothing (I just watch thoughts come and go. I have learnt that a few minutes of nothingness is where mindfulness begins for me. It’s also a healthy technique for me to deal with my productivity guilt).

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Excerpted from Anxiety: Overcome It and Live Without Fear by Sonali Gupta, published by Harper Collins