Family with Teen(s)
Mindfulness and Our Faith
"Being a teen can be really stressful! Mindfulness is a powerful way to handle stress, and live life more fully. Mindfulness is all about living fully in the present moment, without judgment, and with an attitude of kindness and curiosity. It’s about breathing, noticing what’s happening right here and now, sending a gentle smile to whatever you’re experiencing in this moment (whether it’s easy or difficult), and then letting it go. You can be mindful anytime, anywhere, no matter what you’re doing. It sounds simple, but it’s not always easy to do, especially when you are stressed!
Any time you are experiencing a lot of stress, you may get “stuck” in your thoughts, whether you are worrying about the future or feeling bad about the past. You may get caught up in judgments about and emotional reactions to whatever is happening. If you don’t know how to handle stress, you may do things that end up hurting yourself or the people around you. For this reason, how to handle stress effectively—in a healthy way—might just be the most important thing you can learn.
Mindfulness is a simple but powerful tool for awakening the wisdom that is already inside you. It can help you handle stressful situations and transform difficult relationships. With mindfulness, you can free yourself from those troublesome thoughts about the past or the future, becoming more present in the “here and now.” Mindfulness also fosters the sort of kindness and compassion that can help you become your own best friend, as well as a better friend to others."
(Excerpted and adapted from The Mindful Teen by Dzung Vo, MD)
Any time you are experiencing a lot of stress, you may get “stuck” in your thoughts, whether you are worrying about the future or feeling bad about the past. You may get caught up in judgments about and emotional reactions to whatever is happening. If you don’t know how to handle stress, you may do things that end up hurting yourself or the people around you. For this reason, how to handle stress effectively—in a healthy way—might just be the most important thing you can learn.
Mindfulness is a simple but powerful tool for awakening the wisdom that is already inside you. It can help you handle stressful situations and transform difficult relationships. With mindfulness, you can free yourself from those troublesome thoughts about the past or the future, becoming more present in the “here and now.” Mindfulness also fosters the sort of kindness and compassion that can help you become your own best friend, as well as a better friend to others."
(Excerpted and adapted from The Mindful Teen by Dzung Vo, MD)
Practicing mindfulness is so important to our spiritual lives as Catholics. It is all prayer! Taking those moments to calm your mind and spirit and be thankful for each moment are a way of praising all God has done for us, and opens us up to see how he is working in our life. It is also an amazing tool for quietening ourselves to listen to God.
Our prayer for today is not words on a page, but the practice of making the space in your minds and hearts to hear the words of God. Our "Do" section has more tips on how to do that.
Our prayer for today is not words on a page, but the practice of making the space in your minds and hearts to hear the words of God. Our "Do" section has more tips on how to do that.
Give Informal Mindfulness a try. It is a great tool for parents and teens!
Perhaps you have a tendency to try to do two, three, or even four things at the same time. For example, you might be used to checking your cell phone while eating, or you might have a habit of texting while walking. Although it may seem very efficient to do multiple things at once, in reality, such multitasking usually doesn’t help people be more productive. Instead, it mostly just adds to their stress. Informal mindfulness is all about doing just one thing at a time, with full awareness.
Here are some examples of daily activities that can become mindfulness practices:
Can you think of some more?
Pick at least one of these activities as a means of practicing informal mindfulness over the coming month.
The first step, before doing this activity, is to stop for a moment. Take a few mindful breaths, and observe what is happening for you right here and now. Then, proceed with the activity as if it is the most important thing in the world, with great curiosity and care. As you do the activity, tune in to your senses. What does this thing that you are doing look like? What does it smell like? What does it sound like? What does it feel like?
You don’t need to rush to get whatever it is you’re doing done. You don’t need to do three things at once. Let go of all that extra stress. Doing just this one thing, with mindfulness, is enough. If you are walking, just walk. If you are eating, just eat. If you are brushing your teeth, just brush—instead of trying to get it done quickly so that you can move on to something else, invest 100 percent of your effort in brushing your teeth.
As best you can, keep your full attention on what you are doing. Continue to breathe mindfully. Every time your mind wanders, simply notice: Where did my mind just go? Whenever stress arises—for example, when you start to think about all the things that you need to do or wish you had done—just come back to your breath. Don’t judge yourself if your mind is wandering; you’re not doing anything wrong. Remember, noticing that your mind wandered marks a moment of mindfulness. Stop, taking three more breaths. Return to the present moment, over and over again.
Pause and thank God for this moment. End in Prayer.
How is this experience different from your normal way of doing things? Do you notice anything interesting about this daily activity that you might not have noticed before? How might paying attention to everyday activities in this way help you be less stressed and more resilient?
Here are some more resources that can help you practice mindfulness:
Mindfulness for Teens: Great number of resources!
Stop, Breathe, and Think: Free web and mobile app for youth, with meditations for mindfulness and compassion
Calm.com: Free website and mobile app with guided meditation and relaxation exercises
Smiling Mind: Free mobile mindfulness app for young people
Perhaps you have a tendency to try to do two, three, or even four things at the same time. For example, you might be used to checking your cell phone while eating, or you might have a habit of texting while walking. Although it may seem very efficient to do multiple things at once, in reality, such multitasking usually doesn’t help people be more productive. Instead, it mostly just adds to their stress. Informal mindfulness is all about doing just one thing at a time, with full awareness.
Here are some examples of daily activities that can become mindfulness practices:
- Brushing your teeth
- Walking to class
- Getting dressed in the morning
- Walking your dog or petting your cat
- Cleaning your room
- Answering your phone
- Exercising or playing sports
- Playing a musical instrument
- Drawing or painting
Can you think of some more?
Pick at least one of these activities as a means of practicing informal mindfulness over the coming month.
The first step, before doing this activity, is to stop for a moment. Take a few mindful breaths, and observe what is happening for you right here and now. Then, proceed with the activity as if it is the most important thing in the world, with great curiosity and care. As you do the activity, tune in to your senses. What does this thing that you are doing look like? What does it smell like? What does it sound like? What does it feel like?
You don’t need to rush to get whatever it is you’re doing done. You don’t need to do three things at once. Let go of all that extra stress. Doing just this one thing, with mindfulness, is enough. If you are walking, just walk. If you are eating, just eat. If you are brushing your teeth, just brush—instead of trying to get it done quickly so that you can move on to something else, invest 100 percent of your effort in brushing your teeth.
As best you can, keep your full attention on what you are doing. Continue to breathe mindfully. Every time your mind wanders, simply notice: Where did my mind just go? Whenever stress arises—for example, when you start to think about all the things that you need to do or wish you had done—just come back to your breath. Don’t judge yourself if your mind is wandering; you’re not doing anything wrong. Remember, noticing that your mind wandered marks a moment of mindfulness. Stop, taking three more breaths. Return to the present moment, over and over again.
Pause and thank God for this moment. End in Prayer.
How is this experience different from your normal way of doing things? Do you notice anything interesting about this daily activity that you might not have noticed before? How might paying attention to everyday activities in this way help you be less stressed and more resilient?
Here are some more resources that can help you practice mindfulness:
Mindfulness for Teens: Great number of resources!
Stop, Breathe, and Think: Free web and mobile app for youth, with meditations for mindfulness and compassion
Calm.com: Free website and mobile app with guided meditation and relaxation exercises
Smiling Mind: Free mobile mindfulness app for young people