Since March, 2020 we’ve all been adjusting to our new normal. Our children are learning about our new normal – asking questions and searching for answers on why their lives are changing. It’s a challenge to explain the loss of the elementary school face-to-face, final ceremonies of completing middle school, highlights of high school senior years, graduations, or missing face-to-face social events.
It’s a stressful society we live in, and that stress is reaching our children at younger ages too. We know that QoL depends on reducing unnecessary stress. QoL is quality of life based upon mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness.
The one thing that I know helps with stress management is increasing mindfulness. And this thing we call mindfulness also helps children cope with increasing stress. What does mindfulness look like? Pretty much the same as it does for adults!
A pilot study has looked at increasing mindfulness in children by adding group yoga classes and meditation. Improvements were demonstrated in 40-minute sessions which included breathing exercises, guided relaxation, and age-appropriate poses.
