A 3 step mini mindfulness meditation to keep you calm

If stress is a part of your life, this wonderful 3 step mini mindfulness meditation will help you come back into the present moment and keep you calm. Feel free to practice this several times a day, anywhere you please, and at any time. And it only takes a few minutes to feel refreshed.

Here is what the steps involve:

1. Step one helps you step out of automatic pilot so you can become aware of what you are doing right now, where you are, and what you are thinking. It brings you into the present moment.
2. Step two makes you aware of your breathing for about a minute or half a dozen breaths.
3. Step three expands your awareness to your whole body and then to your environment, if you wish.

How to practice the 3 step mini mindfulness meditation

Step 1

Begin the 3 step mini mindfulness meditation by sitting comfortably. You want to be relaxed, with your back erect—but not stiff—letting your body express a sense of being present and awake. This step leads you into the present moment.

Now, close your eyes. Become aware of what is going on with you right now. What thoughts are going around in your mind? Just note these thoughts as mental events. As you note them, what are your feelings at this moment? Specifically, turn towards any sense of discomfort or unpleasant feelings.

Rather than push them away or shut them out, just acknowledge them. Maybe you can say: Ah, there you are, that’s how it is right now.

Do the same with the sensations in your body. Are there sensations of tension, of holding, or whatever? Be aware of them, acknowledge them. And say, Ah, there you are, that’s how it is right now.

Now, you have a sense of what is going on at this moment. You have stepped out of automatic pilot by becoming aware of what’s going on in your mind and body and acknowledging it.

Step 2

The second step in this 3 step mini mindfulness meditation is to collect your awareness by focusing on a single object—the movements of the breath.

So, gather yourself, focusing your attention on the movement of your breath. Begin with the abdomen or other breath focus points such as the nostrils or roof of the mouth, the rise and fall of the breath.

Spend a minute or so to focus on the movement of your abdominal wall, moment by moment, breath by breath, as best as you can. Be aware of when the breath is moving in and when the breath is moving out.

Just bind your awareness to the pattern of movement down there, gathering yourself, using your breath as an anchor to really be present in this moment.

Read Be the pebble mindfulness meditation

Step 3

In the third step of the 3 step mini mindfulness meditation, having gathered yourself to some extent, allow your awareness to expand.

In addition to being aware of your breath, include a sense of the body as a whole to get a more spacious awareness. Get a sense of the body as a whole, including any tightness or sensations related to holding in your shoulders, neck, back or face. Follow your breath as if your whole body is breathing. Hold it all in this slightly softer, more spacious awareness.

When you are ready, gently allow your eyes to open and return to your daily routine, refreshed, and mindfully.

If you practiced this 3 step mini mindfulness meditation while reading this post, I would love to know how you feel. Tell me in the comments!

And I hope the image in this post brought a smile to your face.

Additional resource: Enjoy this amazing energy cleansing meditation technique.

♥

Wednesday Wisdom is a series with short bursts of easy-to-consume wisdom in the form of inspiring stories, verse, quotes, anecdotes, reflections, easy meditation, thought-provoking questions and humor. Oh yeah, some days are not so short.