Day 16: SET A TIMER FOR EVERY HOUR AND TAKE 3 DEEP BREATHS
I am a worrier. I hold stress in my upper back and shoulders. And I rarely allow myself to relax because there is always something that needs to be done. Sometimes it isn’t until the end of the day when I crash on the couch for a guilty pleasure episode of American Idol or House that I realize how tense my mind and body are.
Today I will set a timer for every 60 minutes. When the buzzer buzzes, I will stop whatever I’m doing, close my eyes, and take 3 deep breaths. Hopefully by the end of the day, I will be relaxed long before I press play on my DVR’ed episode of Grey’s Anatomy.
I’m going to need the meditation breaks today, as this is my third day cooped up in the house while my floors are being worked on. (They are finally finished sanding. Staining starts today.) Although both kids are suffering from a severe case of cabin fever, at least Big C has the luxury of going off to kindergarten for half the day. It’s my high-energy, nap-skipping, trouble-making Little C who’s going to drive everyone crazy. Deep breath, deep breath, deep breath.
Side note: Because of the staining process on my floors, I won’t have Internet access for possibly the next 2 days. I promise to catch up when I can!
So glad to be back online!! Wow, living without the Internet for 4 days is ROUGH! Anyway, here’s where I left off a few days ago…
Although I may not be as de-stressed as I would have been if I had had a 60 minute hot stone massage, I do feel more mellow, especially under the circumstances. And the timer accomplished more than merely reminding me to take deep breaths. It actually interrupted a few sibling squabbles that were miraculously forgotten by the time we all exhaled. (I’m considering periodically employing this technique, if for no other reason than the omnipotent timer quieted the fighting as effectively as a mute button.)
I don’t know if the hourly meditations helped me because the breathing was relaxing or because I was forced to take mandatory breaks throughout my day or because the exercise practically hypnotized my children. Whatever the reason, they did help to get me through a yucky day.
