We breathe everyday—not even realizing the importance of this task. Our hearts pump the blood throughout our organs and we automatically know to breathe. While walking up a steep hill lately, my heart began pumping hard; and I felt out of breath. I had to stop for a minute, regroup and move forward again. I was very grateful for my body that particular day and the strength I had to tackle that hill on foot.
For the past several weeks my daughter and I had the opportunity to participate in a wonderful program called “Learning to BREATHE” held at Weber High School, which was offered through the Weber Human Services. This program was all about mindfulness training for teens. We learned to listen to our bodies, to help manage stress, anxiety, fear and more.
Each week we talked about a specific letter in the word: “BREATHE.”
B-Listen to your Body
R-Reflections (thoughts) are just thoughts
E-Surf the waves of your Emotions
A-Attend to the inside and the outside
T-Try Tenderness-Take it as it is
H-Practice Healthy Habits of mind
E-Gain the inner Edge. Be Empowered!
We were each given a work book to record our thoughts and feelings throughout the course. I was grateful that although this course was meant for teen, I could participate as a mother too! Of course, we all feel stress, anxiety, worry and fear as mothers, right?
We were asked questions such as…” What things or activities in your life do you do on automatic pilot? Mindlessly? What are the things you do that fully engage you mindfully?
These questions helped us reflect on our lives and asks where we are with our activities.
We were given “homework” to do each week. For example, we were asked to “Practice mindful breathing for at least three breaths a time, three times per day.
While doing these breathing exercises my daughter commented saying, “It makes you feel relaxed and peaceful—like you can take on anything the world puts on you. You feel refreshed like drinking a cold cup of water or diving into a cool pool.”
We did several exercises, in class, where we sat on yoga mats and closed our eyes while listening to our instructors teach us about breathing techniques. We felt comfortable in the class, safe and happy to be there.
We learned that ANGER is an emotion that has a long list of close relatives: irritation, frustration, impatience, rage, hatred, annoyance, resentment, irritability, crankiness, and more.
We learned how to curb those angry emotions by: Stopping and paying attention. Notice where you are feeling the anger in your body. Experience the feeling of anger as waves—coming and going. Don’t try to block them, avoid them or get rid of them. Don’t try to hold onto these angry thoughts.
Any difficult feelings can be addressed this way—by simply substituting the name of a feeling and ride the waves of those feelings—watching them get smaller and smaller.
We learned about gratitude and how positive emotions provide many benefits to physical, intellectual and emotional and social well-being. Gratitude is a practice which needs to be repeated daily—even multiple times throughout the day. We were encouraged to keep a daily log of things we are grateful for. When we feel low or upset, we can look for the blessings and notice the kindness of others.
Several beneficial tips were also given in our packet to practice mindfulness every day. Anyone can try them!
Thank you to Weber Human Services for offering this resource for parents and teens.
