As we continue to navigate the ongoing challenges of this pandemic, there is more reason than ever to create routines (if not established already!) where you take time each day to reflect for yourself and your wellbeing – this can be done in a number of ways and no one way is the ‘right way,’ this is all dependent on how your schedule looks like and what you believe suits your schedule and lifestyle best.

Recently, I came across a series of guided meditations on YouTube that integrates affirmations into the guided meditation. I have found this to be especially centering for freeing the mind for me. I focus on the mantra that I am saying and nothing else. By doing this, I am able to enter into a deeper meditative state and have been able to achieve a lot of progress in how long and how deeply I can meditate for.

Meditation, for just 5 or 10 minutes per day can greatly reduce stress levels and also help clear a ‘cluttered mind’ that may feel distracted. During this time, given all that’s happening in the world, it’s only normal to feel stress from everything and I think we are too quick to be hard on ourselves about this. I think even before the pandemic, society, globally, was not going at a healthy pace. If this has given you an opportunity to slow down in some way and reflect on what lifestyle changes you can make in you and your family’s life in some way, then be grateful for this privilege and live into those mini changes – the little things can make a big difference!

I believe that wellness practices are for everyone – it’s not a luxury spa that’s exclusive to a any one group who can afford it – wellness practices are simple and easy to integrate into your everyday routine and you will feel and see the benefits! Each morning, I try to start with a 10 minute morning stretch on my yoga mat that is conditioning and warming up my body and letting energy flow into the body. There are a number of stretches that you can do to wake up, but stretching on a yoga mat is wonderful!

Once I am all ready and feel organized to tackle my day, I do some work and then take a break around 11am and do a 10 minute guided meditation, either on YouTube or I listen to Kundalini chants (Sat Nam) and use a timer for it for 10-15 minutes. Below you will find a few videos that I love to use for meditation and some words of affirmation that I believe are soothing and allow you be kind to yourself. We all need to see more of that in the world.

Words are powerful. I say affirmations like the following during my meditation everyday: