What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a practice of awareness that allows us to connect deeper with self and with others. It can help reduce stress and teach us to be more patient, compassionate, and empathetic–qualities that come in handy as we adapt to social distancing while also focusing on our addiction recovery journey.
Mindfulness incorporates several components, including, but not limited to, creative expression, movement techniques, supportive therapeutic outlets, and meditation. Luckily, just because we cannot see a therapist in person or take an art class in a studio, we can still have access to mindfulness training and activities through modern-day technology.
Check out this collection of valuable resources that may support you and your loved ones while social distancing guidelines are in place. Most applications are compatible with both Android and iPhone products.
Therapy Applications
- Self-Help for Anxiety Management (S.A.M): Focusing on improving your self sounds like a daunting task, but with this application you can customize your plan to optimize the outcomes. If meditation is not your thing, this app may provide the mindfulness needed to mitigate your anxious behaviors and negative thought patterns. This application provides free, easy-to-follow self-help techniques that support a stressful recovery experience.
- Talkspace Online Therapy: Having access to quality therapists during social distancing can be a challenge, but thanks to the innovative ideas of some top psychologists, you can now have safe access to confidential talk therapy from the comfort of your own couch. Talk Space is a private therapy platform using various talk therapy techniques and live therapists to optimize your mental and emotional well-being.
- Happify: This application allows users to explore what makes them genuinely happy. Sounds too good to be true right? Well, with the step-by-step approach this application allows you to explore various gratitude journal prompts, fun activities, and other resources that are bound to lift your mood and cultivate positivity in your life.
- Also try: Quit That!, MindShift, and MoodTools
Creativity-Boosting Applications
- Lumosity: Our brains, much like other muscles in the body, need a daily workout. Luminosity offers a collection of research-driven brain games that are sure to give you a mental sweat. Top universities have contributed to the various selections of puzzles and challenges this application offers. Keeping our brains sharp and healthy during recovery is always a challenge, but with this handy tool, we can continue to support our mental well-being even during social distancing.
- Brainwell: Keeping our brains busy during these times of isolation may sound taxing, but with Brainwell you can practice mind-boosting games that have been shown to improve cognitive health. With Brainwell, you are given over fifty personalized brain games designed to increase memory and problem-solving skills.
- Colorish: Coloring may just be the mindfulness activity you did not know you were missing–and no, it is not just for kids! Numerous studies support the positive cognitive effects of coloring, including increased mood and mental stability. Coloring daily may also help reduce anxiety, depression, and overall stress levels. This app is free and allows you to dive into coloring right away without art supplies or even the mess.
- Also try: Elevate, Wattpad, and Procreate
Movement Applications
- Yogaglo: Yoga may provide not only a great workout, but also a mindful way to reconnect with our bodies. This phone application is approachable for beginners, yet challenging enough for those well versed in yogic movement. Yogaglo offers a free trial, after which you can opt for their monthly subscription to a fully personalized exercise routine–choose your intensity level, teachers, type of class, or meditation exercise. Yoga may provide the wellness routine and mindful discipline needed while moving through the recovery process.
- Just Dance: Do you remember the popular video game Just Dance? Well now you can enjoy an upbeat selection of pop and rock hits to move your body within the comfort of your own home. Dancing and ecstatic movement practices boost serotonin, our happiness neurotransmitter! Serotonin elevates our mood and decreases anxiety. This app can come in handy while feeling isolated and may be a great new low-intensity addition to your workout routine.
- Also try: Blogilates, Les Mills, and Nike Training Club
Meditation Applications
- 10% Happier: Meditation For Fidgety Skeptics: Based on the best-selling book 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works–A True Story, by Dan Harris, this application allows users to access a full collection of over 300 meditation prompts remotely. This application has been used for many moving through recovery, especially by those who are newbees when it comes to meditation. There is a small monthly fee associated with this app, but it may be worth exploring.
- Headspace: The key to meditation, like many things in life, is persistence. This application allows users to slowly incorporate meditation into their daily routine by starting small and building the practice over time. Headspace uses animations to further explore the meaning behind their meditative prompts and plays soothing background tunes to aid your practice.
- Also check out: The Mindfulness App, Sattva, Calm, and Aura.
Modern advances in technology have allowed us access to therapeutic resources such as virtual talk therapy, a variety of fitness classes for all levels, and collections of grounding meditation applications that allow you or a loved one to be healthy and mindful on the road of recovery. Using the practice of mindfulness during social distancing to further your recovery is an excellent idea and you have a wealth of helpful applications right at your fingertips.
Our team of professionals at St. Gregory are always available for support. Please do not hesitate to contact us anytime with questions or concerns regarding any programs or services we provide. We are here for you and your loved ones throughout the entire recovery process.
