by The Cowl Editor on January 24, 2019
Opinion
by Katherine Belbusti ’22
Opinion Staff
One semester down, and another one has arrived quicker than some of us may have liked.
As course loads begin to pick up and extracurriculars are starting to take up more of our time, there are some things you can do to help yourself. Not only just for the new semester, but for the start of the new year; for example, try meditation.
Meditation apps have become increasingly popular over the last year, but still may seem like something that will not help your stress. How can an app help to calm you down when there are so many stressors you out in the world around you?
What these apps do is give meditation techniques and even guided meditations for you to listen to.
Some popular free meditation apps include The Mindfulness App, Headspace: Meditation, and Calm. What makes these apps so popular is their “reminders” feature. All the apps mentioned have a feature that will remind you to take deep breaths, or even remind you to listen to a meditation tape, whenever you program it to do so.
This feature is especially good for sticking to New Years resolutions. A common problem is setting good resolutions for yourself, but then forgetting to follow through with them when the new year comes around.
But with any of the aforementioned apps, you will be reminded to take a break and relax. Sometimes all that is needed is a reminder to step away from whatever stressors are triggering you in the surrounding world.
For example, in the Calm app, not only can you set reminders for yourself of when and how often you would like to be reminded to meditate, but you can also pick certain things that you would like to work on for that week. Some things the app suggests are reducing anxiety, sleeping better, increasing happiness, and improving focus, to name a few.
Cara Turner ’22 said that that the app Headspace “always helps to calm her down during stressful times. Whether it be stress from school or extracurriculars, I always find it helpful to listen to the guided meditations on headspace.”
Kate Donohue ’22 also had positive feedback regarding meditation apps. Donohue loves to use the app Calm for “the guided sleep meditations, they are the best! If I ever have trouble sleeping because I’m anxious about work, I’ll put on one of the sleep meditations and be asleep right away.”
Whether you are looking for a healthy New Year’s resolution to stick to, or maybe just a way to be kinder to your mind during periods of stress, try out a meditation app and see how it fits for you.
Not everyone responds well to guided meditations, but if you want to try being less anxious and more relaxed, give meditation a try.