A big part of mindfulness is learning to connect with your body and mind. You can do this by focusing your awareness on the present and acknowledging your feelings, thoughts, and senses. Below is one breathing technique that allows you to connect with your present moment by using your five senses, sight, hearing, feeling, smell, and taste.
First find a comfortable spot
Next take five deep breathes with your eyes closed
Breathe in deeply feeling your whole chest fill with air
Breathe out slowly releasing all the air
Now that you have taken deep breaths and calmed your mind, take notice of the things around you using your senses. You can write this down or just take note of yourself. Be patient with yourself, don’t rush to name things. Take this moment to ground yourself and calm your mind.
1. Name five things you can see (explore your surroundings and take notice of things that stand out to you)
2. Name four things you can hear (listen closely to things like birds, passing cars, or people talking)
3. Name three things that you can feel (you can reach out and touch the things closest to you or take notice of the things you can feel like the floor, or your clothing)
4. Name two things that you can smell (this can be things that you currently smell or things you imagine smelling, like the ocean or cookies)
5. Name one thing that you can taste (This can be something you currently taste, something you recently ate and remember, or something you wish you could taste)
Before you return to your day, reflect on how you feel at this moment. Do you feel more relaxed and calmer? Did you take notice of things in your surroundings that you normally don’t? Would you use this breathing technique again to calm your mind?