Looking After Your Wellbeing

HOW TO STAY CALM AT HOME DURING SOCIAL DISTANCING – FOR PUPILS AND PARENTS

1. Watch the news to stay informed however do not become consumed by it- do this by watching it at certain times and then switch it off.
2. Watch some of your favorite films, programs or Netflix series. Is there something you can watch together and have a family film day or night?
3. Stay connected with family and friends via phone; video call or social media however have a break from your phone just like the news.
4. Bake or make some nice food together. Maybe the children can teach you what they have been learning in their cooking classes
5. Get creative together either by drawing, painting or making something.
6. Go for a walk; get outside in nature, visit your Local Park or local national park, as they are all currently free to the public.
7. Have space away from each other in your bedrooms- if you feel like it, do some mindfulness breathing. There are lots of YouTube clips to help with this.
8. Write, journal or doodle your thoughts and feelings down
9. Listen to your favorite piece of music and have a dance. Make a social distancing play list together.
10. Read your favorite book or a book you haven’t got round to reading
11. Do some exercise at home- again there will be lots of clips on you tube
12. Take some time to rest
13. Do that chore in the house that you have been meaning to do
14. Make a goal or vision board of the things you would like to achieve and do when things return to normal
15. Remember this is temporary and things will resume soon.

MINDFULNESS YOU TUBE LINKS

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRkILioT_NA
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8GrqUSdzi0
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk_qU7l-fcU
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A0S54yAgEg
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh79w9pn9Cg
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWOHcGF1Tmc
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2UKw8tFYyY

MINDFULNESS APPS

https://www.smilingmind.com.au

• Breathe: Dr. Vo helped to develop this mindfulness app for youth with the Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre (British Columbia, Canada). Free for Apple and Android mobile devices!
• Stop, Breathe, and Think: Web and mobile app for youth, with meditations for mindfulness and compassion.
• Calm.com: Free website and mobile app with guided meditation and relaxation exercises.
• Insight Timer: Free mobile app with virtual “bells” to time and support your meditations, and access to lots of guided meditations by many different meditation teachers (including Dr. Vo).
• Plum Village: Zen Meditation. Free app for iOS, loaded with beautiful meditations and teachings in the Plum Village / Thich Nhat Hanh tradition.
• MindShift: Free mobile app for teens developed by AnxietyBC, with mindfulness and other coping skills for anxiety.
• Smiling Mind: Free mobile mindfulness app for young people, from Australia.
• Headspace: “Meditation made simple.” This app has a free introductory period, after which it requires a paid subscription to continue to use.

Guided Meditation Recordings

In addition to mindfulnessforteen.com’s free guided meditations, here are a few more recordings:

• Amy Saltzman, MD, Still Quiet Place: Mindfulness for Teens (CD)
• Gina Biegel, LMFT, Mindfulness for Teens: Meditation Practices to Reduce Stress and Promote Well-Being (CD, MP3)
• Larry Rosen, MD. “The Buddha and the Fig Tree.” (CD, MP3)
• Mindful.org’s “Audio Resources for Guided Meditations” collection: Online, free guided meditations.

THE NSPCC AND EMERGING MINDS HAVE CREATED RESOURCES FOR PARENTS OR CARER WORRIED ABOUT THE MENTAL HEALTH OF THEIR CHILDREN AT THIS TIME:

• https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/childrens-mental-health/depression-anxiety-mental-health
• https://emergingminds.org.uk/recommended-resources-supporting-children-and-young-people-with-worries-and-anxiety-links

Take care,
Jamie-Leigh Agent

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• HOW TO STAY CALM AT HOME DURING SOCIAL DISTANCING FOR PUPILS AND PARENTS