By David Hernández┃Posted: May 29, 2019
In this day and age, 24 hours are barely enough. Our responsibilities keep us constantly occupied, and society seems to demand that we tick the boxes of a seemingly infinite list of accomplishments.
With all of these stresses, it’s important to dedicate some time to preserve our wellbeing, and that, of course, warrants some attention to our mental health. This doesn’t have to be yet another thing to add to your ever-expanding to-do list: luckily, there is a low-cost, zero risk aid you can use to keep your mental health in check--music. Just like yoga, music has a real impact on your wellness.
First, let’s examine some factors that can affect our mental health. Understanding these allows you to understand where you must focus your efforts.
Self-Esteem
In short, self-esteem is our self-image. The higher our self-esteem, the more positive our self-image. The value we place on ourselves determines our outlook on life, as well as how satisfied and fulfilled we feel.
Confidence
Confidence is different than self-esteem in that it refers to the capacity of individuals to stand for themselves. Confident people stand up for who they are, and lead lives with positive or productive outlooks.
Love
Our capacity to love and nurture positive relationships with others usually hinges on how loved we feel ourselves. This leads to a sense of comfort and safety that let us open ourselves to others.
Physical Health
Our physical health, believe it or not, has a huge impact on our mental health. Poor health can affect our ability to live our lives to the fullest, damage our self-esteem, and undermine our confidence. Physical trauma or illnesses can directly affect our brain chemistry.
How yoga and music can help your mental health
Doing yoga, meditation and listening to music can have a significant impact on all of the factors of mental health listed above.
Negative thoughts are like smoke entering your room through cracks in the roof; it seems too inconsequential to care about at first, but if left unchecked, it will asphyxiate you. Music and yoga act like a fan that pushes those noxious fumes away from you.
Yoga works under the concept of clearing all thoughts from your mind, and focusing solely on your meditation and postures. Such exercise is perfect for pushing past hardships, because it helps you clear away mental clutter.
There is a time for everything in life, and we can’t let ourselves be bothered every waking moment by our problems; doing so won’t fix anything, and it carries severe long-term health implications. Having “cleanup sessions”, composed of yoga and music, can do wonders to your mental wellbeing. These routines will help you find a rhythm that keeps your mind clear and happy.
A bedtime yoga routine
Start with 15 to 30 mins of gentle, relaxing yoga before heading to bed. Wrap up the day playing a handpicked playlist of relaxing music you like to help wash you away peacefully into sleep.
The purpose of this routine is to ease your body and mind into proper rest. It’s easier to avoid negative thoughts or sleep difficulties if your body is relaxed and your mind is soothed.
You could opt for more physically taxing postures for your yoga if you would prefer to sleep with some degree of exhaustion; this might help you avoid tossing and turning. Listening to music you like might dissuade you from focusing on negative thoughts, and in turn, it might help you fall asleep faster.
A yoga routine for your workday
Whenever you feel you can’t concentrate, or if something is weighing heavily on your mind, taking a break is the best course of action.
What we suggest is taking a short break, between 10 and 20 minutes, in which you assume between one and three meditative yoga postures while listening to relaxing music. You can choose to focus on your meditation through mindfulness, such as focusing on your breath, or you can focus on the music you are listening to.
Either way, make sure you are clearing your might from negative thoughts. This routine can be particularly helpful if you have things you must finish but can’t muster the needed concentration.
A yoga routine to start your morning
Depending on your schedule, set aside 10 to 20 minutes for yoga and meditation first thing in the morning. You’ll be doing yourself a favor!
Pick a few energizing yoga postures, and play music that helps you get into the mood you wish to enter into your day with: relaxing, energetic, inspiring, etc. Performing a routine before starting your schedule allows you to clear all thoughts from your mind while awakening your body.
We find this routine can make work throughout the day much easier, and this, in turn, improves your mood.
The source of our mental health issues (when not chronic or physiological) stem from our feelings, but music, of course, is how feelings sound.
There aren’t many things music can’t help you with, and even if yoga and music don't fix your issues altogether, they will prevent the buildup of negative thoughts and even help you relax and meditate; disconnecting from your issues at certain times is important, otherwise you’d relinquish control of your life to them.
America Meditates, the biggest meditation event in US History brings together the magic of yoga, meditation, and music for creating awareness about mental health on 24th July 2019, in Denver, CO. Join estimated more than 20,000 people to experience of the power of collective consciousness, get your free ticket here.
David Hernández dreamt of being an engineer when he was a child; after all, understanding machines is easy. Now, he dedicates to writing and understanding people.
