How to feel better. Now.

This week I’ve been at rehearsals in London for a new show, so I’ve joined the daily commuter grind each morning and evening. The studio’s tricky to get to from mine, so I’ve been leaving very early and not getting home till bedtime. That’s cool, it’s the nature of the beast, but as I’m up at 5am, I’m reluctant to get up even earlier for my usual 20-30 minutes of meditation. So it’s reduced down to just 5 minutes whilst my tea brews, which is better than nothing, but I definitely felt the difference on the first day. I felt just a little less calm and relaxed than I usually am, without quite as much focus. I realised I’d need to find ways to slot meditation ‘snacks’ into my day if there’s no time for a full meal, and I struck gold in the process! Want to know the one thing that’s making me feel better, instantly?

I’m pressing pause.

When I’m waiting – for my coffee, for the train, for a cab – this week I’m resisting the urge to pull out my phone, read the paper, or otherwise fidget. Instead I put my stuff down, stand tall and relaxed with evenly placed feet and loosely link my hands. (Full disclosure – I tried standing in Tadasana or ‘mountain pose’, with my arms by my sides, but it felt a bit weird in public!) Then I find a focal point, soften my gaze, concentrate on my breath and simply BE.

That’s it! Honestly, it’s like pressing pause on your life, it’s fantastic! Give it a go – reaching for our phones these days has become such a reflex action that deliberately NOT doing it feels incredibly liberating! Go on, be a rebel – get your head out of your phone and PAUSE!

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