New Year’s Resolutions, Month by Month: April

In April I continued my monthly New Year’s resolutions not by giving something up as I had for the first three months of the year, but rather by adding something. I decided to give meditation a try.

To do it, I used the Headspace app, which was recommended to me by a friend who also happens to be a professional neuropsychologist. You just load it up on your phone or iPad and it pretty much does the rest for you. 

This photo is from the desktop version, but the app is even easier. Just push the button for your session and you’ll get an introductory video to explain a concept or technique. Then the app will automatically flip to an audio page for your guided meditation. 

This was just 10 minutes per day, and it wasn’t always easy to fit in since I was away from home for two weeks in April, but I managed to catch up on the couple days I missed before the month was over. This program focuses on training to let thoughts go by concentrating on the breath and other physical sensations — at least, that’s what the first month’s program is about. 

I have to say, I liked it a lot, and it's very helpful in reminding me to take time out during the day to get focused when I feel myself getting distracted — which happens fairly often, now that I work in front of a computer all day long. It’s also really relaxing, and I do feel like it has helped my concentration overall.

Though I’ll admit that there were several days when I almost fell asleep during the exercise, too! 

I plan to continue this, if not every day, then pretty close to it. The theme of the next 30-day session is "focus," which is my big goal. Working at home makes that a really important skill to master, and this is a very doable addition to my daily routine. So this resolution is a big success!