Student Guide to Meditation

As some of us might have experienced, meditation as a routine can be challenging to get into … But once you do, there are tonnes of undeniable benefits! 

MEDITATION 

The meaning of meditation at its core just means deep focus on oneself and one’s mind for a given period of time; therefore meditation does not necessarily imply sitting cross-legged and chanting “Om”, and it certainly didn’t for me when I was a university student.

Instagram: @yyoga

BENEFITS
A few minutes of silence and focus a day can actually change your life. Even though meditating should be more of a lifestyle change, there is a certain benefit to practicing the act during periods of life where one has more worries, more stress or simply needs grounding and refocusing.

I’ve spent many, many days of my university life stressing (as most of us have) and here’s what I did to help myself. I started by making lists – once I had a visual of everything that needed to be done, I would take a few minutes to myself to mentally visualize the tasks on the list and convince myself that I was fully capable of getting everything completed on time. I would focus on my breathing and make sure I would have full control over it. Believe me, this worked. The (countless) lists and the few minutes of breathing were my little superheroes that got me through my stressful days. I found that those few minutes were a good way to refocus and re-energize. It helped with making quicker decisions, being more productive, working for longer when needed and most importantly, keeping Netflix off my mind!  

YOGA IN THE GARDEN
If you’re someone who practices yoga or wants to give it a shot, keep an eye out for our KSA event, “Yoga in the Garden”. It’s a free event that allows you to join KSA staff and KPU students for a lunch hour yoga session in the Westerman Campus Garden at KPU Surrey. 
Keep an eye out for the next one @ http://www.kusa.ca/calendar

MY WELLNESS 
As of Fall 2017, the Extended Medical insurance has a new program called My Wellness. Since university students are put through their fair share of stress, it is important for them to understand where they stand with their mental wellbeing and what steps they need to take in order to maintain or improve their mental health. The new initiative provides a free mental health assessment and a ‘toolbox’ of stuff to strengthen one’s mental health. There is a list of school and community resources that are provided for one's health betterment, as well.  

Take a look: https://www.mystudentplan.ca/kwantlen/en/mywellness

– Denzil Muncherji 
Student Services Assistant for KSA Benefit Plan