Today’s blog is a guest post from Kay Pascale. Kay Pascale is a writer from Durham, NC. When she isn’t writing about home improvement or how to stay healthy, she loves traveling, running with her dog, and honing her photography skills.
A mindful space in your home is a sanctuary that belongs to you. This is a calm place for you to relax, meditate, and focus on getting away from the distractions of your everyday life. Creating a mindful space will also help to manage your self-control, mental health, tolerance, emotions, and mental clarity. Most importantly, a mindful space focuses on you, and that is something we all need more of. Here are a few steps to create a mindful space in your home.
Focus on Color
Most people don’t realize that there’s a direct link between the color of your surroundings and how that color affects your mood. For example, restaurants often use red, because red can lead to impatience and increased irritability, which are perfect for getting customers in and out of a restaurant as quickly as possible. Soft and warm colors, such as tan and light gray, may provide a calming effect while colors like orange and pastels can improve your mood.
Eliminate Blue-light Technology
Blue-light technology is commonplace in most American homes. TVs, computers, and our
handheld devices—including our phones—are all sources of blue light. The problem is that our eyes are just not very good at filtering out the debilitating effects of blue light. Beyond just the distraction of our devices, blue light can increase eye strain and lead to headaches or stress on your body which can make relaxation difficult. Not to mention, consuming blue light before bedtime can cause you to have trouble falling and staying asleep.
Limit Distractions
While blue-light technology is often the culprit of distraction, there are other distractions that are so commonplace they go unnoticed in our homes. According to House Method, creating a mindful space in your home means eliminating as many distractions as possible. For example, this could mean removing clutter to reduce stress and create an open space, reducing light levels, and cancelling out loud noises.
Add Essential Oils
Essential oils have been used for medicinal reasons for thousands of years. Introducing essential oils into your mindful space is a great way to improve mood, reduce anxiety, and provide mental clarity. Essential oils such as lavender, chamomile, lemon, and cedarwood are commonly used in spas and meditation rooms for their therapeutic benefits. Be sure to check for pet friendliness before diffusing oils in a space where your pets may join you, as some oils are toxic to animals.
Make It Comfy
The purpose of a mindful space is to reduce stress and give you a place to relax. For some
people, a comfortable space may include soft pillows and a shelf of books. For another person, a comfy place may be a bed with a soft comforter or relaxing couch to stretch out on. Addressing your comfort needs is essential to creating your space.
Creating a mindful space in your home isn’t difficult and has a healthy rate of return. Focusing on limiting distractions, creating a mood-calming environment, and adapting to your relaxation needs are key. Whether you use your mindful space for stress-related emergencies or for daily meditation, a mindful space is a great way to enhance your mental and physical health.
Caitlin Liz Fisher 