Aubre Andrus - Project You: More than 50 Ways to Calm Down, De-stress, and Feel Great

Dont compare yourself to others. Compare yourself to the person you were yesterday. Anonymous

Cheerful! Energetic! Capable! Satisfied! Wouldnt you love to feel that way right now? With this book, you can. Really. Because even when youre feeling the exact opposite tired, stressed out, or frustrated you can totally transform your mindset and your emotions. Inside this book, youll find activities, exercises, crafts, and recipes that can help you:

• calm your anxieties
• overcome that overwhelmed feeling
• find inspiration
• take control of nerves
• feel confident
• accomplish your goals
• burst into laughter
• and generally feel great.

When youre having a rough day, doing something anything can make you feel better. It can be hard to get off the couch on one of those days. But its amazing what can happen after you take that first step.

Scroll through this book and choose the idea that piques your interest right now. Theres no wrong or right answer, and no true beginning or end. The most important thing is that you do something to bust those bad feelings.

However, you cant use this book to solve serious mental health problems such as anxiety disorders, depression, or eating disorders. If at any point you think you need more help than this book can offer, please press .

A healthy mind and body includes a mix of many different things. Take inventory of where you stand. How many of these items can you already check off?

• I can make and keep friends.
• I take on challenges confidently.
• I open my mind to new ideas and experiences.
• I get along well with my family members.
• I have control over my feelings.
• I do not let fear or stress hold me back.
• I enjoy being active.
• I accept failure and move on after it happens.
• I calmly express anger and frustration.
• I try not to compare myself to others.
• I can maintain a balanced schedule.
• I share my thoughts and feelings with people I trust.
• I try to appreciate the little things.
• I eat healthy, energizing meals.
• I get enough sleep every night.
• I am able to share in others happiness.
• I can forgive others and myself.
• I make time to relax and de-stress every day.
• I feel strong both inside and out.
• I set goals and work toward them.
• I try not to be too hard on myself.
• I feel energized throughout the day.
• I have a sense of purpose.

Your first task? Find a solution that will help you set out on a path toward relaxation, peace of mind, and happiness. The following pages are filled with activities, exercises, advice, prompts, crafts, playlists, and recipes that can help you get there.

These do-right-now projects can help you manage your time, become more productive, and can help motivate you to try something new. Scroll through and choose the project that speaks to you most in this moment. If that exercise doesnt do the trick, try something else!

Breath awareness is a core formal mindfulness practice. It is called a formal practice because you set aside time to do it every day. Start with 5 minutes and then add a few minutes each day until youre practicing for 20 minutes or more.

You use your breath in this practice as an anchor to the present moment because its easy you always have it with you. Breath and other physical sensations always exist in the present moment. Through feeling the sensation of your breath, youre training your mind to be in the present.

• First, find a comfortable place to sit. This can be on a cushion on the floor, or on a chair or couch. If youre sitting on a chair or couch, sit so that your feet are flat on the floor and youre sitting toward the front of the surface and not leaning against the back. Your hands can be relaxed in your lap or on your thighs whatever is most comfortable for you. Check to make sure your shoulders are relaxed and not hunched. Your eyes can be open or closed. If theyre open, keep your lids slightly lowered, and pick a place a few feet in front of you on the floor to rest your gaze.
  1. The important thing is that youre sitting in a position where you can be alert. Mindfulness is about observing our moment to moment experience, and if were not aware and alert, we cant do that. Well just drift away into our thoughts.
• Now bring your attention to your breath in the place where you can most easily notice it. This might be at the tip of your nose as youre breathing in, or at your lips as youre breathing out through your mouth, or it might be in the slight rising and falling of your chest as you breathe, or maybe even in your diaphragm area just under your rib cage.
• Feel your breath as you breathe in and as you breathe out. See if you can feel your breath from the very beginning of your in-breath to the very end of your out-breath, even noticing the place where your in-breath turns into your out-breath. Notice the movement of your breath, the temperature of your breath, and maybe even the texture of your breath.
• Do this for each breath, noticing how each breath rises and falls away and noticing the space in between breaths.
• Youll soon be aware that your mind has drifted and youre thinking about something. When you notice this, simply direct your attention back to your breath. No need to judge yourself or feel like youre a bad meditator. This is what the mind does: it wanders.
• Continue doing this feeling your breath, noticing that your mind has wandered, and gently guiding your attention back to your breath. Think of your breath like a puppy on a leash. The puppy runs off, and you gently guide it back with the leash. It soon runs off again, and once again you gently guide it back.

Thats it! Pretty simple, right? When you are in the moment, you are not dwelling on something that happened in the past or worrying about something that might happen in the future. Research has shown that when our minds wander, they tend to go to these places of worry and regret. So by gently guiding your attention back to the present moment, through paying attention to physical sensations like your breath, you are letting go of the thought processes that cause stress.