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Micro Habits, Macro Impact #1: 20-Second Pause: A Practical Practice for Better Mental Health

Writer: Suchit PatelSuchit Patel

In today's fast-paced and chaotic world, it is essential to recognize the importance of mindfulness and conscious living. We also do understand the criticality of time management for the common people like us. We can't take more time out of our routine even though we know how important it is to take care of our well-being. Hence we came up with the idea of the "Micro Habits, Macro Impact" series inspired by the book: Atomic Habits by James Clear. We decided to implement a few tricks and tips that take only a few seconds of ours but can have macro impacts on our well-being. One such tip is just taking a 20-second pause and focusing on deep breathing whenever we can to avoid mental fatigue. We encourage individuals to deliberately step back from daily life's constant rush and confusion and embrace a moment of stillness and awareness.


The act of taking a pause involves consciously interrupting the continuous flow of thoughts, activities, and external stimuli that often bombard our minds. We definitely want to avoid a situation where we ask ourselves what is better to do than to fail. This intentional break allows us to shift our focus inward, connecting with our thoughts, emotions, and the present moment. By doing so, we aim to cultivate a sense of relaxation and balance in the mind, body, and soul. It is a kind of mental detox!


The emphasis on taking deep breaths during this pause aligns with various mindfulness and relaxation techniques. Deep breathing helps activate the body's relaxation response, reducing stress and promoting a sense of calm. It also has physiological benefits, such as lowering blood pressure and slowing down the heart rate, contributing to an overall feeling of well-being.


Ocean, A Practical Practice for Better Mental Health
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The invitation to pause for just 20 seconds underscores the simplicity and accessibility of incorporating mindfulness into daily life. We feel this is a manageable duration that can be integrated into even our busiest schedules, making it a practical and sustainable practice. The idea is not to add another task to an already packed day but to create a brief but impactful moment for ourselves.


We are aiming to reinforce the idea that this short pause can lead to a fresh and relaxed state that may be surprising or unfamiliar to those who haven't consciously engaged in such practices before. It is important to make conscious attempts to manage our health, we definitely don't want to search for mental detox centres at a later stage to get cured. We should take our health as our priority.


This concept suggests that incorporating these conscious pauses into daily routines can be a gateway to achieving a state of balance. While we say "daily conscious practice of just 20 seconds" we are emphasizing the cumulative effect of consistently integrating these mindful breaks, implying that over time, they can contribute to a more balanced and conscious way of living.


In summary, by doing this, we will follow a practice for managing mental health in a better way. We encourage you to take a pause and breathe consciously for a short duration to counter the overwhelming pace of modern life. By this, we are advocating for the transformative power of small, intentional moments, suggesting that through these pauses, we can move towards a state of greater awareness, balance, and well-being.


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