Brianna Childers |Topeka Capital-Journal

A new year is synonymous with new habits, goals and resolutions. As 2021 kicks off, some people may be searching for a way to connect with themselves and those around them.

Knowing that the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to linger for some time, local yoga instructor Kathy Damron wants to offercommunity members a way to focus and recenter themselves during a 21-day meditation program.

The Power of Connection series, which begins Monday, will include a three- to five-minute daily meditation and prompt. The program costs$30, and those interested maysign up by visiting kathydamronyoga.com.

The daily meditation practice will be delivered to participants via text message or email. Each day, the program will walk through a short meditation and some will be followed by a short prompt that invites people todive deeper into the topic discussed during the practice.

It is "all designed to help people gain perspective that while we are socially distancing, there are lots of ways that we can stay connected, even if it's just mentally," Damron said.

Damron said the 21-day program is also a good opportunity for people to decide whethermeditation is a practice they are interested in continuing long-term.

"I think it sounds really mystic to people and a little bit intimating sometimes, or at least it did to me, and it doesn't really have to be any of that," Damron said. "You don't have to have ritual or ceremony or even a special place where you meditate. You just have to find that space where you can be sort of still and quiet, three minutes, five minutes, 10 minutes whatever works best for you where you center yourself, let yourselfjust not really think about the past and future too much and allow yourself to be present."

Damron said research confirms that meditation reduces stress andallows your mind to develop the capacity to be less anxious.

Damron started meditating about 10 years ago to complement her yoga practice,she said.

"In a lot of yoga classes, there will be a very beginning section where you center yourself, you let your mind get a little stiller or calm and do some breathing exercises," Damron said. "I found it to be really very helpful."

During 2020, Damron said, meditation has given her perspective. Thinking back to the beginning of the year, there was a lot of uncertainty regarding how long the pandemic would last and how infectious the novel coronavirus would be.

"Having a meditation practice really helped me to stay focused on the present moment, what I was doing today, not really what was going to be happening down the road because we really didn't know what that meant," Damron said.

Damron said she hopes those who participate in the meditation practice develop a deeper sense of perspective and recognition that although people are socially isolated right now, they are connected to one another and the place where they live.

Read the rest here:
Topeka yoga teacher will start 2021 by offering 21-day meditation series - The Topeka Capital-Journal