I wanted to create some resources for those of you who may be looking for tactics that help you adjust to being at home more often and away from your work tribe. Keeping an attitude of growth and flexibility is so important in times of flux, and I want to support you!

There are many things that you can be doing that promote mindfulness, that promote relaxation, and that support a strong growth mindset during this time.

Most of these suggestions are things that you can really easily do when you’re sitting at your dining room table working, or when you’re in the bathroom extra-long because you’re seeking a moment of peace away from your kids, (or in my case when my husband is working from home too, a moment of peace away from your partner).

If you’re at home alone, and you’re looking for someone to connect with, here’s a link to Zoom video chatting, so that you can connect with your friends who are also at home! What’s nice about this is that you can do groups, not just 1:1 chatting. My friends and I cancelled our fun game day on Saturday, so we’re going to each brew our own coffee and chit chat instead 🥰

Mindful Breathing Technique 1

Breathing techniques are often handy when you want to clear your mind to get to work, or clear your mind to transition into a more peaceful time. What’s also great about breathing techniques, is that usually your kids can do them along with you, or your partner could do them along with you if you have other people in the home with you. One of the easiest breathing techniques that you could try is called equal breathing and the idea here is that by focusing on equalizing your breathing pattern you can smooth and equalize any tumultuous thoughts in your mind.
So to practice equal breathing, inhale through your nose to a count of four, and exhale through your nose for a count of four. And repeat this process by continuing to take an equal breath in through your nose and exhaling for an equal amount of time out of your nose. As you begin to Feel the rhythm, you can add a pause to the count of four between your inhale and your exhale.

So you’re breathing in – 2 – 3 – 4

Pause – 2 – 3 – 4

Exhale – 2 – 3 – 4

If your mind wanders during any of these breathing exercises, that’s totally normal and definitely okay. Part of counting with yourself while you take your breath is to help remind your brain to pull back to the relaxing task of breathing.

If the natural rhythm of your breath seems to desire a longer count like 5 seconds or 7 Seconds, that’s totally normal to. Feel free to adjust as you desire.

Mindful Breathing Technique 2

The second breathing technique that I wanted to tell you about today is called Progressive Breathing. And the goal here is to consciously lengthen your exhale by just a few seconds to soothe and relax your nervous system.
Here’s how it works:

Close your eyes and slowly inhale as deeply as you can. and then exhale as slowly as you can repeat this slow inhale and slow exhale two or three more times.

Once you’ve connected to your breathing, inhale through your nose for 3 seconds, and exhale through your nose for a count of 5 seconds.

Then, inhale for a count of 4 seconds and exhale for a count of 6 seconds.

Then inhale for a count of 5 seconds, and exhale for a count of 7 seconds.

Continue this pattern of inhaling for one second longer than you previously did and exhaling for one second longer than you previously did for as long as it’s comfortable for you.

When you reach your max capacity for inhaling and exhaling, start moving backwards. So if you just inhaled for a count of 8 and exhaled for a count of 10, You’ll next inhale for a count of 7 and exhale for a count of 9. And then inhale for a count of 6 and exhale for a count of eight.

Once you’ve returned to inhaling to the count of three and exhaling to a count of five return to your normal breathing pattern.

If the higher breathing counts feel too stressful, there’s no need to push yourself. This is a relaxation exercise, so be sure to adjust the count to suit what feels good to you.

Mindful Gratitude

Breathing exercises aside, another thing that you can do to help focus your mind, is to create a gratitude list before you start work each morning. This is also an all-ages activity! Create a list of five things that happened the day before that you feel grateful for having that happen in your life.
This list can be on paper, or it can be a conversation between you and your family, or you and a friend.

Another suggestion is to tune into a video by Yoga with Adriene on YouTube. Her videos are gentle and loving, and she has a great playlist for beginners. She’s also appropriate for all ages, so you can recruit anyone in the house with you to join in. If you don’t have a yoga mat, that’s okay, towels or a folded bedsheet can make a great substitute!
Beginners Yoga Playlist
Yoga for Uncertain Times Playlist

Lastly (for now), you can listen to focusing music on YouTube. I’m partial to pink noise like rain, or birds in a forest, but there are lots of other options. I’ll link two of my go-twos that help me sink into the mood of being productive and relaxed!
Forest Sounds
Tea / Coffee Shop (This one is lovely if you’re used to a bustling office environment)

I plan to send more info out in the coming days and weeks of this time of solitude. I’ve been considering going live and doing some live breathing exercises and meditations, so if you’re interested in that, hit reply, and I’ll make sure you’re one of the first in the know!

Please let me know if there are other ways I can support you during this time. I know that it can take effort to find your confidence in times of unease, but I believe that if we all stick together, we can come out of this with a strong sense of community and love!

Love, love, love,

Kayla Vavra

P.S. Want to keep this lovely, positivity going? Heck yes! Take your Self-Love Quiz to find the perfect self-love mantra for YOU!

Meet Your Self-Love + Confidence Coach, Kayla Vavra!

I founded Brave Heart Open Mind, this enthusiastic self-love development studio, in an effort to empower women with the ability to live their happiest, most confident lives!

Because I’ve walked the path of feeling like I wasn’t good enough— drowning in self-doubt and self-hate— and it genuinely straight up sucks. (It does, for real. If you’ve been there— ugly-crying on cold floral linoleum— you know it’s true).

Part of the entire existence of Brave Heart Open Mind is to allow me to help you get to where I am— in a place of self-love; in a place of consistent confidence; in a place of self-empowerment! And to help you get there faster than I did. 😅🤩

It took me over a decade to get to where I am today.

From my own rock bottom— sitting at the end of an emotionally abusive relationship, fully depressed, with imbalanced hormones, halfway through college, unable to do anything other than barely hang on and pretend I was fine, (when really my self-image was a total dumpster fire on the inside). There were real moments of sobbing-on-the-floor feelings of wretchedness, catatonic-in-bed feelings of hopelessness, and hiding-blades-from-myself urges of self-harm during this time.

Medication to balance my hormones helped regulate my brain chemistry to smooth back the depression and darkness, but I was still left with a completely trashed self-image. I wanted to love myself, and it took me over a decade to figure out how to actually make that happen.

My personal journey over the course of that decade has thankfully brought me all the way to where I am now: the founder of an amazing and fulfilling business, totally loving my life!

And if I can help you skip the trudging, slow-as-heck, mountain climb out of the trenches of self-doubt and self-hate, and streamline a decade for you— like, that’s amazing! Why wouldn’t I help you? How could I not??

And through painstakingly building positive lifelong habits for myself, I’ve paved a new path: One where I consistently push myself to grow, feel good enough, and live in a place of calm, centered confidence.

And these habits aren’t magic— anyone can learn them! Everyone deserves to learn them. They’re rooted in solid verbal communication skills, body language tactics, and powerful mindset shifts. Meshing these three skillsets together creates a powerful range of habits that can make any lovely human feel confident! All you have to do is learn them and consistently work hard to practice them throughout your life. When you’re ready to commit to yourself, when you’re ready to finally let yourself feel good enough, when you’re ready to live a life of confidence, I can help you learn and practice these habits! You’re worth it 😀 (You SO are!)

I’m also a total scifi nerd 🤓 

I can’t wait for us to work together! Seriously, we’ll be a force to be reckoned with! You’ll learn such powerful new habits, and you’ll feel so much power in the confidence that you’ve unlocked! Heck yes!!

In other nerdy news, you should also know that I’m a total geek and an avid life-long learner: I am certified to teach public speaking (and more!) with a Bachelors Degree in Mass Communication & Journalism and a Masters Degree in Education by the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I am certified as a Life & Success Coach, Hypnotherapist, and NLP, EFT, and TIME Practitioner by the International Board of Coaches and Practitioners. I’m currently pursuing my certification as a Master Practitioner by the IBCP, as well as my certification in The Science of Well-Being by Yale University 🤓