314: Why Kids Need Meditation too, 5 Minutes a Day

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Why Kids Need Meditation

Camille 0:28

Welcome back, everyone. Today, this is a solo episode talking about why kids need meditation too. Now, this may seem a little bit left field when we talk about being a CEO, but here we talk about being moms. And we think, I think it has everything to do with it, teaching your kids how to slow down. Because as moms, we are always constantly the conductor of the ship. What's happening? What's happening next? What's for dinner? What are they doing for homework? Where are your shoes? Has anyone fed the pet? Are they okay? We are constantly going through questions about what's going on in our world, but also how do we help them to manage their emotions? And I think that that's something we need to slow down and think a little bit more about and how to do the things we are wanting them to do, how we want to teach them to be, how to pause, how to breathe, how to recognize when they are feeling overwhelmed. Learning how to calm down our bodies is a skill set that can be taught and learned as a child, but is something that is blessing us for our whole lives. And that's where meditation can be such a powerful tool and why meditation isn't just for adults and thinking of someone sitting quietly in a room doing yoga. And it doesn't have to be complicated. In fact, it can be just five minutes a day that can make all the difference for yourself and for your kids. So that is why I started Five Minute Meditations for Kids. It's actually a podcast where you can teach your kids easily and simply how to make it a part of your routine for transition moments, whether it's driving to and from school at the beginning or at the end of the day. And when we think of meditation, again, we might be thinking, oh, it has to be that we're sitting down with our eyes closed, sitting in this quiet room for 30 minutes. And as a parent, you're probably thinking, yeah, my kid is not going to do that. And honestly, they don't have to. Meditations for kids can be incredibly simple. And that is where you're taking a few minutes to simply be present and

Five Minutes, Simple Practices That Work

Camille 2:33

even just learning to breathe. This is a practice that we have incorporated into many of our episodes. It could be listening to really calming music, having a visualization before going to bed. And it isn't about sitting perfectly still. The goal is to give them a tool that they can use through their lifetime about being present and what to do when life feels big. Because our kids in they experience all the things we do: stress, worry, frustration, disappointment, feeling like there's just too much to be done. They may not have the words to explain it and what is happening inside of their little bodies, but they can learn this. And if there is a time that they are feeling I'm feeling overwhelmed, a simple solution to that that we want them to think is I need to take a breath. Maybe they're feeling I'm worried and they need a minute to slow down, or just giving their brain to have a skill that can serve them for their entire lives. Something else that has been really hard, and as a parent, I understand this so much, is that your child is often bombarded by a lot of input. So giving our child the tools to simply learn how to slow down is a huge part of what meditation can be. It's introspection, it's bringing your attention back to the present moment, it's bringing your attention back to your breath, back to the body, back to the story, the visualization, back to the present moment. And honestly, that's the practice for adults too. So with five-minute meditations that we created, there are actual episodes that are meant for sleep. That's a big part of what we get questions about all the time is how do I help my child sleep better at night? But we've also specifically created questions or meditations when we get questions about like, how do I prep my child for taking a big test or trying out for the team or mantras that you may need help with. So that is where five-minute meditations really come into play. We also have a YouTube channel. So you don't need like a special room, you don't need perfect silence. You can do it in just five minutes. And even if you have a really wiggly child, like I have three boys and a girl, there are times when, and maybe it's just five minutes in the car of like, hey, we're going, we're all in one place, we can listen to this. And maybe it's just about getting back to the present moment or practicing box breathing, or maybe it's just time to slow down. For some kids, it may help them transition into sleep. So if that's something you're specifically looking for, it can create

Bedtime Calm And Big-Moment Nerves

Camille 5:15

a calming bedtime routine. For others, it might simply be to give them a time to disconnect from screens or from phones or from input of school, having so many things put on them. I actually just met a young father who he is the daughter of a five-year-old little girl. And I said, Oh, what a magical time. I love five-year-old girls. And he's like, Yeah, but she's also runs the roost. Like she is, she's kind of a bit all over the place and has a hard time sleeping at night. And I said, Well, you know, I have this podcast called Five Minute Meditations for Kids. And he was, he had no idea because we had met under different circumstances. He didn't know that I had that part of my business as well. And he is actually someone who works with my husband. And he stopped him in the middle of the hall and he said, You've got to let your wife know. Listening to a five-minute meditation for bed before bed has literally changed the game for my daughter being able to rest and be able to fall asleep. So that was a huge pat on the back for me because we are all so busy. And adding one more thing into our life and having that busyness is normal. But when we give our children the opportunity to practice breath and to give themselves opportunity to connect with their body, something incredibly powerful can happen. We're showing them that rest matters and that their emotions are safe to feel and that you don't have to react immediately to things that are happening around you. And also that you can create calm no matter where you are. That's something that I talk to my kids a lot about, is that so often circumstances are out of our control, how people react to us, what they say, what they think. And in reality, we are only in charge of how we practice and rehearse our own thoughts, our own actions, and that meditation can be something that can be simple, that you can press play, that you don't have to be required to show up perfectly to create that calm that your body is really searching for. So back to the podcast. And I Google searched five-minute meditations for kids, because I was literally looking for a

Proof It Works And Why

Camille 7:45

resource like that and I couldn't find it. And it was one of those moments where a seed was planted of if it doesn't exist, create it. And so together with my friend Jessie, she and I created this podcast to teach kids that you can have calm, that you can have peace, and that you can reset. And that for a parent, it's not this huge undertaking of like, oh no, one more thing to teach my kids how do I fit it in? I'm so busy. I literally wanted it to be a five-minute situation where you can press play and take the moment for yourself, or you press play and you create it as part of a system, ecosystem that brings meditation into the lives of your children. This is something where if you are new to this and maybe it's just taking slow breaths together, that's a beautiful practice. And you could even say to your child, let's take five minutes to let our bodies and our minds slow down. That's it. You don't need to make it perfect, but if you are looking for specific resources of helping someone to guide you through kind of like a guided audio with music, and it makes it really peaceful and nice, that is the way that our podcast can really help you. I think one of the greatest gifts that we can give to our children isn't necessarily another toy or activity or a lesson that's very specific in an achievement. It's about helping them to come back to themselves and teaching them that coming back into a space of grounding when life gets so busy and so stressful, that is truly the gift that I want for my kids. It doesn't fix everything, it certainly doesn't, but it's a tool that they can reach for when things get busy or when things get rough. This is something I know that at my kids' schools, they've tried to incorporate more of. There's a program called Breathe, and my kids complain about it. They do. And so even with running this podcast for my kids, sometimes they don't think it's cool and sometimes they fight against me. But if I have taught my kids to teach themselves that they can breathe and really connect with who they are, it has paid in dividends. I have children now who are in their teens. And I have children who are still in elementary and junior high. I have kids across the board, but all of them have emotions. I have emotions. We have big emotions. There's bedtime or meeting to really wrap our minds around the stress that we have. And if there's anything I know for sure, it's that stress and anxiety are not decreasing in our society. They are only becoming more and more prevalent. And there are so many apps and AI tools to help us to be more proficient and get things done. But this is a practice that helps you to feel more human and to connect and pause with who you are and who your child is. And that's something that nothing can replace that. Nothing can replace that attunement to what your body is telling you, what your soul is telling you. That is the connection to our own knowing. And so if that is something that you're feeling like you would like a little more help with, or you think that that's something that could be beneficial to you, our YouTube channel, Five Minute Meditations for Kids, we would love for you to subscribe. We just passed 1,000 subscribers, which means we can barely monetize with the ads there, which is really exciting. But we are looking to open up a portal or area for parents who are looking for a little more guidance. If that's something that you have

Subscribe, Resources, And Closing

Camille 11:50

interest in, please email us at five minute meditations for kids at gmail.com. And that's the number five written out. And also subscribe on podcasts or anywhere where you can hear the episodes and you can sort through and see. I will say that on the YouTube channel, it's nice because you can see in category what we have to offer, where it's like categorized and specifically put in a place where it's easier to see. If you are a visual person or your child, you think that they would go into meditation a little bit easier if they had something visual to look at, start there. But you can also pull up our podcast through Alexa. If you have an Alexa in your kids' rooms and it's on Audible, it's on Apple Podcasts, it's on Spotify. And the title is Five Minute Meditations for Kids. It because we are small, you will probably have ads for the Calm app or some other things that are available. Ours is very grassroots, homegrown, made by two moms. So dig for it, dig for it a little bit. And any rating or review helps other people to be able to find it more quickly as we grow. Anyway, I just wanted to pop in and share with that today as we're getting back into routines and life is busy and there's always so much more to be done. Let meditation and this gift that we've created for you, it's free. Use it and help it to create a little more peace at home. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you for tuning in weekly for mothers sharing their businesses and all of the inspiration that they have. It's such a beautiful space to be. And I would love to connect with you more on a personal basis. So you can email me at callmece at gmail.com or on Instagram, let's be friends. And of course, if you have been thinking about wanting to share your story here, I would love to hear from you too. So have a great one. I hope that your back to school transitions are going well. And I will see you soon. Hey CEOs, thank you so much for spending your time with me. If you found this episode inspiring or helpful, please let me know in a comment in a five star review. You could have the chance of being a featured review on an upcoming episode. Continue the conversation on Instagram at CallMe CEO Podcast. And remember, you are the boss.