The Erie County Department of Health (ECDOH) Office of Health Equity’s mindfulness program teaches participants about the benefits of mindfulness and several activities that they can do on their own and share with others. The activities may help participants increase focus, manage pain, build healthy habits, reduce depression, reduce anxiety, manage stress and improve sleep by helping them to relax. The program is offered both in a formal setting with a PowerPoint presentation and in an informal one while tabling at health fairs.
Our Office provides Mindfulness Workshops for teachers and students (grades 1-12). The 90-minute interactive teacher training will teach you what it means to be mindful, including the purpose of mindfulness in a classroom setting and benefits for you and your students. You will also learn a variety of mindfulness exercises and tools to integrate into your daily classroom routine.
The 60-minute interactive classroom program will teach your students what it means to be mindful, including the purpose of mindfulness and its benefits. Participate in a variety of mindful relaxation exercises that your students can do on their own and incorporate into their daily routine.
Contact
Erie County Office of Health Equity
95 Franklin St.
Buffalo, NY 14202
Phone: 716-858-4752
Email: healthequity@erie.gov
Activities
Balloon Breathing
With one hand on your belly, imagine that your stomach is a balloon. As you inhale, your stomach expands. As you exhale your stomach deflates.
Box Breathing
Breathe in for four seconds. Hold your breath for four seconds. Breathe out for four seconds. Hold your breath for four seconds. Repeat the entire sequence.
Roller Coaster Breathing
Slowly trace the outside of your entire hand with an index finger, breathing in when you trace up a finger and breathing out when you trace down.
Hot Chocolate Breathing
Imagine you’re holding a cup of hot chocolate in your hands. Bring your cup up close to you. Take a long breath in and then slowly blow the air out to cool your hot chocolate. Repeat 2x. Then take a tiny little sip of your hot chocolate, and say, “Mmmmm...!”
Resources
Free Mindfulness Apps
Search for these apps in the Apple or Android app store
- Introductory meditation course
- Resources for learning how to overcome ingrained habits developed by years of stress and emotions
- Customizable meditations by length, type and narrator
- For adults and children
- Resources for sleep, anxiety, stress, and focus
- 162,000+ guided meditations, music, nature sounds, courses, and stories
- Live meditations and yoga events, discussion and meditation groups
- Customizable timer, short and long-duration meditations
- Created by a woman of color
- Resources for stress and to cultivate mindfulness
- Guided meditations paired with chocolate to increase habit formation
- 3-minute sessions
- For adults, kids, youth, individuals, families, educators, classrooms, and workplaces
- For people new to meditation and mindfulness
- Resources for stress, sleep, focus, wellbeing, eating, relationships, performance, and sports
- 300+ meditation and mindfulness programs
- Downloadable meditations for offline use
- Additional programs in Arabic, Dari, Kriol, Ngaanyatjarra, and Pitjantjatjara
Podcasts & Videos
There are lots of podcasts and videos about mindfulness! Both Google and Apple have free and simple to use podcast apps. Find apps in the Apple or Android app store or online. Combine “mindfulness” or “meditation” with search words that connect to your identity or something you are working on.
Examples:
Podcasts Apps - Spotify, Insight Timer
Video Apps - Ted Talks, YouTube