Help Children Ease Anxiety & Increase Happiness

Children everywhere need better ways to relax and de-stress, and they can do this with the help of meditation techniques from the new book, The Dolphin's Secret: A Meditational Journey for Children by Meryl Best Lowell.

This how-to storybook introduces children to mindfulness techniques for easing anxiety and promoting happiness.

The Dolphin's Secret: A Meditational Journey for Children by Meryl Best Lowell introduces children to Yoga Nidra—an ancient form of guided meditation which incorporates a sequence of mindfulness techniques—and encourages them to add it to their lives in order to feel calmer and happier. The book weaves how-to steps into the whimsical story of Meri, a beautiful mermaid, and her friend Aloha, a dolphin. Using The Dolphin’s Secret, parents and teachers can lead children ages 4-8 in these exercises as they lay down before naptime or bedtime.

The excerpt below is a fun exercise that children and parents can do together:

“Take a slow, deep breath in through your nose, and pretend you are blowing bubbles under the water, just like a dolphin. Keep taking slow, deep breaths in through your nose, and blow out through your mouth very, very slowly. With each breath in, fill yourself with joy. Each time you breathe out, relax just a little more. Imagine bubbles of all sizes floating around you.”

Through listening to The Dolphin’s Secret story, following the instructions for each mindfulness activity, and being encouraged to notice how they feel, children will learn to become more aware of what peace and ease feel like—in an entertaining way. Colorful illustrations transport kids on an underwater adventure with Meri, as she teaches children to pretend to blow bubbles like dolphins, using slow, deep breaths in from their nose and out through their mouths. Once the children are in a relaxed state, Meri incorporates mantras like, “I have all that I need inside me to be peaceful and happy.” If encouraged by their parents or teacher, our little ones can begin using these on their own. You will also benefit and feel the positive effects on their own minds and bodies.