“Mindful Meditation for Academic Success” continues in the spring semester as they held an event on Jan. 24 at 10 a.m. via Zoom.

Spring semester just started and getting yourself settled into your new classes could be a little stressful, perhaps even anxiety-inducing. Why not start the semester off on the right foot?

Cerritos College has many resources to help students with their mental health, Mindful Meditation is one of them!

The meditation sessions began on Jan. 10 but will continue through May 19.

Every Tuesday-Thursday, you’ll be meeting up through zoom for a 30-minute meditation session with instructor Laurie Angress.

Angress, the certified meditation instructor, has been hosting Meditation Mindfulness at Cerritos College for six years and hopes to continue helping students as long as student health services can support it.

Angress has been setting up the sessions in a way where you can do it on your own.

She hopes you learn a number of valuable skills, like regulating your own nervous system and recognizing your field of awareness from each session.

You will explore tools to find that calm and manage the activities of the mind that may lead to stress sensations in the body.

“There’s a quality within you, a stillness,” said Angress, “A place of ease that is in there waiting to be felt.”

Learning to become self-aware and how to work with all the contents of the mind can be difficult, but with the exercises and tools Angress presents, you too can find the balance.

Alfred Rodriguez, a student, and staff at Cerritos College, has been attending every session since the very beginning of the program and still continues to attend.

“This program has been a godsend, it has really changed my life for the better,” said Rodriguez, “I have used the practices in some of the most difficult and painful events that recently happened in my life.”

Rodriguez goes on to mention the positive outcomes since he began applying the tools and practices into his daily routine.

They’ve become the positive habits that he relies on heavily and he feels as though he has become a better father, husband, friend, and worker because of them.

Angress has been such a big help to Rodriguez, he doesn’t hesitate to show his appreciation for the program.

“Angress truly guides us and teaches with patience, compassion, and care,” said Rodriguez, “you may join and feel timid but in no time you will realize how valuable the time you have with Laurie is and start to come out of your shell and grow.”

These sessions are a learning process for you to feel powerful, confident, whole and complete just as you are.

It may take only one session, or it may take a few, but don’t let anxiety get the best of you.

It’s always good to try something new and what better way than by helping yourself with some Mindful Meditation?

Make sure to check the Cerritos College website to see the flyer and join the next meditation session being held on Jan. 31 at 10 a.m. via Zoom.