#read6min How To...

Thanks for the excitement around #read6min; a May Reading Challenge for Mental Health Awareness Month. Here are some how to details.

1. Read every day for at least 6 minutes. If you can read more great! It doesn't mean you can count 6 days for 36 minutes. That doesn't help form a habit or get the daily physical benefits shared yesterday

2. Share a photo to document your reading. The photo can be anything to show a snippet of your reading life. Maybe it's the front cover. Maybe it's an open book from a distance. Maybe it's close up of the page with a line you want to share. Maybe it's part of the book and you in your favorite reading spot. Maybe it's the view with your book in a corner.

3. Maybe on your post you share a thought about how you are feeling, what you are reading, why you are reading, how you are making these 6 minutes happen, do you notice any physical changes, and do any patterns happen over time.

3. Use the hashtag #read6min to connect with other readers fostering their own mental health.

#read6min - May Reading Challenge

I've enjoyed reading my whole life. I enjoy teaching reading and have found comfort in books. During my daughter's mental health journey I read every book doctors recommended and started gravitating towards picture books for more comfort. I was also searching for ways to talk to her without sounding like a worried parent. Picture books offered me a way to do just that. Recently, I listened to a podcast by Stephanie Affinito - The Power of Bibliotherapy and started researching bibliotherapy and the benefits of reading. I've known reading has had cognitive benefits and can help develop empathy. 

What I discovered was surprising physical benefits.

 -  Our heart rate slows down and our muscles relax. 

 - We have greater sleep.

 - Our stress lowers to 68%. 

 - Reading lengthens our life by 2 years! 

All of this can happen by reading JUST 6 minutes a day! 

My own reading can get put on the back burner. I would love to have these physical benefits and have more moments of bibliotherapy which I will be sharing more about during May.

I've created my own #reading6min challenge and hope you will join for 31 days in May. Follow my journey on Instagram - @mandyrobek_edu and feel free to use the infographic and join the #breakingstigmas movement. Welcome to Mental Health Awareness Month!