Practicing Mindfulness

Dr. Anomi Bearden

Outline

Mindfulness vs. mindlessness

Mindfulness practices

Try mindfulness meditation (focused breathing)

Benefits of focused breathing & mindfulness meditation

MBSR program

Benefits of consistent mindfulness practice

Growing popularity of mindfulness

Mindfulness in everyday life

Try loving-kindness meditation exercise

Great resources

Mindlessness vs. Mindfulness

“Many of us go through life waiting for something to happen in order to make us happy or content. We miss experiencing life as it happens. True well being is not going through life on autopilot, but being aware and present moment to moment to truly experience your life as it unfolds.”

“mindfulness is an active search for novelty, whereas mindlessness involves passively zoning out…on automatic pilot…attributable to repetitive behaviours.”

- Ellen Langer, PhD (Social Psychologist at Harvard)

(Compton & Hoffman, 2005; Snyder, Lopez, & Pedrotti, 2011)

On Autopilot:Automatic vs. Controlled Thinking

Automatic Thinking is unconscious, unintentional, involuntary, effortless.

Most of our thoughts and actions throughout the day tend to be automatic/habitual.

Controlled Thinking is effortful, requiring motivation and mental energy/capacity.

We have a finite amount of mental/psychic energy (can be taxed due to stress, lack of sleep, etc.).

(Aronson, Akert, Wilson, & Fehr, 2011)

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is paying attention to one’s ongoing experience in a way that allows openness and flexibility (Compton & Hoffman, 2005).

It requires us to:

- overcome desire to avoid uncertainty

- override automatic behaviours/reactions

- avoid evaluating ourselves, others, situations

(Snyder, Lopez, & Pedrotti, 2011)

Mindfulness

Mindfulness cultivates a relaxed state of awareness that observes both the inner world of thoughts, feelings and sensations, and the outer world of constantly changing phenomena without trying to control anything (Kabat-Zinn, 1990).

“You must be present to love, or experience peace, or joy, or contentment. When you are here you can have the experience of your life.” – Jon Kabat-Zinn (Kabat-Zinn, 2009).

Mindfulness Practice

Mindfulness involves formal & informal practice.

Formal practice: Time dedicated daily to meditation or mindful movement practices (e.g., yoga).

Informal practice: Meditation is done continuously with one pointed focus on each task. Being completely present IN the moments of our lives.

(Kabat-Zinn, 2009)

Common Mindfulness Practices

Mindfulness Meditation*

Mindful Breathing*

Mindful Eating

Mindful Movement (Yoga)

Mindful Walking

The Body Scan Technique

Loving-kindness Meditation*

(Kabat-Zinn, 1990; 2009)

2 Components of Mindfulness Practice

Self-regulation of attention:– sustain attention to immediate experience – inhibit secondary elaborative processing– switch attention to desired focus

Openness to experience:– Curiosity– Acceptance– Avoid resistance

(Bishop, Lau, Shapiro, Carlson, Anderson et al., 2004)

Components of Mindfulness Meditation

Intention:

– Commit to a dedicated and regular practice

Attention:

– Observe contents of experience

Attitude:

– Manner of observing experience

(Shapiro & Carlosn, 2009)

Elements of Mindful Attitude

Non-judging – impartial witness, observe without categorization

Non-Striving – non goal-oriented, remain unattached to outcome

Acceptance – acknowledge things as they are in this moment

Patience – simply allow things to unfoldTrust – trust in yourself & your experience

(Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Elements of Mindful Attitude

Beginner’s Mind/Openness – see things fresh as if for first time

Curiosity – interest, exploration, investigation.

Letting Go – not holding on to thoughts, feelings, experience

Gentleness – soft & considerate, but not passive or undisciplined

Non-reactivity – respond with consciousness and clarity

Loving-kindness – friendliness, benevolence, love (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Simplified: The COAL Approach

The COAL approach to mindfulness (Siegel, 2007) is to consistently watch here and now experience with:

– Curiosity

– Openness

– Acceptance

– Love

Daniel Siegel, M.D. (Harvard Medical School & UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Centre)

Mindfulness Meditation

Increases grey matter in left prefrontal cortex area responsible for higher thinking (Holzel et al., 2008)

May be the most useful way to improve emotional & physical well being (Compton & Hoffman, 2005)

Benefits experienced in a short period of time & increase with frequency & consistency (Carmody & Baer, 2009)

3 days meditating 20 minutes/day can impact perception of & sensitivity to pain (Zeidan, Gordon, Merchant, Goolkasian, 2009)

Importance of the Breath

Most common focal point of awareness in meditation

15 minutes of focused breathing lowers negative mood and decreases reactivity to stressful stimuli (Arche & Craske, 2006)

Can generate feelings of joy (Hendricks, 1995)

Can activate genes responsible for countering stress response (Duesk et al., 2008)

Focused Breathing Meditation

Breath-focused meditation exercise

3 points of breath awareness:

nostrils

chest

belly

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn developed MBSR program at University of Massachusetts Medical Center.

MBSR common form of medicine for a variety of health problems.

MBSR classes taught by physicians, nurses, social workers, and psychologists, as well as other health professionals.

Patients/clients take on responsibility for doing inner work in order to tap into their own resources for growing and healing.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) focuses on depression & training to recognize & manage the relationship between depressive moods & negative thought patterns.

(Kabat-Zinn, 2009; Compton & Hoffman, 2005)

Mindfulness enhances:

Classroom learning (Ritchart & Perkins, 2002)

Working memory functions (Jha et al., 2010)

Ability to focus/concentrate (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Musician performance (Langer, Russell, & Eisenkraft, 2009)

Marital satisfaction (Burpee & Langer, 2005)

Self-awareness & positive emotions (Brown & Ryan, 2003)

Empathy (Shapiro, Schwartz, Bonner, 1998)

Mindfulness enhances:

Affiliative trust & oneness motivation (Weinberger et al., 1990)

Self-regulation skills (Evan, Baer, & Segerstrom, 2009)

Hardiness (Kabat-Zinn & Skillings, 1989)

Regulation of heart rate (Delizonna, Williams, & Langer, 2009)

Immune system functioning (Davidson et al., 2003)

Physical health outcomes (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Pain management (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Subjective well being (Jacob & Brinkerhoff, 1999)

Mindfulness reduces:

Use of stereotyping (Djikic, Langer, & Stapleton, 2008

Negative effects of social comparison (Langer, Pirson, & Delizonna, 2010)

Experience of stress (Shapiro & Carlson, 2009)

Anxiety & worry (Miller, Fletcher, Kabat-Zinn, 1995; Mohan, Sharma, & Bijlani, 2011)

Mindfulness reduces:

Depression (Shapiro, Scwartz, & Bonner, 1998)

Symptoms of cancer, insomnia, multiple sclerosis (Epstein, 2003; Grossman, 2010)

Negative affect (Jha et al., 2010)

Impulsivity and habitual behaviours such as those in addictions, eating disorders, and borderline personality disorder (cf. Boyce, 2011)

Growing Popularity of Mindfulness

- Every year well over 100 new studies are published on the effects of mindfulness in a wide array of domains and disciplines.

- Mindfulness training is offered at over 250 medical institutions in the US including leading medical centers (e.g., Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine, Duke Center for Integrative Medicine).

- Hundreds of health care professionals are applying MBSR to problems ranging from anxiety and drug addiction to cardiovascular disease, chronic pain, cancer, insomnia, and many more…

(Chang et al., 2010; Chen et al., 2010; Matousek & Dobkin, 2010; cf. Compton & Hoffman, 2005)

Really doing what you are doing: Mindfulness in everyday life

Mindfulness influences the mind (thoughts & emotions) and body (nervous system activity) in a positive direction for optimal health outcomes.

Be fully present in your life experiences with moment to moment awareness.

– Mindful breathing

– Mindful eating

– Mindful walking

– Mindful parenting

– Mindful working

Cultivating Loving-Kindness

Loving-Kindness Meditation Exercise

Great Resources

Compton, W. C., & Hpffman, E. (2005). Positive psychology: The science of happiness and flourishing. Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Belmont CA

Kabat-Zinn, J. (2009). Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness. Fifteenth Anniversary Edition. The Program of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. Delta Trade Paperbacks. Bantam Dell: A Division of RandomHouse Inc. New York.

Shapiro, S. L., & Carlson, L. E. (2009). The art and science of mindfulness: Integrating mindfulness into psychology and the helping professions. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Publications.

Great Resources

Snyder, C. R., Lopez, S. J., & Pedrotti, J. (2011). Positive psychology: The scientific and practical explorations of human strengths (2nd Edtn.). SAGE: Thousand Oaks, CA.

Boyce, B. (2011). The mindfulness revolution: Leading psychologists, scientists, artists, and meditation teachers on the power of mindfulness in daily life. Shambhala Sun Books: Boston MA

Siegel, D. J. (2007) The mindful brain: Reflection and attunement in the cultivation of well-being. Mind your Brain Inc. W. W. Norton & Co: New York, NY