Mindfulness. Conceptual Model. What is mindfulness? 10/2/2016. Balance for Life and Learning Nannette Kwiatek AET National Conference October, 2016

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1 Mindfulness Balance for Life and Learning Nannette Kwiatek AET National Conference October, 2016 Conceptual Model What is mindfulness? It is learning how to cultivate greater selfawareness, greater awareness of others and the world, and then reaping the benefits of that awareness.- Jon Kabat-Zinn Presence of heart Jon Kabat-Zinn 1

2 What is Mindfulness? Paying attention to what is going on right here, right now, inside of us or outside of us. Debra Burdick Reasons for children to learn and apply Mindfulness Optimize emotional development and cognition Learning how to pay attention & reduce stress Increase capacity for focus and concentration Develop ability to listen and learn Reasons for children to learn and apply Mindfulness Cultivate presence of mind, heart, and body Manage wise relationships with self and others Build on strengths, leading to greater resilience Protect the developing brain 2

3 Meditative Bliss Mindfulness and the Brain Emotions are formed in the limbic system. Emotional response to sensory input is a key factor to deep visceral reactions The Insula Integral to experience of emotions, especially those that are negative (Wright, et. al 2004) 3

4 Key Players in Emotion Another Element in Emotional Process The Hippocampus Stores and retrieves memories Turns short-term into long-term memory Ideal Mindful Interplay MIND BODY SPIRIT 4

5 Mind-Body Interplay Where Traumatic Memory is Stored How humans bypass the frontal cortex When someone is in panic: Frontal cortex is bypassed and heart races Stomach clenches= flight, fright, and/or freeze 5

6 How the Brain Processes Anger Hypothalamus gets fast signal from amygdala Breathing speeds up. How mindfulness can mediate Without this platform of constant review between frontal cortex & amygdala, the automatic primitive visceral reaction takes over. Neuroscience and The Brain 6

7 Brain Changes during Meditation Switch to back of PFC Balanced Outlook Monitor Thoughts Become Aware, Focused Anatomical Changes with Long-Term Meditation MRI Evidence 7

8 Techniques for Meditation Breathing Guided imagery Mantras Centering Body Scan Neuroplasticity The Brain Can Change "As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives." Henry David Thoreau Neurogenesis 8

9 The Neuronal Network Neuron is the basic working unit of the brain Components Cell Body Dendrites Axons The Network for Change Dendrites receive messages Axons provide links Synapses are contact points between neurons Axon knobs Neuroplastic Healing Learned Non-Use Noisy Brain Cumulative Electrical Wave Patterns 9

10 Research Mindfulness meditation at core of intervention Stress reduction Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy Specific Study Results Descriptors 228 non-clinical first to third grade students Twelve 45 min. sessions 24 weeks Napoli, et. Al(2005) Results Significant improvement: Self-rated test anxiety Teacher-rated attention Social skills Visual attention The Price of Difference 10

11 Effect of Mindfulness on Depression and Anxiety for Minority Children Descriptors 18 children ages years 71% boys, 64% from Caribbean and Central American countries Comparison between HEI/MI 15 minute classes daily for 2 weeks Liehr, Diaz, 2010 Results Significant interaction between group and time for depressive symptoms MI group had greater decreases in anxiety than HEI group ( to ) HEI group to Center for Research on Mindfulness Studies at UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center Program Descriptors Sixty-four 2 nd, 3 rd graders 30 minutes, 2x wk. 8wks. MAPS curriculum Assessment of executive function through questionnaires to parents, teachers Flook, et al 2009 Results Those who began with significant Executive Function difficulties showed greater improvement compared with controls Generalized across home/school settings 11

12 Adolescence and Mindfulness Research on Mindfulness with Adolescents Study Descriptors 102 adolescents aged Under psychiatric outpatient care MBSR curriculum Control group received standard therapy Biegel et al. (2009) Results of study Clinical measures of mental health made by clinicians blind to treatment conditions Significant improvement in treatment group Exploratory analysis of moderating effects Study Linking Attention and Meditation Longitudinal Studies Reading task requiring ongoing error monitoring Participants assessed at beginning and end of retreat Follow-up 7 years later Zanesco, et al Results Less mind wandering Significantly less mindless reading Meditation may support attention during complex cognitive task 12

13 Research Gaps Funding Study Size School vs. Clinical Design/Follow-up Who looks outside dreams; who looks inside awakens. C. Jung 13

14 Resources for Use with Students Burdick, Debra. Mindfulness Skills for Kids and Teens. PESI Publishing and Media, Eau Claire, WI, 2014.Grossman, Laurie, and Alvarez, Angelina. Master of Mindfulness: How to Be Your Own Superhero in Times of Stress. New Harbinger Publications, 2016.National Geographic Kids: Brain Games. Scholastic Inc. Thich Nhat Thanh. A Handful of Quiet. Plum Blossom Books, The Handy Brain Model Kate Cohen-Posey, Sources Cited Baer, R. Mindfulness Training as a Clinical Intervention: A Conceptual and Empirical Review, Clinical Psychology:Science and Practice, 10, Burke, Christine. Mindfulness-Based Approaches with Children and Adolescents: A Preliminary Review of Current Research in An Emergent Field, Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice, University of Wales, 27 June Doidge, Norman, M.D. The Brain s Way of Healing. Penguin Books, Sources Cited Flook, L. et al. Effects of Mindful Awareness Practices on Executive Practices in Elementary School Children, Journal of Applied School Psychology 26(1): Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Context: Past, Present, and Future, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10,

15 Sources Cited Liehr, Patricia and Diaz, Naelys. A Pilot Study Examining the Effect of Mindfulness on Depression and Anxiety for Minority Children Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, Vol. 24, No.1 (February), 2010: pp Napoli, M., et al, Mindfulness Training for Elementary School Students: The Attention Academy, Journal of Applied School Psychology, 21, References Zanesco, Anthony P. et al, Self-Reported Mindfulness during a Shamatha Meditation Retreat, Health Psychology Vol 32 (10),