10 Mindfulness Tools to Calm Your Mind and Take Back Your Life

Transcription

1 10 Mindfulness Tools to Calm Your Mind and Take Back Your Life Kathryn Soule, MA, LPC

2 Oh I ve had my moments, and if I had to do it over again I d have more of them. In fact, I d try to have nothing else but moments. Just one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. -woman, age 85, after participating in a mindfulness program (Kabat-Zinn, 1990)

3 1) Living in the Present What is happening right NOW? 2) Choosing your Intention What is most important or meaningful to me in this situation?

4 *Thinking about past hurts or regrets *Worries/expectations about the future * What if * I ll be happy when *Busy minds preoccupied with tasks/to-do lists *Thoughts of how things should be *Repeated negative or unhelpful thoughts Life is right now.

5 Why do we operate this way? The mind is A problem finding, problem-fixing machine The brain s job is to keep us safe, not make us happy A Storyteller By age 18, lived more than 150,000 hours Mind creates narratives to weave together important info Repetitive About 60,000 thoughts a day 95% are the same as yesterday About 80% are negative

6 The Stress Response *Heart rate and blood-pressure increase *Breathing becomes shallow and faster *Cell growth and repair is slowed *Digestion inhibited *Growth inhibited *Immune system suppressed FREQUENT STRESS TAKES TOLL ON HUMAN BODY

7 *Reduce stress levels *Improve concentration *Enhance short-term memory *Decrease anxiety *Reduce pain *Decrease depression *Reduce anger *Increase brain activity in the hippocampus (associated with learning and memory) *Decrease brain activity in the amygdala (associated with anxiety and stress)

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9 Tool #1 *PAUSE and focus attention on breath as an anchor to the present *Breathe in for 5, out for 7 *Breathe out stress from the top of your body to the bottom *Offer yourself a wish or intention May I be happy or May I be at peace

10 Tool #2 *Come out of autopilot and whirling thoughts *Use your senses to experience the present as it s happening *Start by focusing on breath, and expand awareness to notice what you can see, hear, and feel *Notice and experience body movements/taste/touch/smell/sights/sounds while: Going for a walk outside Doing the dishes Eating Talking with a friend Driving Working Listening to Music Showering Playing with a pet Cuddling with a loved one Informal Meditation: When thoughts arise, acknowledge them and return attention to activity

11 Tool #3 *What is important or meaningful to me about this activity? *What purpose does it serve? *How does it benefit me or someone else?

12 YOU CAN T FLATTEN THE OCEAN, BUT YOU CAN LEARN TO RIDE THE WAVES Tool #4

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14 Tool #5 Stop reacting mindlessly Observe thoughts and feelings without reacting to them

15 The mind is a storyteller

16 Tool #6 Some common stories: The What if story The I ll never get everything done story The I constantly need to be productive story The Things shouldn t be this way story The I have to do everything perfect story The If it s not great, it s a failure story The This is a catastrophe story The I have to do everything myself story You can choose not to react to the story as if it were true.

17 Tool #7 Formal Meditation 5-10 min/day: Close your eyes and focus your attention on your breath Imagine watching thoughts pass by like leaves on a river Notice each time your mind wanders downstream Notice This is a thought Rather than following the thoughts down the river as you normally would, gently return to the side of the river Refocus on breath and letting thoughts pass by Each time you notice This is a thought, you practice: Changing your normal thinking habits Choosing not to react to thoughts as if they are true

18 Tool #8 Rather than reacting to stress: In the pause Ask Yourself Who do I want to be in this situation? What is most meaningful to me about this? What are my most important goals or values?

19 Tool #9 Helping others Being in nature Taking care of my family Learning new things Being creative Taking care of my health Experiencing new things Being an accepting or supportive friend/co-worker/brother/daughter/spouse

20 Tool #10 Breathe deeply and slowly to bring yourself calmly to the present moment Observe thoughts and feelings without reacting to them Listen to your values, goals, or intention Decide on actions in line with those

21 Questions? Contact me with questions or to make an appointment for: Counseling Stress management Mindfulness training Workshops Katie Soule, MA, LPC

22 Bhatnagar, P. (2011). Letting go of the control and avoidance of pain with mindfulness and acceptance. Psychological Studies, 56, Bishop, S., Lau, M., Shapiro, S. Carlson, L., Anderson, N. Carmody, J., et al. (2004). Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 11, Cayoun, B. (2011). Mindfulness integrated CBT: Principles and practice. Hoboken: Wiley-Blackwell. Ciarrochi, J., Hayes, L., Bailey, A., & Hayes. S. (2012). Get out of your mind and into your life for teens: A guide to living an extraordinary life. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger. Fjorback, L., Arendt, M., Ornbol, E., Fink, P., & Walach, H. (2011). Mindfulness-based stress reduction and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 124, Harris, R. (2008). The happiness trap: How to stop struggling and start living, A guide to ACT. Boston, MA: Trumpeter Books. Hayes, S. C., Strosahl, K., Wilson, K. G., Bissett, R. T., Pistorello, J., Toarmino, D.,... McCurry, S. M. (2004). Measuring experiential avoidance: A preliminary test of a working model. The Psychological Record, 54, Hayes, S., Strosahl, K., & Wilson, K. (2012). Acceptance and commitment therapy: The process and practice of mindful change. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

23 Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: Using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. New York: Dell Publishing. Keng, S., Smoski, M., Robins, C., Ekblad, A., & Brantley, J. (2012). Mechanisms of change in mindfulness-based stress reduction: Self-compassion and mindfulness as mediators of intervention outcomes. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 26, Levin, M. & Hayes, S. (2011). Mindfulness and acceptance: The perspective of acceptance and commitment therapy. In J. Herbert & E. Forman, (Eds.),Acceptance and mindfulness in cognitive behavior therapy: Understanding and applying the new therapies ( ). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Rempel, K. (2012). Mindfulness for children and youth: A review of the literature with an argument for school-based implementation. Canadian Journal of Counseling and Psychotherapy, 46, Sibinga, E., Perry-Parrish, C., Chung, S., Johnson, S., Smith, M., & Ellen, J. (2013). School-based mindfulness instruction for urban male youth: A small randomized controlled trial. Preventative Medicine, 57, Teasdale, J., Segal, Z., Williams, J., Ridgeway, V., Soulsby J., & Lau, M. (2000). Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68,