To stay positive, live in the moment -- but plan ahead
March 25, 2020
Science Daily/North Carolina State University
A recent study from North Carolina State University finds that people who manage to balance living in the moment with planning for the future are best able to weather daily stress without succumbing to negative moods.
"It's well established that daily stressors can make us more likely to have negative affect, or bad moods," says Shevaun Neupert, a professor of psychology at NC State and corresponding author of a paper on the recent work. "Our work here sheds additional light on which variables influence how we respond to daily stress."
Specifically, the researchers looked at two factors that are thought to influence how we handle stress: mindfulness and proactive coping.
Mindfulness is when people are centered and living in the moment, rather than dwelling in the past or worrying about the future. Proactive coping is when people engage in planning to reduce the likelihood of future stress.
To see how these factors influence responses to stress, the researchers looked at data from 223 study participants. The study included 116 people between the ages of 60 and 90, and 107 people between the ages of 18 and 36. All of the study participants were in the United States.
All of the study participants were asked to complete an initial survey in order to establish their tendency to engage in proactive coping. Participants were then asked to complete questionnaires for eight consecutive days that explored fluctuations in mindfulness. On those eight days, participants were also asked to report daily stressors and the extent to which they experienced negative mood.
The researchers found that engaging in proactive coping was beneficial at limiting the effect of daily stressors, but that this advantage essentially disappeared on days when a participant reported low mindfulness.
"Our results show that a combination of proactive coping and high mindfulness result in study participants of all ages being more resilient against daily stressors," Neupert says. "Basically, we found that proactive planning and mindfulness account for about a quarter of the variance in how stressors influenced negative affect.
"Interventions targeting daily fluctuations in mindfulness may be especially helpful for those who are high in proactive coping and may be more inclined to think ahead to the future at the expense of remaining in the present."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200325130650.htm
Motivational aspects of mindfulness: Quality differs by situation
January 29, 2020
Science Daily/Virginia Commonwealth University
What makes people more or less mindful from one situation to the next? Researchers have found that mindfulness is not entirely something an individual brings to a situation and rather is partly shaped by the situations they encounter.
"As mindfulness has become prevalent within organizational practice and scholarly research on organizations, there is a growing need to situate mindfulness more fully within organizational contexts," said Christopher S. Reina, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Management and Entrepreneurship in the School of Business.
In "Wherever you go, there you become: How mindfulness arises in everyday situations," published in the journal Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Reina and co-author Ravi S. Kudesia, Ph.D., assistant professor at the Temple University Fox School of Business, introduce a theoretical framework that explains how mindfulness arises based on an individual's capacity for self-regulation as well as three motivational forces: their metacognitive beliefs, their mental fatigue and how they appraise the situations they experience.
While metacognitive beliefs aid individuals in higher levels of self-regulation, mental fatigue draws resources away from self-regulation. Meanwhile, how individuals appraise a situation influence how much self-regulation is needed to maintain mindfulness.
"These motivational aspects of mindfulness have received little attention to date," Reina said. "Despite the increasing prevalence of mindfulness in organizational research, we have yet to seriously consider its antecedents: how and why people become more or less mindful from one situation to the next." In other words, while researchers have previously explored what mindfulness predicts, little to no research has studied what predicts mindfulness, which represents the core contribution of Reina's study.
The research comprises over 558 participants and 9,390 responses from across three separate studies.
If mindfulness indeed produces positive outcomes, it seems important to identify what situational features can increase or decrease mindfulness. Understanding this can help managers better design organizational situations that enhance mindfulness, Reina said.
"Mindfulness is often assumed to be something that people bring with them into situations, some stable psychological property that is inherent to them," the study concludes. "The present research helps nuance this assumption. If we instead see mindfulness as arising from the coming together of people and their situations, we can better conceptualize mindfulness and design organizational situations that enhance it."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/01/200129125550.htm
The Yogi masters were right -- meditation and breathing exercises can sharpen your mind
New research explains link between breath-focused meditation and attention and brain health
May 10, 2018
Science Daily/Trinity College Dublin
It has long been claimed by Yogis and Buddhists that meditation and ancient breath-focused practices, such as pranayama, strengthen our ability to focus on tasks. A new study explains for the first time the neurophysiological link between breathing and attention.
Breath-focused meditation and yogic breathing practices have numerous known cognitive benefits, including increased ability to focus, decreased mind wandering, improved arousal levels, more positive emotions, decreased emotional reactivity, along with many others. To date, however, no direct neurophysiological link between respiration and cognition has been suggested.
The research shows for the first time that breathing -- a key element of meditation and mindfulness practices -- directly affects the levels of a natural chemical messenger in the brain called noradrenaline. This chemical messenger is released when we are challenged, curious, exercised, focused or emotionally aroused, and, if produced at the right levels, helps the brain grow new connections, like a brain fertiliser. The way we breathe, in other words, directly affects the chemistry of our brains in a way that can enhance our attention and improve our brain health.
The study, carried out by researchers at Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience and the Global Brain Health Institute at Trinity, found that participants who focused well while undertaking a task that demanded a lot of attention had greater synchronisation between their breathing patterns and their attention, than those who had poor focus. The authors believe that it may be possible to use breath-control practices to stabilise attention and boost brain health.
Michael Melnychuk, PhD candidate at the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity, and lead author of the study, explained: "Practitioners of yoga have claimed for some 2,500 years, that respiration influences the mind. In our study we looked for a neurophysiological link that could help explain these claims by measuring breathing, reaction time, and brain activity in a small area in the brainstem called the locus coeruleus, where noradrenaline is made. Noradrenaline is an all-purpose action system in the brain. When we are stressed we produce too much noradrenaline and we can't focus. When we feel sluggish, we produce too little and again, we can't focus. There is a sweet spot of noradrenaline in which our emotions, thinking and memory are much clearer."
"This study has shown that as you breathe in locus coeruleus activity is increasing slightly, and as you breathe out it decreases. Put simply this means that our attention is influenced by our breath and that it rises and falls with the cycle of respiration. It is possible that by focusing on and regulating your breathing you can optimise your attention level and likewise, by focusing on your attention level, your breathing becomes more synchronised."
The research provides deeper scientific understanding of the neurophysiological mechanisms which underlie ancient meditation practices. The findings were recently published in a paper entitled 'Coupling of respiration and attention via the locus coeruleus: Effects of meditation and pranayama' in the journal Psychophysiology. Further research could help with the development of non-pharmacological therapies for people with attention compromised conditions such as ADHD and traumatic brain injury and in supporting cognition in older people.
There are traditionally two types of breath-focused practices -- those that emphasise focus on breathing (mindfulness), and those that require breathing to be controlled (deep breathing practices such as pranayama). In cases when a person's attention is compromised, practices which emphasise concentration and focus, such as mindfulness, where the individual focuses on feeling the sensations of respiration but make no effort to control them, could possibly be most beneficial. In cases where a person's level of arousal is the cause of poor attention, for example drowsiness while driving, a pounding heart during an exam, or during a panic attack, it should be possible to alter the level of arousal in the body by controlling breathing. Both of these techniques have been shown to be effective in both the short and the long term.
Ian Robertson, Co-Director of the Global Brain Health Institute at Trinity and Principal Investigator of the study added: "Yogis and Buddhist practitioners have long considered the breath an especially suitable object for meditation. It is believed that by observing the breath, and regulating it in precise ways -- a practice known as pranayama -- changes in arousal, attention, and emotional control that can be of great benefit to the meditator are realised. Our research finds that there is evidence to support the view that there is a strong connection between breath-centred practices and a steadiness of mind."
"Our findings could have particular implications for research into brain ageing. Brains typically lose mass as they age, but less so in the brains of long term meditators. More 'youthful' brains have a reduced risk of dementia and mindfulness meditation techniques actually strengthen brain networks. Our research offers one possible reason for this -- using our breath to control one of the brain's natural chemical messengers, noradrenaline, which in the right 'dose' helps the brain grow new connections between cells. This study provides one more reason for everyone to boost the health of their brain using a whole range of activities ranging from aerobic exercise to mindfulness meditation."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180510101254.htm
Healthy from Head to Toe: Strategies for Everyday Life
By: Scott Sanders info@cancerwell.org
Staying healthy isn’t always easy to do; when we’re busy, we tend to look for the easiest ways to get things done, from grabbing fast food instead of cooking dinner to taking shortcuts when it comes to a workout. Yet, healthy living is important if we want to live longer, happier lives, so it’s only natural that we look for ways to incorporate healthy strategies into our everyday routines. Whether this means eating better, creating an exercise routine you can stick to, or finding ways to reduce stress and negativity, it’s important to find what works for you. However, for individuals who have recently been diagnosed with cancer or are in remission, finding healthy habitsis especially important.
The key is to look for ways you can bring these healthy habits into your life in a way that will allow you to stick with them. Start by setting realistic goals; for instance, if you know that changing up your exercise routine will be difficult with your work schedule, think of ways you can merge the two gently so that you won’t overexert yourself. Keep reading for some great tips on how to incorporate healthy strategies into your life without the stress.
Boost Your Rest
If your mattress is more than a few years old, it could be causing you pain or interfering with your ability to get quality rest. When dealing with an illness like cancer, which can cause enough pain on its own, it’s important to make sure your body can adequately recharge every night. A worn out, lumpy mattress can not only leave you feeling exhausted the next morning, it may exacerbate any pain you’re already experiencing. If it’s been more than seven years since you upgraded your mattress, it may be worthwhile to consider doing so. Look for one that will allow for proper spine alignmentto protect your back and muscles.
Eat Well
Eating wellis important for everyone, and when you’re trying to get your body back to a healthy place, it’s imperative to find the right diet for your needs. Talk to your doctor about which foods are best for building up your strength; focus on proteins, dark, leafy greens, and nuts and berries, which are wonderful for your immune systemand work as anti-inflammatories. Don’t try to make huge changes to your diet all at once, as this can leave you feeling stressed and overwhelmed, especially if your family includes picky eaters. Look for small ways you can improve the way you eat throughout the day and incorporate them into meals at home.
Look for Healthy Ways to Cope with Stress
Stress is a major factor when it comes to your physical and mental health, so it’s imperative to look for ways to reduce those feelingsin the moment. You might learn deep breathing exercises, go for a short walk, or take a break from your smartphone or laptop screen for a little while. When you have more time, stress-busting activities might include practicing a hobby or doing something that calms you, such as reading.
Get in a Workout
Exercise is important for everyone at any age, but for those who have battled cancer, it’s especially important to build up muscle and healthy tissue. Talk to your doctor before starting any new regimen, and consider learning yoga,which combines physical activity with a mental health boost known as mindfulness. With yoga, you get a workout and have an opportunity to learn how to focus and drown out the noise of the outside world.
Getting healthy -- and staying that way -- isn’t always easy, but with a few simple strategies in place, you can ensure that your body, mind, and soul are well taken care of. Take it slowly to avoid becoming overwhelmed, and remember to take breaks as often as you need them.
Visiting the doctor for low back pain? Expect something different now
November 15, 2017
Science Daily/University of Sydney
If you visit your family doctor with low back pain (LBP), you may be surprised at the treatment options they suggest now. Recent changes to major international guidelines for the management of LBP mean that general practitioners (GP) are now unlikely to recommend pain medicines which were previously the go-to treatment. Instead of pain medicines, GPs might suggest non-medicinal approaches including yoga, mindfulness and various types of physiotherapy and psychological therapies.
Low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide. It is the second most common reason for seeking care from a family doctor. In Australia, low back pain is the number one cause of early retirement and income poverty.
The new guidelines -- the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guideline for low-back pain and sciatica, and a clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians -- encourage a shift in thinking about the primary care management of low-back pain.
In response to an escalating prescription opioid crisis, and an overwhelming amount of research showing most pain medicines have little to no effect compared to placebo for people with LBP, the guidelines have radically changed their stance on the medicines.
Instead of pain medicines, GPs might suggest non-medicinal approaches including yoga, mindfulness and various types of physiotherapy and psychological therapies.
The results of a University of Sydney review to investigate the current approach and changes to diagnosis and management of LBP were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
"Until now, the recommended approach to help LBP in general practice was to prescribe simple pain medicines such as paracetamol or anti-inflammatories," said lead author Dr Adrian Traeger, researcher from the Musculoskeletal Health Group at the University's School of Public Health.
"These new guidelines suggest avoiding pain medicines initially and discouraging other invasive treatments such as injections and surgery. The recent changes to these guidelines are important and represent a substantial change in thinking on how best to manage LBP -- the previous recommendations were in place for decades.
"If you have an uncomplicated case of recent-onset LBP, your doctor may now simply provide advice on how to remain active and non-drug methods for pain relief such as heat and massage, and arrange to see you in two weeks to make sure the pain has settled.
"If your pain started a long time ago, they might suggest treatments such as yoga, exercise or mindfulness as treatment. Other effective options could include spinal manipulation, acupuncture, or multi-disciplinary rehabilitation programs.
"These revisions to major international guidelines should see changes to practice worldwide.
However Dr Traeger is concerned that without support from Medicare the suggested reforms could place additional financial strain on those suffering from low back pain.
"There will be challenges to providing this type of care. It's currently much easier and cheaper to provide a prescription for an opioid pain medicine (which is not a long-term solution to chronic pain and carries a risk of substantial harm) than a course of treatment with a physiotherapist or psychologist.
"Health systems in most industrialised countries, including Australian Medicare, are simply not set up to fund the care that is considered the most appropriate for low back pain right now.
"Without policy changes, it will be difficult for GPs to follow current best practice. However, if Medicare were to make simple changes to improve affordability of alternatives to pain medicines, not only would it make a GPs job easier, it could result a major impact on the lives of many living with low back pain, including those who rely on opioids. This needs the attention of the Federal Government."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/11/171115091753.htm
Mental training changes brain structure and reduces social stress
October 4, 2017
Science Daily/Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
Meditation can have positive effects on our health and well-being. However it has been unclear which mental practice has which effect, and what the underlying processes are. Researchers have discovered that different trainings affect either our attention or our social competencies and modify different brain networks. One mental technique was able to reduce the stress hormone cortisol. These results may influence the adaptation of mental trainings in clinics and education.
Meditation is beneficial for our well-being. This ancient wisdom has been supported by scientific studies focusing on the practice of mindfulness. However, the words "mindfulness" and "meditation" denote a variety of mental training techniques that aim at the cultivation of various different competencies. In other words, despite growing interest in meditation research, it remains unclear which type of mental practice is particularly useful for improving either attention and mindfulness or social competencies, such as compassion and perspective-taking.
Other open questions are, for example, whether such practices can induce structural brain plasticity and alter brain networks underlying the processing of such competencies, and which training methods are most effective in reducing social stress. To answer these questions, researchers from the Department of Social Neuroscience at the Max Planck Institute of Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany conducted the large-scale ReSource Project aiming at teasing apart the unique effects of different methods of mental training on the brain, body, and on social behaviour.
The ReSource Project consisted of three 3-month training modules, each focusing on a different competency. The first module trained mindfulness-based attention and interoception. Participants were instructed in classical meditation techniques similar to those taught in the 8-week Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction Program (MBSR), which requires one to focus attention on the breath (Breathing Meditation), on sensations in different parts of the body (Body Scan), or on visual or auditory cues in the environment. Both exercises were practised in solitude.
Training in the second module focused on socio-affective competencies, such as compassion, gratitude, and dealing with difficult emotions. In addition to classical meditation exercises, participants learnt a new technique requiring them to practise each day for 10 minutes in pairs. These partner exercises, or so-called "contemplative dyads," were characterised by a focused exchange of every-day life affective experiences aiming to train gratitude, dealing with difficult emotions, and empathic listening.
In the third module, participants trained socio-cognitive abilities, such as metacognition and perspective-taking on aspects of themselves and on the minds of others. Again, besides classical meditation exercises, this module also offered dyadic practices focusing on improving perspective-taking abilities. In pairs, participants learnt to mentally take the perspective of an "inner part" or aspect of their personality. Examples of inner parts were the "worried mother," the "curious child," or the "inner judge."
By reflecting on a recent experience from this perspective, the speaker in dyadic pair-exercise trained in perspective-taking on the self, thus gaining a more comprehensive understanding of his or her inner world. By trying to infer which inner part is speaking, the listener practices taking the perspective of the other.
All exercises were trained on six days a week for a total of 30 minutes a day. Researchers assessed a variety of measures such as psychological behavioural tests, brain measures by means of magnetic resonance-imaging (MRI), and stress markers such as cortisol release before and after each of the three three-month training modules.
"Depending on which mental training technique was practised over a period of three months, specific brain structures and related behavioural markers changed significantly in the participants. For example, after the training of mindfulness-based attention for three months, we observed changes in the cortex in areas previously shown to be related to attention and executive functioning.
Simultaneously, attention increased in computer-based tasks measuring executive aspects of attention, while performance in measures of compassion or perspective-taking had not increased significantly. These social abilities were only impacted in our participants during the other two more intersubjective modules," states Sofie Valk, first author of the publication, which has just been released by the journal Science Advances.
"In the two social modules, focusing either on socio-affective or socio-cognitive competencies, we were able to show selective behavioural improvements with regard to compassion and perspective-taking. These changes in behaviour corresponded with the degree of structural brain plasticity in specific regions in the cortex which support these capacities," according to Valk.
"Even though brain plasticity in general has long been studied in neuroscience, until now little was known about the plasticity of the social brain. Our results provide impressive evidence for brain plasticity in adults through brief and concentrated daily mental practice, leading to an increase in social intelligence. As empathy, compassion, and perspective-taking are crucial competencies for successful social interactions, conflict resolution, and cooperation, these findings are highly relevant to our educational systems as well as for clinical application," explains Prof. Tania Singer, principal investigator of the ReSource Project.
Besides differentially affecting brain plasticity, the different types of mental training also differentially affected the stress response. "We discovered that in participants subjected to a psychosocial stress test, the secretion of the stress hormone cortisol was diminished by up to 51%. However, this reduced stress sensitivity was dependent on the types of previously trained mental practice," says Dr Veronika Engert, first author of another publication from the ReSource Project, which describes the connection between mental training and the acute psychosocial stress response, also recently published in Science Advances. "Only the two modules focusing on social competencies significantly reduced cortisol release after a social stressor. We speculate that the cortisol stress response was affected particularly by the dyadic exercises practised in the social modules. The daily disclosure of personal information to a stranger coupled with the non-judgmental, empathic listening experience in the dyads may have "immunised" participants against the fear of social shame and judgment by others -- typically a salient trigger of social stress. The concentrated training of mindfulness-based attention and interoceptive awareness, on the other hand, had no dampening effect on the release of cortisol after experiencing a social stressor."
Interestingly, despite these differences on the level of stress physiology, each of the 3-month training modules reduced the subjective perception of stress. This means that although objective, physiological changes in social stress reactivity were only seen when participants engaged with others and trained their inter-subjective abilities, and participants felt subjectively less stressed after all mental training modules.
"The current results highlight not only that crucial social competencies necessary for successful social interaction and cooperation can still be improved in healthy adults and that such mental training leads to structural brain changes and to social stress reduction, but also that different methods of mental training have differential effects on the brain, on health, and behaviour. It matters what you train," suggests Prof. Singer. "Once we have understood which mental training techniques have which effects, we will be able to employ these techniques in a targeted way to support mental and physical health."
For example, many currently popular mindfulness programmes may be a valid method to foster attention and strengthen cognitive efficiency. However, if we as a society want to become less vulnerable to social stress or train social competencies, such as empathy, compassion, and perspective-taking, mental training techniques focusing more on the "we" and social connectedness among people may be a better choice.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171004142653.htm
Workplace Yoga and Meditation Can Lower Feelings of Stress
August 5, 2009
Science Daily/Ohio State University
Twenty minutes per day of guided workplace meditation and yoga combined with six weekly group sessions can lower feelings of stress by more than 10 percent and improve sleep quality in sedentary office employees, a pilot study suggests.
The study offered participants a modified version of what is known as mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), a program established in 1979 to help hospital patients in Massachusetts assist in their own healing that is now in wide use around the world.
In this context, mindfulness refers in part to one’s heightened awareness of an external stressor as the first step toward relaxing in a way that can minimize the effects of that stress on the body.
While the traditional MBSR program practice takes up an hour per day for eight weeks supplemented by lengthy weekly sessions and a full-day retreat, the modified version developed at Ohio State University for this study was designed for office-based workers wearing professional attire.
Mindful attention awareness increased significantly and perceived stress decreased significantly among the intervention group when compared to the control group’s responses. Overall sleep quality increased in both groups, but three of seven components of sleep were more affected in the intervention group.
On average, mindfulness increased by about 9.7 percent and perceived stress decreased by about 11 percent among the group that experienced the intervention. These participants also reported that it took them less time to fall asleep, they had fewer sleep disturbances and they experienced less daytime dysfunction than did members of the non-intervention group.
The researchers also took saliva samples to test for the presence of cortisol, a stress hormone, but found no significant changes in average daily levels of the hormone over time for participants in both groups. Klatt said the design of this part of the pilot study could have affected the result, and the sample collection technique will be changed in subsequent studies.
Klatt said mindfulness-based stress reduction, developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, has been studied widely and determined to be useful in lowering symptoms ranging from depression and anxiety to chronic pain. But the time commitment required in the program makes it impractical for busy working professionals, and adding a stress-reduction class outside of work could add stress to these people, she said.
So Klatt set out to develop what she calls a “low dose” of the program that is suitable for the workplace and still offers stress-reduction benefits. She specifically scheduled weekly sessions during lunch to avoid interfering with work time or home time, and combined movement with verbal prompts and music that are cues for participants to relax.
“As I’ve been working on the program, I heard so many of the participants say they wish they had learned this earlier,” Klatt said.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090804114102.htm
Mindfulness-based therapy may reduce stress in overweight and obese individuals
July 7, 2017
Science Daily/Wiley
In a randomized clinical trial of women who were overweight or obese, mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) increased mindfulness and decreased stress compared with health education. In addition, fasting blood sugar levels decreased within the MBSR group, but not within the health education group.
In the study, 86 women were randomized to 8 weeks of MBSR or health education, and they were followed for 16 weeks. While MBSR significantly reduced stress and had beneficial effects on blood sugar levels, there were no significant changes in blood pressure, weight, or insulin resistance.
"Our study suggests that MBSR lowers perceived stress and blood sugar in women with overweight or obesity. This research has wider implications regarding the potential role of MBSR in the prevention and treatment of diabetes in patients with obesity," said Dr. Nazia Raja-Khan, lead author of the Obesity study.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170707070447.htm
Mindfulness techniques can help protect pregnant women against depression
November 19, 2014
Science Daily/University of Colorado at Boulder
Pregnant women with histories of major depression are about 40 percent less likely to relapse into depression if they practice mindfulness techniques -- such as meditation, breathing exercises and yoga -- along with cognitive therapy, according to a new study.
About 30 percent of women who have struggled with depression in the past relapse during pregnancy, according to past research. In the new study, published in the journal Archives of Women's Mental Health, the research team found that pregnant women with histories of depression who participated in Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy had a relapse rate of just 18 percent.
"It's important for pregnant women who are at high risk of depression to have options for treatment and prevention," said Sona Dimidjian, an associate professor in CU-Boulder's Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and lead author of the study. "For some women, antidepressant medication is truly a lifesaver, but others want a non-pharmacological intervention. This program focuses on teaching women skills and practices that are designed to help them stay well and care for themselves and their babies during this important time of life."
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy--which combines mindfulness practice with more traditional cognitive behavioral therapy--has been shown to be effective at preventing recurrent episodes of depression in the general population. But few studies of any kind have looked at the effect of mindfulness or cognitive behavioral therapies among pregnant women.
A high percentage of the women who began the courses--86 percent--completed the study, a sign that the women found the sessions valuable, Dimidjian said. The researchers also were struck by the number of pregnant women who expressed interest in participating in a mindfulness program, even though they didn't meet the criteria to participate in this study.
"I was surprised by the level of interest, even among women who didn't have a history of depression," Dimidjian said. "Pregnant women know that the experience of having a child is going to change their lives, and they want to be ready."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141119125430.htm
Meditate to Concentrate
June 26, 2007
Science Daily/University of Pennsylvania
Researchers say that practicing even small doses of daily meditation may improve focus and performance. Even for those new to the practice, meditation enhanced performance and the ability to focus attention. Performance-based measures of cognitive function demonstrated improvements in a matter of weeks.
Meditation, according to Penn neuroscientist Amishi Jha and Michael Baime, director of Penn's Stress Management Program, is an active and effortful process that literally changes the way the brain works. Their study is the first to examine how meditation may modify the three subcomponents of attention, including the ability to prioritize and manage tasks and goals, the ability to voluntarily focus on specific information and the ability to stay alert to the environment.
In the Penn study, subjects were split into two categories. Those new to meditation, or "mindfulness training," took part in an eight-week course that included up to 30 minutes of daily meditation. The second group was more experienced with meditation and attended an intensive full-time, one-month retreat.
Researchers found that even for those new to the practice, meditation enhanced performance and the ability to focus attention. Performance-based measures of cognitive function demonstrated improvements in a matter of weeks. The study, to be published in the journal Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, suggests a new, non-medical means for improving focus and cognitive ability among disparate populations and has implications for workplace performance and learning.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070625193240.htm
CBT Improves Quality of Life in Children With Asthma and Anxiety
November 26, 2012
Science Daily/RCN Publishing Company
Researchers have found that a programme of cognitive behaviour therapy delivered by nurses to children who had asthma and anxiety improved the children's quality of life scores and reduced the risk of escalation of treatment.
The therapy included techniques such as mindfulness, where children were encouraged to concentrate on the present moment, rather than worry about what might happen or what has happened before.
'The programme seems to be a cost-effective, rapid access service providing a psychological intervention for all children showing a clinical need,' the researchers said. 'The study also highlights the need for all nursing staff to be aware of the detrimental effects of anxiety on asthma control, so early symptoms can be identified and addressed quickly,' they added.
Sessions also included education about anxiety, for example, an explanation of dysfunctional breathing and the physiological effects it can produce, such as symptoms of hyperventilation. Children were subsequently taught rescue breathing exercises and a variety of general relaxation exercises
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121126110530.htm
How Mindfulness Can Help Reduce Your Stress Levels
February 26, 2015
By Anne Foy, Guest Contributor
Many people dismiss mindfulness as being the ‘fluffy’ part of meditation: as something adopted by those who lead certain relaxed and laidback lifestyles and enjoy too much yoga. But actually, mindfulness can be adopted as part of a scientifically valid and proven way of helping to reduce anxiety and alleviate stress levels. [1] So what exactly is mindfulness and how can it play a part in helping you to relax?
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the act of being aware of your thoughts, your feelings and the sensations within your body at all times, and also of being aware of your environment: of both the effect you are having on the world around you, and the effect your environment is having on you. [2] This high level of self-awareness has many wonderful effects on both your physical and mental health: being aware of your body can help you to regulate your breathing patterns, and control and understand your emotions in a better and more constructive way. Mindfulness also encourages you to regulate your attention: improving your focus and preventing you from being distracted by unimportant things when you are trying to focus and concentrate on something significant. Finally, mindfulness can also help you to change your self-perception: by having a fluid and changeable idea about who you are, you are left in a better position to make positive changes in your life without feeling that you are sacrificing your sense of self.
There are many benefits of adopting mindfulness in these ways. It can encourage you to make healthy lifestyle choices, such as avoiding drinking alcohol or eating the wrong foods: ideal if you’re looking to make positive lifestyle changes and lose weight or simply focus on becoming more healthy. Brain scans conducted on mindful individuals has also shown that mindfulness can improve your memory, improve your ability to learn, and increase your levels of concentration. Mindfulness can also have a positive effect on your relationship with others, and the way you interact with people (both strangers and those close to you). It does this by encouraging you to be compassionate, to show altruism, and to put yourself in the place of others so you better understand what they are going through. Finally, of course, mindfulness can be used to help alleviate stress and anxiety. [3]
Mindful Based Stress Reduction
The technical name for using mindfulness to alleviate your stress levels is Mindful Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). [4] Long term stress can have a massively detrimental effect on your overall health and wellbeing. However mindfulness can help you to take back control of what is happening in your life and let go of the feelings of pressure, helplessness and lack of control that are all too often signs of stress. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) incorporates several different techniques such as meditation, gentle yoga and mind-body exercises into your daily routine in order to help you cope with stress and alleviate anxiety. Stress is now considered to be a national epidemic. Over 73% of the American workforce has admitted to experiencing regular stress that causes them either psychological or physical symptoms, or a combination of both. Of those Americans surveyed, 48% felt that their stress levels had gone up over the last 5 years. [5] It is clear then that stress is a problem that needs dealing with, particularly within the workforce. The best thing about mindfulness is that it is something that you can practice anywhere, either at home or at your desk, and that it doesn’t have to take up a substantial amount of your day. When you wake up every morning take a minute or two to center yourself; listen to your body and breath deeply. Practice the same focus and deep breathing exercises when stress arises throughout the day. You’ll quickly find yourself more able to process and assimilate stressful situations, and your capacity to handle stress will gradually increase.
Additional Reading
[1] “Mindfulness meditation may ease anxiety, mental stress”, Harvard Health Publications, Harvard Medical School, http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/mindfulness-meditation-may-ease-anxiety-mental-stress-201401086967
[2] Mindfulness: more than simply meditation”, Kwik Med, http://www.kwikmed.org/mindfulness-simply-meditation/
[3] “Mindfulness reduces stress, promotes resilience, University of California, Los Angeles, http://newsroom.ucla.edu/stories/using-mindfulness-to-reduce-stress-96966
[4] “MBSR Stress relief”, Be Mindful, http://bemindful.co.uk/mbsr/about-mbsr/
[5] “How to reduce stress with mindfulness”, Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute, http://siyli.org/how-to-reduce-stress-with-mindfulness-2/
Long-term benefits of improving your toddler's memory skills
Early intervention: New research shows that preschoolers with poor short-term recall are more at risk of dropping out of high school
January 12, 2016
Science Daily/Concordia University
Preschoolers who score lower on a memory task are likely to score higher on a dropout risk scale at the age of 12, new research shows. In a new article, the authors offer suggestions for how parents can help kids improve their kid's memory.
"Identifying students who are at risk of eventually dropping out of high school is an important step in preventing this social problem," says Caroline Fitzpatrick, first author of a study recently published in Intelligence, and a researcher at Concordia's PERFORM Centre.
She and the study's other researchers, who are affiliated with the Université Sainte-Anne and Université de Montréal, have suggestions for how parents can help kids improve their memory.
The study examines responses from 1,824 children at age two and a half, and then at three and a half. That data is then compared to the school-related attitudes and results of these children when they hit grade seven.
Results were clear: those that do better on a memory-testing imitation sorting task during toddlerhood are more likely to perform better in school later on -- and therefore more likely to stay in school. The imitation sorting task is specifically effective in measuring working memory, which can be compared to a childs mental workspace.
"Our results suggest that early individual differences in working memory may contribute to developmental risk for high school dropout, as calculated from student engagement in school, grade point average and whether or not they previously repeated a year in school," says Fitzpatrick.
"When taken together, those factors can identify which 12 year olds are likely to fail to complete high school by the age of 21."
Help at home
"Preschoolers can engage in pretend play with other children to help them practise their working memory, since this activity involves remembering their own roles and the roles of others," says Linda Pagani of the Université de Montréal, co-senior author.
"Encouraging mindfulness in children by helping them focus on their moment-to-moment experiences also has a positive effect on working memory."
Pagani also notes that breathing exercises and guided meditation can be practised with preschool and elementary school children. In older kids, vigorous aerobic activity such as soccer, basketball and jumping rope have all been shown to have beneficial effects on concentration and recall.
The researchers note that another promising strategy for improving working memory in children is to limit screen time -- video games, smartphones, tablets and television -- which can undermine cognitive control and take time away from more enriching pursuits.
"Our findings underscore the importance of early intervention," says Fitzpatick.
"Parents can help their children develop strong working memory skills at home, and this can have a positive impact on school performance later in life."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160112125425.htm
Mindfulness and the Importance of Developing Compassion in your Career
November 22, 2016
By Anne Foy, Guest Contributor
Mindfulness has become something of a buzzword amongst professionals hoping to de-stress, enhance their wellbeing, and take control of their lives. And yet many people aren’t really clear about what mindfulness actually is. Put simply, mindfulness is the practice of paying close attention to the world around you and the way it impacts on your wellbeing: thinking about the clean fresh air as you take several deep breaths, enjoying the sensation of warm water on your skin as you wash your hands.
Effectively, mindfulness involves focusing on the present moment and processing on the thoughts and feelings that moment creates, and is now regarded as a very effective therapeutic tool. Mindfulness helps people to feel calmer, more connected with the world around them, and more aware of their role within it. As a result, one of the ‘side effects’ of practicing mindfulness is that mindful people are more compassionate: and this is becoming increasingly important within the modern working environment, and is something that many professionals are now striving to achieve, separately to a state of mindfulness.
The Professional Benefits of Compassion
There are many professional benefits of demonstrating compassion in the workplace. Creating a culture of compassion within a workplace has been shown to bring out the best in employees within a wide range of different industries, and increases both morale, productivity, and both of these things will ultimately impact the financial bottom line of the company.
Bringing people together in a supportive environment can also lead to career progression Acknowledging the strength and attributes of others doesn’t negate your own achievements: in fact, if anything, showing this kind of support and compassion will only increase your own standing within your company and bring the right attention to you at the same time.
Most important though is the impact it has on individual employee wellbeing: it is important that compassion is not viewed as a self-serving act and simply as a tool to assist career progression. Rather, you should consider the ways that learning to demonstrate true compassion can enhance every aspect of your life and enrich your journey through the world, as well as through your career.
Learning to Show Self-Compassion
As well as showing compassion to others, is it important that we learn to show self-compassion. According to researcher Kristen Neff, self-compassion is composed of three parts: “self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness.” We often find it easier to forgive others, to show them this common humanity, whilst not forgiving ourselves for the mistakes that we make in life.
Many people choose to consider self-compassion to be something of a self-indulgence, but in reality showing compassion to yourself when you fail, make a mistake, or fall short of expectations (both your own and others) will make you a happier and healthier individual. Showing self-compassion when you fail can also help to get rid of the fear of failure so common in many young professionals.
When you are no longer afraid to fail, you are free to take risks, to make leaps of faith, and to ultimately be brave enough to further your career more than you ever felt possible. Everyone fails: everyone suffers hardships, whether they be personal or professional. Forgiving yourself for those mistakes, showing self-compassion, and accepting that you are infallible, just like everyone else, is an important step in your personal development.
Self-compassion may sound like just another buzz word (it has even been called ‘the new mindfulness’) but in reality it is an important life skill to develop if you want to be happy and successful, both in your life and in your career.
Compassion and Mindfulness are a much more important part of career development than you might thing; getting your mind in a happy and healthy space is an important aspect of developing your career and becoming the person you want to be.
Citations
“Why Self-Compassion is the new Mindfulness”, Mindful.org, http://www.mindful.org/self-compassion-new-mindfulness/
“The importance of Mindfulness and compassion at work: LinkedIn Speaker Series with Matthieu Ricard”, LinkedIn, https://blog.linkedin.com/2015/06/25/the-importance-of-mindfulness-and-compassion-at-work-linkedin-speaker-series-with-matthieu-ricard
“Compassion: An essential ingredient of recovery”, Recovery.org, http://www.recovery.org/compassion-an-essential-ingredient-of-recovery/
"What is compassion and how can we cultivate it", The Oxford Mindfulness Centre, http://www.oxfordmindfulness.org/cultivating-compassion/
“Does Mindfulness Make you More Compassionate?”, Berkeley University, http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/does_mindfulness_make_you_compassionate
“10 ways to bring more compassion to the workplace”, The Chopra Center, http://www.chopra.com/articles/10-ways-to-bring-more-compassion-to-the-workplace