Mindfulness Practices

1. Mindfulness Practices Richard E. Berger, MD University of Washington

2. A Definition of ‘Mindfulness’ • A way of paying moment-to-moment attention on purpose to present experience with a stance of curiosity and non-judgment, that cultivates insight and wholesome mental states.

3. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn • “Mindfulness is about being fully awake in our lives. It’s about perceiving the exquisite vividness of each moment. We feel more alive. We also gain immediate access to our own powerful inner resources for insight, transformation, and healing.”

4. Mental States

5. NOW! Past Present Reality Future

6. Mindfulness: Paying attention to the present moment on purpose openly without judgment. Present Past Future

7. Distance from Reality You don’t have to believe everything you think! Stories Thoughts Sensation

8. Denial Mindfulness is paying attention on purpose to whatever is happening with an open and curious attitude.

9. Mindfulness Attention Sustained focus Flexible focus Intention self-regulation self-exploration self-liberation Attitude accepting open kind curious non-believing

10. SIT

11. Do You Know Where Your Mind Is Right Now? • UC Santa Barbara mind researcher Jonathan Schooler studied awareness of mind wandering in two projects • STUDY #1: subjects read War & Peace for 45”, self reporting their awareness of mind wandering • Subjects reported an average of 5.4 episodes of noticing mind wandering

12. Schooler Study #2 • STUDY #2 included the same reading material for 45” but introduced random questioning from researchers about whether the subjects were on- or off-topic • RESULTS: subjects were off-topic on average 43 times in 45” • Significance: most subjects were unaware of how often their minds wandered

13. A Wandering Mind Is An Unhappy Mind • Harvard researchers Killingsworth and Gilbert used a novel iPhone app to randomly contact over 2000 subjects during the day to ask three questions: • 1: How are you feeling right now? • 2: What are you doing right now? • 3: Are you thinking about something other than what you are currently doing?

14. Results: • 46% of all samples indicated mind wandering • People were less happy when their mind wandered than when they were focused on a task • Even when their minds wandered to pleasant topics they were no happier than when focused on a task • Possible Conclusion: if what we think about effects our happiness, shouldn’t we be more aware of our patterns of thought?

15. MBSR • 8 weeks of class • One all day silent class • Sitting meditation • Walking meditation • Body awareness practice • Mindful movement • Inquiry and examination of experience

16. Start Easy and Practice ms Meditation Real life

17. What are relationships?

18. I am controlled by experience =

19. I Observe My Experience Observe

20. What are relationships? Awareness

21. What gives you stress? Hint: It may not be outside of you.

22. You don’t have to believe everything you think! You can learn to see your thoughts and indeed your sense of self as just another object of your awareness.

23. Physiological consequences of stress driven by catecholamines and cortisol é heart rate é blood pressure é blood flow to muscles ê blood flow to skin é metabolic rate ê digestion é blood clotting and thickness é blood sugar é respiratory rate é fluid retention é alertness é breakdown of fats • triglycerides and LDL cholesterol (c) Lipsenthal 2011

24. weight blood sugar bp Improved lipid profile cortisone inflammation Improved well-being, alertness pain with stress  brain size, grey matter  quality of life  concentration  learning  sleep quality  body awareness depression Changes DNA activation Burnout Effects Mindful Practices NIH conference 2009 Mind/Body Med.

25. MEDITATION IS THE FORMAL PRACTICE OF MINDFULNESS

26. Effect MBSR On Grey Matter Lazar et al. Neuroreport. 2005 November 28; 16(17): 1893–1897.

27. Brain Changes with Short Term Mindfulness Practice • Increased Prefrontal Cortex size • Increased white matter efficiency in Anterior Cingular Gyrus • Right becomes Left Amygdala predominance • Increased size insula • Increased hippocampus size and activity • Executive Function • Self-regulation • Positive emotional outlook • Perception, self-awareness, cognition • Memory Posner and Tang 2012

28. Emotional Response to Negative Self-Beliefs Golden et al, Emotion 2009

29. Mindfulness Training and Memory Jha et al, Emotion 2010

30. Mindfulness, SAT and WMC Mrazek et al 2013

31. Mindfulness Training and Academics • Improves WMC (Working Memory Capacity during stress • Enhances attention • Improves visuospatial processing efficiency • Increases backwards digit memory span • Improves test taking (SAT) Mrazek et al 2013

32. Loving Kindness Meditation and Emotional State Fredrickson et al, J Person and Soc Psych, 95(5), 1045, 2008

33. Loving Kindness Meditation Compared with a closely matched control task, even just a few minutes of loving-kindness meditation increased feelings of social connection and positivity toward novel individuals on both explicit and implicit levels. These results suggest that this easily implemented technique may help to increase positive social emotions and decrease social isolation. Hutcherson et al, Emotion. 8(5), 2008 Fredrickson et al, J Person and Soc Psych, 95(5), 1045, 2008

34. Need faith to start Need 6-8 weeks to see results Hardest in the beginning Gets more enjoyable with time Takes 2 weeks to establish habit Lifelong benefits Need faith to start Need 6-8 weeks to see results Hardest in the beginning Gets more enjoyable with time Takes 2 weeks to establish habit Lifelong benefits Mindfulness v Phys. Exercise

35. I have had an interesting life. I wish I had been present for more of it.