Yesterday, I wrote about the benefits of mindfulness. Today, I want you to practice mindfulness with music!
Mindfulness, which is most simply defined as being in the moment, is often associated with mindfulness meditation. Meditation can be a part of mindfulness, but there are other ways to practice mindfulness.
Today, I want you to select a favorite song and listen to it, beginning to end. Give it your full attention. It might work best if you sit with your eyes shut. Notice the rhythm and different instruments. Make note of the thoughts and emotions you experience while listening to the song.
That’s it–easy!
Don’t forget–if you’re working through the Daily Shoring 90 Day Series, this is your last week! If you want to repeat the series, leave a comment and let me know.
Do you have suggestions you can share on how to practice mindfulness?
The more studies I read about mindfulness, the more I’m convinced of the benefits:
- Improved stress management
- Lower levels of anxiety
- Mood improvement
- Lowered blood pressure
- Improved attention & concentration
- Sharpened focus
- Better sleep
So what is mindfulness and how do you practice it? In a nutshell, take some deep breaths and notice how you’re feeling. Try to screen out distractions for a few minutes. If you notice tight or clenched muscles, gently stretch or reposition to get rid of the tension.
For several free guided mindfulness meditations, check out the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center (you can listen online or download the podcasts to iTunes). For a smartphone app with instructional videos and over 300 mindfulness meditations (free for the first 10 days), you may like getsomeheadspace.com or search for the Headspace app. You may also be interested in Practice Mindfulness with Grounding Exercise.
To practice mindfulness while you’re working on a task (also referred to as “flow”), don’t allow yourself to multitask or think about other things–focus only on the task at hand. Sometimes it helps to use “verbal mediation” while you’re learning task-oriented mindfulness–talk yourself through the task at hand, as if you are narrating.
Just like exercise, mindfulness is free & effective! All it takes is setting aside the time.
Your Daily Shoring assignment for today is to devote at least a few minutes to sitting quietly and taking some deep breaths. If you’re up for more of a challenge, look into one of the resources listed above to learn more and/or practice a 10 minute mindfulness meditation.
And don’t forget–if you’re working through the Daily Shoring 90 Day Series, you’re in your last week! If you want to repeat the series, leave a comment and let me know!
If you want to read more about mindfulness, here’s a great overview from psychcentral.com. If you’ve practiced mindfulness before, please share the techniques that worked for you!
You have one week of Daily Shoring activities left to complete the 90 Day Series! Congrats! Today, I want you to focus on your physical well being and healthy habits–let’s combine the two!
Your Daily Shoring assignment for today is to pick one very simple physical activity that you can commit to on a daily basis for one week.
The purpose of this activity is to start building a new habit. The most important part is holding yourself accountable on a daily basis for one week.
Don’t make it complicated–the physical activity you choose must be so simple that you have no excuse to avoid it! To work on habit formation, you may want to add structure to it–commit to doing the exercise at a certain time of day and/or track with a journal or smartphone app like Streaks.
Here are some examples:
“This week, I will do 10 lunges everyday right before my shower.”
“This week, I will do 10 pushups a day right before bed.”
“This week, I will do 10 jumping jacks everyday right before lunch.”
If you’re on a regular physical activity program, this new commitment should be in addition to your usual commitment.
If you’re feeling motivated, you may want to commit to an exercise each week–change up the exercise, but keep it simple. That way, you’re physically active every day and you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment!
Bonus: By adding physical activity, you can improve your sleep as well as your mood!
If you’re working through the Daily Shoring 90 Day Series, you’re entering your final week! If you want to repeat the series, beginning with the first post, leave a comment and I’ll re-enroll you.
I periodically update and edit the series, so you might come across something new. And unless you tell me otherwise, I’ll leave you on the general list to receive periodic posts on emotional well being. Thanks for reading Daily Shoring!
When you’ve made a mistake or not performed to your expectation, you can use “additive thinking” to shift your thinking from self-recrimination to self-improvement!
Additive thinking involves thinking of strategies you can use to improve your performance. This is the opposite of “subtractive thinking,” in which you focus on what you wish you hadn’t done.
Here’s an example:
You’re disappointed in your performance on an important task–a school assignment, work project, or other commitment.
Additive Thinking: “Next time, I can block off more time for the project.” “Next time, I will ask a friend/colleague for help.”
Subtractive Thinking: “I shouldn’t have taken on such a difficult task.” “I shouldn’t have taken that approach to the project.”
Try to avoid phrases like, “I should have;” instead, focus on how you will improve next time. Remember the post Be Mindful of How You Speak to Yourself?
Your Daily Shoring assignment for today is to use additive thinking for a current or recent challenge.
Practice thinking of positive ways you can improve your performance and don’t ruminate on a mistake or suboptimal performance. As I wrote in Mental Rehearsal, focusing (or “ruminating” as psychologists refer to it!) on mistakes only reinforces the mistake. Focusing on alternative solutions reinforces, or primes, your brain for improved performance.
How can you use additive thinking today? Do you find yourself ruminating over a mistake or perceived failing? Instead of focusing on what went wrong, think about what you can do to improve the situation.
Bonus: Using additive thinking helps facilitate a more adaptive Attribution Style!
I earned my Ph.D. in a medical school setting, so I’m a staunch believer in both mind-body medicine and rigorous science. Both schools of thought support the numerous benefits of the “calming and connection” hormone “oxytocin,” including:
- A calming effect
- Decreased physiological reactivity to stress
- Decreased anxiety
- Increased openness and curiosity toward others, leading to improved relationships and bonding
- Lowered blood pressure
- Increased pain tolerance
- Physical restoration/healing
- Improved digestion
- Maintenance of the body’s fluid balance
- Improved learning (theorized to be related to decreased anxiety and stress reactivity)
Oxytocin is often described as “the opposite of adrenalin.”
According to Kerstan Uvnas Moberg, author of The Oxytocin Factor:
“The calm and connection system is associated with trust and curiosity instead of fear, and with friendliness instead of anger. The heart and circulatory system slow down as the digestion fires up. When peace and calm prevail, we let our defenses down and instead become sensitive, open, and interested in others around us.”How can you activate this hormone? The healthiest, most expeditious route is via human connection–social interaction and physical contact.
Some research shows that oxytocin is activated during massage, yoga, meditation, and prayer. The role of oxytocin has been most widely researched for its role in inducing labor in expectant mothers and its release during breast feeding, which is believed to facilitate bonding. Reproductive activity is also a strong stimulant for the release of oxytocin. There are methods of stimulating oxytocin that can be healthy in moderation but unhealthy when overused/abused, such as food and alcohol.
As with so many things we can do to help ourselves, there’s a circularity to activating oxytocin–the easiest way to activate this calming hormone (human connection) may be particularly challenging if you’re feeling anxious, depressed, and/or isolated.
Your Daily Shoring assignment for today is to identify one way you can increase your connection to others.
If all you feel up to is calling someone or speaking to someone when you’re out running errands, that’s not a problem–that’s progress! If you generally have contact with others but want to work on the emotional connection aspect, try really listening to someone today or engage in affectionate behavior with people you know–a light touch on the arm, a pat on the shoulder, a hug, etc.
If you have a little time (about 20 minutes), click here to view one of my favorite TED Talks: The Power of Vulnerability, by Brene Brown. In this talk, Dr. Brown explains the surprising and powerful results of her research related to human connection.
