Skillfully Moving Through Times of Challenge - Mindfulness Based Workshop
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The document is a workshop on mindfulness skills for moving through challenging times. It includes an agenda with introductions, explanations of mindfulness and its benefits, guided meditations on the breath, body and feelings, and a question and answer session. The workshop teaches participants mindfulness techniques to help manage stress, emotions and difficulties arising during times of crisis.
Skillfully Moving Through Times of Challenge - Mindfulness Based Workshop
- 1. Reproduction of this material without specific permission of Kaira Jewel Lingo, Praveen Dayananda and Resilience Within is strictly prohibited Skillfully Moving Through Times of Challenge A Mindfulness Based Workshop KAIRA JEWEL LINGO & PRAVEEN DAYANANDA 18 May 2020
- 2. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 2 Welcome, Introductions & Overview Please respond in the group chat window to the following: 1. One-word describing your internal weather at the moment
- 3. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 3 Introduction to Mindfulness (10 minutes) Current challenges and impact on body and mind What is mindfulness and how it helps us become more resilient Importance of stopping Breath as an anchor or path that reunites body and mind Benefits of the practice Taking Care of the Body Practice: Coming Back To The Present Moment Breath Meditation (5 minutes) Mindfulness of breath Group Share Practice: Guided Body Relaxation (8 minutes) Mindfulness of body Group Share Taking Care of the Mind-Heart Being Mindful of Feelings and Emotions (10 minutes) Practice: Guided Meditation Mindfulness of Feelings and Emotions (10 minutes) Q&A (20 minutes) Closing Loving-Kindness Healing Circle (5 minutes) Workshop Overview
- 4. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 44 Accepting What Is We are in the midst of some of the most challenging circumstances we have faced in recent times and it is already causing severe physical and mental distress Job & Income Loss at a Global Scale Fear of Infection and Disease Loss of Family and Friends Uncertain Access to Food and Supplies Loneliness & Social Isolation Political Gaslighting & Conflict Tension & Pain Anxiety Reduced Immunity Fear Anger CURRENT CHALLENGES IMPACT ON BODY AND MIND Breathing in, I am aware of the great challenges impacting my life, my family, my country and the world. Breathing out, I send the energy of compassion to myself and everyone impacted. ACKNOWLEDGING THE CHALLENGES
- 5. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 5 Skillfully Directing Our Attention Mindfulness practice offers a particular way of paying attention that allows us to come back to the present moment “Paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.” - Jon Kabat-Zinn “Mindfulness is a kind of energy that we generate when we bring our mind back to our body and get in touch with what is going on in the present moment, within us and around us. - Thich Nhat Hanh DEFINITION OF MINDFULNESS § Mindfulness of Breath § Mindfulness of Body § Mindfulness of Feelings Areas to Place Our Mindfulness § Mindfulness of Emotions § Mindfulness of Thoughts, Perceptions & Concepts § Sitting Meditation § Walking Meditation § Lying Down Deep Relaxation § Mindful Eating Mindfulness Practices Include the Following § Mindful Dishwashing § Journaling § Mindful Movements § Mindful Speech & Listening 5
- 6. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 6 Fruits of Practice Practice, concentration and insight helps us develop qualities such as equanimity, joy and compassion HOW MINDFULNESS CHANGES OUR LIVES Looking deeply in body, feelings, mind and objects of mind Insight of Interdependence, impermanence, etc Stopping and being aware of body, feelings, mind and objects of mind Mindfulness Practice Development of Concentration Development of Insight Acceptance Compassion Equanimity Resilience Joy Letting Go 6
- 7. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 7 BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS PRACTICE Reduced Stress in Body. We can better manage the stress in our body so that we are more resilient to illness Utilizing Practice In Times of Challenge Mindfulness practice offers many physical and emotional benefits to help us skillfully navigate through these uncertain times Better Self-Regulation We are able to better take care of our emotions enabling us to get through these times without saying or doing things that we would regret later, or that could hurt ourselves or others Recognizing What Is Well. We are able to recognize conditions for our happiness and wellbeing that are present around us even through tough times and thus able to maintain our sense of well-being Utilizing Time to Go Inside. We become more comfortable with solitude and can use the time and opportunity to give more attention to ourselves than we might have been able to before to help understand ourselves better More Mindful Consumption We become more aware of impact of our consumption of food and even media on our bodies and learn to regulate what we consume 7
- 8. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 8 GROWING STUDIES SUPPORT BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS Research Evidence of Benefits Mindfulness Practice Reduces Gene Marker for Inflammation Scientists have found that mindfulness practice can alter gene expression. Just eight hours of mindfulness practice was found to reduce the gene marker for inflammation. Mindfulness Reduces Stress U-Mass’s mindfulness-based-stress-reduction program participants have shown a 35% reduction in the number of medical symptoms and a 40% reduction in psychological symptoms Mindfulness Improves Behavior of Students in Schools Analysis of a leading mindfulness program in schools showed that their hour-long program led to statistically significant improvements in school behavior versus a control group. Increasing numbers of research studies back up the direct experience benefits of mindfulness 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1980 1982 1985 1988 1990 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2019 NumbberofStudies Year Number of Mindfulness Publications on PubMed.Gov 1. Kaliman, P., Álvarez-López, M. J., Cosín-Tomás, M., Rosenkranz, M. A., Lutz, A., & Davidson, R. J. (2014). Rapid changes in histone deacetylases and inflammatory gene expression in expert meditators. Psychoneuroendocrinology,40, 96-107. 2. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Central Pennsylvania. The Benefits of Meditation: Research Findings and Data. 3. Black, D. S., & Fernando, R. (2013). Mindfulness Training and Classroom Behavior Among Lower-Income and Ethnic Minority Elementary School Children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 1-5. 8
- 9. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 9 Practicing stopping regularly throughout the day gives us opportunities to be in touch with what is going on within us and around us. We have a chance to let go of our worries about the past and anxieties about the future. Sounds such as the sounds of bells, birds singing, cell phones ringing or even sirens going by, are wonderful reminders to help us to practice stopping. When we hear them, we can stop what we are doing and thinking about and, including if appropriate, stopping talking. We just stop and come back to the present moment by following our breathing. Resting in the Unknown Mindfulness practice begins with “stopping” Stop or pause whatever you are doing and focus on breathing Become aware of sounds Become aware of body Become aware of feelings Become aware of emotions Become aware of breath Become aware of perceptions & concepts Continue with previous activity Stopping means to be still, in order to recognize, to be in contact, to nourish, to heal, to calm, to soothe, and to focus the mind. - Thich Nhat Hanh, Chanting From the Heart HOW TO PRACTICE STOPPING 9
- 10. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 10 Nurturing Presence Our breathing is the anchor that helps us come back to our “true home”, the present moment, to unite body and mind Our Appointment With Life “Do not pursue the past. Do not lose yourself in the future. The past no longer is. The future has not yet come. Looking deeply at life as it is in the very here and now, the practitioner dwells in stability and freedom.” - Thich Nhat Hanh Breathing in, I know I am breathing in. Breathing out, I know I am breathing out. Breathing in, I am aware of my whole body. Breathing out, I smile to my whole body. Breathing in, I am aware of a feeling of joy in me. Breathing out, I smile to the feeling of joy in me. USING THE BREATH AS ANCHOR Past FuturePresent MIND BODY 10
- 11. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 11 Taking Care of the Body Practice: Coming Back To The Present Moment Breath Meditation (5 minutes) Mindfulness of Breath Please share in the chat your experiences with the breath meditation Practice: Guided Body Relaxation (8 Minutes) Mindfulness of Body Please share in the chat your experiences with the guided body relaxation meditation
- 12. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 12 Challenging times calls for increased care to be given to our feelings and emotions Taking Care of the Mind-Heart “Whenever the practitioner has a pleasant feeling, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a pleasant feeling.’ Whenever he has a painful feeling, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a painful feeling.’ Whenever he experiences a feeling that is neither pleasant nor painful, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a neutral feeling.’ When he experiences a pleasant feeling based in the body, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a pleasant feeling based in the body.’ When he experiences a pleasant feeling based in the mind, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a pleasant feeling based in the mind.’ When he experiences a painful feeling based in the body, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a painful feeling based in the body.’ When he experiences a painful feeling based in the mind, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a painful feeling based in the mind.’ When he experiences a neutral feeling based in the body, he is aware,’ I am experiencing a neutral feeling based in the body.’ When he experiences a neutral feeling based in the mind, he is aware, ‘I am experiencing a neutral feeling based in the mind.’” - Thich Nhat Hanh - Transformation and Healing Stimulus Reaction Stimulus Mindfulness Response Suppressing, being controlled by or running away from our emotions Being with emotions, giving them attention and accepting them FEELINGS & EMOTIONS ARE TWO ADDITIONAL DIMENSION FOR US TO PLACE OUR ATTENTION With Mindfulness Without Mindfulness With Mindfulness Without Mindfulness MINDFULNESS ALLOWS FOR US TO RESPOND RATHER THAN REACT USING A SKILLFUL “MIDDLE WAY” APPROACH 12
- 13. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 13 Taking Care of the Mind-Heart Mindfulness practice helps us prevent difficult emotions from arising and helps weather the emotional storms if and when they do arise § Practice mindfulness of body, feelings, emotions and concepts § Nurture joy, happiness, equanimity § Look deeply into emotions § Dwell in the ease, compassion and understanding generated from your insights • Recognize emotion • Accept emotion Embrace emotion Look deeply into emotion Transformation of emotion PREVENTING DIFFICULT EMOTIONS FROM ARISING TAKING CARE OF DIFFICULT EMOTIONS IF THEY DO ARISE Mindfulness practice is preventative and healing 13
- 14. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 14 Taking Care of the Mind-Heart Through diligent practice, we are able to transform the strong difficult emotions that come up in us and strengthen and nurture the more pleasant ones Aware of anger, I breathe in. Smiling to anger, I breathe out. Aware that this anger is part of me, I breathe in. Aware that this anger is me but that I am more than this anger, I breathe out. Aware that I am wanting this anger to go away, I breathe in. Accepting myself even though I am angry, I breathe out. Noticing myself calming down, I breathe in. Noticing myself calming down, I breathe out. Aware of acceptance and respect in me, I breathe in. Smiling to acceptance and respect in me, I breathe out. THROUGH PRACTICE WE TRANSFORM OUR CONSCIOUSNESS MIND CONSCIOUSNESS STORE CONSCIOUSNESS Joy Peace Compassion Anger Fear Love - Manifestation in our mind as an emotion 14
- 15. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 15 Taking Care of the Mind-Heart Practice: Mindfulness of Feelings and Emotions Please share in the chat your experience with the mindfulness of feelings and emotions meditation
- 16. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 16 Q&A Please write your questions in the group chat
- 17. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 17 Closing Loving-Kindness Healing Circle Write in name of person that you want to send the energy of love and compassion to along with a brief sentence about their situation
- 18. CONFIDENTIAL AND PROPRIETARY 18 Thank you for joining us today! For more information please visit: www.rwithin.com www.kairajewel.com | www.praveendayananda.com