Mindfulness Meditation Mindfulness meditation can actually change the structure of the brain, especially in the brain regions responsible for sense of self, stress, memory and empathy.
Mindfulness Big Idea- Mindfulness is paying attention to your life, here and now, with kindness and curiosity. The nonjudgmental awareness of experiences in the present moment A way of being in the world Living in a state of raised consciousness Knowing how our minds have been programmed to work- Negative bias Ultimate goal is to help us consciously make healthy long-term, loving, peaceful, compassionate choices and have all of our actions and reactions reflect those choices. To have principles such as love, peace, or ease guide our decisions and actions, rather than making decisions from a fear-based, scarcity mentality Includes: mindful eating, mindful relationships, and mindful speech
Basic Meditation Vs. Mindfulness Meditation Zoning Out The intention of basic meditation is to trick the mind into releasing itself Giving the thinking apparatus a rest, so that one can realize their higher selves or their oneness with whatever they consider to be divine Mindfulness Meditation Zoning In Train the mind to be able to concentrate and avoid wandering for longer and longer periods of time Focus our attention on designated and specific thoughts or sensations that arise in our field of awareness and observe them non-judgmentally Basic meditation is more spiritual or religious; whereas, mindfulness meditation is secular.
Mindfulness Meditation 4 Acting Components Regulation of attention Body awareness Self-awareness Regulation of emotion Each of these elements helps us in different aspects of our lives. For example, regulation of attention may help us be extra-aware of our bodily state. And by being aware of our bodies, we are able to recognize the emotions we are currently experiencing
Thinking Vs. Sensing Attention Redirect “He loved at a little distance from his body” James Joyce about Mr. Duffy in Dubliners “He lived at a little distance from his body.” We have a body, Were aware of it, but we don’t really inhabit it. We inhabit our heads. Just breathing being aware of our body as it breathes. If the mind wonders we bring it back. We are training our attention. Mindfulness recognizing when thinking becomes overthinking orrumination.
Brain Structure The newest part of brain evolutionarily is the prefrontal cortex, specifically anterior cingulate, which is responsible for higher thinking and processing faculties such as intuition, empathy, and social awareness. This section of the brain is strengthened through meditative practices The oldest part of brain is the hindbrain, which is more primitive and governs instinctual behavioral reflexes driven by fear and anger. This section of the brain is suppressed and controlled through meditative practices. It is the survival part of the brain. So meditative practices strengthen higher functioning parts of brain and subdue more primitive brain
More Fun Brain Facts! Amygdala The limbic system controls emotions and motivations from deep inside the brain. A key player of the limbic system is the amygdala. The amygdala is a pair of almond-shaped structures that reacts to fear, danger, and threat. The amygdala regulates our emotional state by acting as the brain’s “security guard,” protecting us from threats. When a student is in a positive emotional state, The amygdala sends incoming information on to the conscious, thinking, reasoning brain. When a student is in a negative emotional state (stressed or fearful, for example) the amygdala prevents the input from passing along, effectively blocking higher-level thinking and reasoning judgment. The incoming stimuli and signals are left for the amygdala itself to process as an automatic reflexive response of ”fight, flight, or freeze.”
More Fun Brain Facts! Hippocampus The hippocampus is another limbic structure. These twin crescent shaped bodies reside in the central brain area, one behind each ear, in the temporal lobes. The hippocampus assists in managing our response to fear and threats, and is the storage vault of memory and learning.
More Fun Brain Facts! Prefrontal Cortex Information from the limbic system is fed to the prefrontal cortex-the learning, reasoning, and thinking center of the brain. This highly evolved area of the brain controls our decision making, focuses our attention, and allows us to learn to read, write, compute, analyze, predict, comprehend, and interpret.
Football Analogy Prefrontal Cortex=Quarterback Amygdala=Blocker Hippocampus=Coach Imagine the prefrontal cortex as the quarterback. IT helps you pay attention ad make good choices. Imagine the amygdala as a blocker. It’s alert to danger and keeps you safe. It also expresses emotions, such as anger or fear. Sometimes the blocker can move too quickly or with too much roughness and cause a penalty. Imagine the hippocampus as the coach. It remembers the old games and has the playbook. It retrieves important information that has been stored for later use.
Pro-Social Behavior Impulse Regulation Emotional Awareness Compassion & Empathy Forgiveness Romantic Relationships Increased awareness of one’s internal and external experience promotes reflection, self regulation, and caring for others Impulse regulation --studies show mindfulness reduces aggression and disruptive behavior --helps us manage reactions to triggers like anger and danger 2) emotional awareness --managing emotions --Helps in our interpersonal relationships --Studies found that meditators have higher levels of activity in the part of the brain that is associated with increased consciousness and the ability to resonate to other people’s feelings and thoughts 3) Development of empathy --One study done at Stanford University suggests that a short 7-minute practice of loving-kindness meditation can increase social connectedness. --Another study found that eight-week mindfulness meditation trainings led participants to act more compassionately toward a person who is suffering 4) Forgiveness --mindfulness helps to build self-compassion Relationships- correlation between mindfulness practice in couples and an enhanced relationship. The couples reported improved closeness, acceptance of one another, autonomy, and general relationship satisfaction
Benefits Lowers stress, anxiety, and depression Parts of the brain related to attention, sensory processing, emotion and stress regulation, and empathy/compassion, are strengthened. Improves academic performance on standardized tests Increases immune function- In one study people who meditated produced more antibodies to the flu vaccine than people who didn’t meditate. Taking a few deep breaths engages our parasympathetic nervous system (our “rest and digest” mode), and deactivates our sympathetic nervous system (our “fight, flight, or freeze” mode). 7/11 Breathing For example, research from Dr. Richard Davidson’s lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has shown that meditators are better able to monitor emotions and thoughts and let go of those that might cause distress. At the University of North Carolina, psychologists studying mindfulness found mindfulness-trained participants showed significant improvement in their critical cognitive skills and performed significantly higher in cognitive tests than a control group, after only 4 days of training for only 20 minutes per day.
Helpful Apps! Smiling Mind Stop Breathe, & Think
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