Core Practice

We are going to start a daily routine. Paying attention to our breathing lessens anxiety by overriding the amygdala – the ‘fight, flight, or freeze’ response. The more we concentrate on our breathing, the easier it is for us to gain information. We get into the habit of responding to stress and anxiety by focusing on breathing.

Nueroplasty The calmer, more focused we are as we build more passage ways to pass information. These passage ways increase through the building of something called dendrites.

The Neuron

The information travels this way: the dendrites, through the axon then along to another neuron dendrite. Lets use your arm as an example. Palm is the nucleus. Fingers are the dendrites where you receive information, arm is the axon and the elbow (will pretend there are more extensions) are nerve ending that transmit information to other neurons.

Draw on chart paper: What mindfulness looks like What mindfulness sounds like We look comfortable Our voices are silent. Our bodies are as still as they can be There are no loud noises in the room. Our eyes are closed or focused downwards. Our breathing is quiet, slow, and relaxed. Our faces look relaxed.

Remembering last week.. Do you remember listening to all the sounds around you? What did you hear? How did you feel?

Mindup Warm-Up Sit in a comfortable position. Close your eyes or look down. Pay close attention to your breathing. Feel air come in through your nose, then fill your chest and your belly. Calmly and slowly, let the breath leave your belly, then your chest, and finally your nose. Keep your shoulders dropped and relaxed. Think about the air coming into your body and the air going out. Bring your attention back to your breath, if your mind tries to think about other things. Notice your stomach rising and falling. Let your bell be soft and relaxed. Open your eyes slowly and take a slow, deep breath.

How did you feel when you concentrated on your breathing? What did you notice? How did you keep your mind focused on breathing?

Listen to the Chime I’m going to do this twice. So you will repeat the exercise. Close your eyes. Hear the instrument as long as you can. When the sound fades, focus on every breath you take. When you no longer hear the sound, slowly open your eyes. Let’s do this again.

What do you think is happening right now in your brain? I know it feels odd, but as we continue to practice it will be easier to do and more automatic. The sound will give you an automatic sense of calmness which will ready yourself for learning. We are going to practice this 3x per day.

Journal Writing Draw a before and after cartoon showing me how you might look before and after mindful breathing.

Social – Emotional Learning Lying on your back, domino on tummy, breathing deeply and watching it ride the wave of your tummy. Rising for 5 slow counts and falling for 5 slow counts.