1. Siobhan Wilson Educational Psychology Service
An Introduction to Mindfulness Mearns Castle High School 19th September 2017
Siobhan Wilson
Educational Psychology Service

2. National Context

5. Stress
‘Consider…that a zebra runs for it’s life when chased by a lion, but once the chase is over it quickly returns to grazing on the savannah. But this is seldom the case for humans because we constantly think, analyse, fantasise, predict and anticipate. These new brain capacities can cause us to spend half the day dwelling on how terrible it would have been if the lion had caught us(!). We might run all kinds of images and fantasises through our minds which terrify us. And then we worry about whether something similar might happen tomorrow – what if we don’t spot it next time…’
A lot of what causes us to feel this stress is perceived threats- work, relationships, our thoughts…. They trigger the same response as a real life threat.

6. The ‘Fight or Flight’ Response

7. What is Mindfulness?

8. ‘The awareness that emerges through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, and non judgementally, to the unfolding of experience, moment by moment’
Jon Kabat-Zinn

9. Being on Automatic Pilot
Mindfulness practice encourages you to focus on the small changes in thoughts, feelings and bodily sensations that are linked to mood fluctuations
To focus on them we have to become more aware of them
Increased awareness means we can respond to situations with choice rather than react automatically.
We do this by practicing becoming more aware of where out attention is, and deliberately changing the focus of attention over and over again.

11. …sitting on the river bank…

12. Mindfulness Practice

13. Core Practice
Breathing practice
Body scan
Mindful movement
Meditation

14. Mindfulness Practice
‘repeating the specific mental activity of re-directing attention towards present experience’ (Davis, 2012, p32).
Can be divided into two approaches:
The first encourages the individual to focus their attention on an object of experience, such as the feelings and sensations of breathing or a small piece of food they are eating (Kabat-Zinn, 1990; Fletcher & Hayes, 2005).
The second approach involves individuals paying attention to ‘whatever is in their experience’. During this approach, participants are encouraged to become aware of their thoughts without trying to stop or control them (Davis, 2012, p32).

15. Mindfulness is a Superpower. https://www. youtube. com/watch

16. Mindfulness Vs Relaxation
Alertness decreases
Can help by controlling physiological response
Mindfulness
Alertness increases
Meditation requires a certain level of relaxation whilst still maintaining alertness and mental clarity
Confronts stressful events- without experiencing the stressful nature

17. Principles of Mindfulness
Non-judging
Patience
Beginner’s mind
Acceptance
Letting go
Apply these principles

18. How does it work?

20. “that one has the internal resources to meet the demands”

21. Impact of Mindfulness Brain region Impact of Mindfulness
Anterior cingulate cortex (self regulation of emotion)
Enhanced activation
Prefrontal cortex (attention and emotion)
Posterior cingulate cortex (self awareness)
Enhanced activation R side
Insula (awareness and emotional processing)
Amygdala (emotional processing)
Decreased activation R side
Nature Reviews Neuroscience 16, 213–225 (2015) doi: /nrn3916

23. The views of S4 pupils, their parents and school staff following a mindfulness intervention

24. Improved relationships Increased practice Limitations Practicalities
Overall Themes
Impact
Ethos
Normalising
Calmer
Exams
Focused
Calm
Able to cope
Control
Relaxed
Improved relationships
Increased practice
Limitations
Practicalities
Classroom environment
Out of cass
Time
Practice
Staffing
Embarrassing
Initially
Future
Continue practice
Autonomy
Format
Follow up
Drop ins
Start earlier

25. “Others feel like this too… I’m not the only one.”
“...makes it kind of easier to get along with people who would annoy you sometimes.”
“During one of the exams I had a moment of panic and just did a bit of breathing and focused back on the question.”
“I liked that it was a stress free class in school that day. So if I was stressed, after mindfulness I would feel more relaxed and calm.”
“Others feel like this too… I’m not the only one.”
“In the morning especially when I am really tired, it helped me wake up and feel more awake…It really helped with the day ahead…especially if I had a hard class after mindfulness, it gets me focused.”
“I sometimes do a short body scan when I have a lot to do, just to relax and focus before getting through all the things.”
“I started thinking ‘that’s it, I’m not going to get in.’ I embarrassed myself. But then I started to think ‘no, it will be ok.’ I didn’t allow my thoughts to go too far and freak me out.”
“I stress about everything really abnormally. But my mum looked at me after my exams and said ‘you haven’t freaked out at all. You haven’t stressed as much as I thought you would.’ Even in 3rd year I was be stressed about exams. But I stayed calm”
“I see it as something that prevents you from building up that kind of stress.”
“When I was sitting in the exam and I would get something that was really freaking me out, I would like, take a minute and breathe and it calmed me down.”

26. “She didn’t feel stigmatised.”
“She’s planning to do 6 Highers and I told her that’s maybe too much. But she said ‘no, I know how to cope’… I don’t think she would take on something like this if she didn’t know how to deal with stress and organise herself.”
“She didn’t feel stigmatised.”
“She’s not falling out with my husband as much.”
“When he has an argument with me or his siblings, he sort of is considering exploding but then takes a step back and thinks about it.”
“I noticed she stopped biting her nails, then the other day I saw her painting her nails.”
“My son was going to an audition on his own. I got a text from him …stressed as he was running late. So I got there to drive him and he just said ‘I’m doing mindfulness’… It really helped to get him through.”
“It would be helpful to introduce mindfulness at the earliest possible stage in formal education and incorporate aspects of the approach into the mainstream curriculum.”

27. “A lot of the time they feel like things are outwith their control.”
“I think they felt more able to cope with things. It was the right time for them.”
“The invigilators also commented that they noticed a change… the atmosphere was calmer.”
“I noticed a general difference in the atmosphere before and during the exams. Last year pupils were having panic attacks and leaving the exam hall and staff spent time getting pupils back in.“
“They practiced before they studied or before something difficult was happening.”
“A lot of the time they feel like things are outwith their control.”
“I think we invested a lot of time and practiced ourselves.”
“I like that the approach helps young people to feel like they have more control over how they respond to things. I think a lot of the time they feel like things are out of their control.”

30. What you resist, persists… what you accept, transforms.

31. One moment…

32. Apps Stop, breathe and think Headspace Calm Smiling meditation
Simply being
Meditation helper
Room to breathe

33. “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf…”
Jon Kabat-Zinn