by Niki Esmaili
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness can mean a lot of things but one of the most standard definitions of mindfulness is that it is a way of being in relation with yourself and others so that you are aware of your thoughts and feelings and how you present yourself in the world.
The Misconception of Stress:
There are many different forms of stress that many people don’t really know about. Oftentimes, when people hear the word “stress,” they immediately think of the bad type of things associated with stress and how it can have a negative impact on their lives. However, there are certain forms of stress that are not entirely bad. For instance, there is a type of stress called eustress that pushes you to your edges and it allows us to grow and do things that make us go out of our comfort zone. If you did something like public speaking or bungee jumping, you would be stepping out of your comfort zone and doing something that would give you a thrill or a rush. Now, chronic stress, also known as “toxic” or “bad” stress can cause a lot of problems both physically and mentally and is directly related to illness. Mentally, it can relate to a lot of feelings such as anxiety or depression and it can just make you not feel good overall. It can also cause a lot of health problems such as heart disease, lung disease, inflammation throughout the whole body, autoimmune disorders, etc. One of the things about chronic stress is that if you continue being in the state of it, then you will get used to it and you don’t realize it and you will think that it's normal.
Recognizing Your Stress:
Paying attention and being aware of your stress and what impacts it has on your body is always important and it is a great starting point in figuring out why you are stressed and how to change your reaction to the thing that is causing you stress. For instance, if a student is stressed out about an assignment that he or she has to complete, then it would be best for them to ask themselves why they are stressed, how it impacts them both physically and mentally and also some ways on how they could reduce their stress and/or change their reaction. Being aware of stress immediately allows you to analyze your feelings and try and understand the cause of them on a much deeper level, and by doing so, you can try and figure out how to change your reaction so the effects reduce substantially both on your mind and body.
The Effects of Breath:
One thing that is not very well explained in physiology is that the body sends more signals to the brain than the brain does to the body and if our bodies are pumping full of adrenaline and endorphins and cortisol, it will affect how we think, how we be, and how our moods are and relate to others. There is a lot of power behind our breaths and how we can use that to sort of calm ourselves down and just collect ourselves, however, it has to be done the right way. Normally, people inhale deeply and then they let out their air really fast. Physiologically, when people inhale really deeply, it activates their nervous system and to calm down, they need to exhale as slowly as possible in order to trigger that relaxation response. So, if you are ever stressed with anything, take a deep breath and take time to lengthen your exhale and that will down regulate that stress physiology and help you calm down.
What is Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction?
In 1979, a brain researcher named Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn developed a healing approach known as Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) that combines meditation and yoga. He was a Buddhist himself, but he wanted to figure out how to bring the benefits of these practices in a non-religious way so that everybody could access them. He brought them to people who had medical problems and who were not really improving from western medicine. MBSR gives people a chance on how to practice mindfulness and figure out what is right for them and what path they want to take. It gives people the opportunity to enjoy their lives more and be at peace with themselves.
Nature and People:
Certain people may feel/be very connected to nature and others may not. It all depends on who we are and what we prefer. Certain people find nature to be really peaceful, relaxing, and therapeutic. Others could see nature as something that is really gross and freaky. A lot of people are so used to the artificial world that we live in now that they forget to appreciate all the life and biodiversity that surrounds us and they just try and find other methods of relaxation whether they be watching TV, going on phones, listening to music, etc. However, if you really take the time and try and understand nature and try and find some peace and relaxation with it, then that will be a great way to calm down in a way that has nothing to do with our artificial world.
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