Be inspired by the present! Use mindfulness to breed happiness

Welcome back!   

It is week 4 of quarantine.  I know this is a fitness/exercise focused blog, but I thought it would be pertinent to continue to share some insights on positive psychology that can help us make the most of our time at home.   Exercise is definitely a big part of it, trust me!  Before we get to it, I wanted to make sure you are aware of all mental and emotional health resources available to you as an employee.  EVERYONE can benefit from the cathartic effect of verbalizing anxieties, insecurities, fears, and struggles to a listening and knowledgeable ear.   

Resources available to you include

• Encompass (Call 800-788-6830 or visit www.encompass.us.com.  Company code: amwalt) 
• Telehealth opportunitiess - BCBS 24-hour nurse line and onine visits
• Virtual health care visits
• For more details on these, refer to our Health From Home page, under the resources tab,  or on the intranet.  Please do not hesitate to use them if they can be of any help to you. 

Now, let's tap into the power of MINDFULNESS in breeding HAPPINESS in our lives! 

Are you robbing yourself of your front- and-center?

No one can look at the picture above and not be a little unsettled by it.  Imagine not being able to drive, read,  recognize a loved one's face, or perform routine daily tasks. It is similar to the field of vision experienced by those with macular degeneration - the inability to focus on the middle, and most important field of vision.  Quite debilitating. 

​I use this image as a metaphor - crude and imperfect as it is - to suggest what we are effectively doing when focusing and dwelling on everything except what is front and center.  The gray blotch represents the PRESENT and most important areas of our immediate life.  Notice the outer field of vision is crystal clear,  yet not much help to the immediate situation!   

Our focus this week is on INSPIRATION, and I am challenging you to be inspired by the present.  During this time of quarantine and uncertainty we're bombarded with news and information at a fast and furious pace,  which unfortunately,  tends to fuel stress and anxiety.  I encourage you to take this opportunity to re-center your focus on the present.  It is easy to let the mind wander into future uncertainties, and dwell on past circumstances.  In fact, the anxious and stressed out mind can easily be described as a time-travelling mind.  It's a mind that is trying it's best to define and make sense of everything outside of our sphere of importance and influence. It's a mind consumed trying to make life's peripherals crystal clear, with a blurred out middle.  It leaves less time to be happy and content with all things, front and center, and helps define and how to react to the here-and-now.

Removing ALL anxieties and stresses may not be possible,  but what IS possible is INTENTIONAL focus on other things.   In wellness, we refer to this intentional effort as MINDFULNESS!   

Last week, I posted two areas of positive psychology - the Zeigarnik Effect and the power of "getting started", and what Flow Theory - being consumed by a task purely for it's own merit -  teaches us about a content mind.   In addition to those concepts, try adopting some of these areas of mindfulness in your life today

1. Mindful positivity : commit to winning the day, and creating at least one good memory to dwell on.   If your mind is going to travel to the past, it might as well have plenty of good memories! 
   
   
2. Mindful avoidance:  identify the things that tend to draw your mind away from the present.  Limit your exposure to those things.  For many it is news, social media, the stock market, phones/email, visual triggers, etc.  Take measures to limit or remove those stimuli, however possible, that set you down that path
   
   
3. Mindful gratitude:  at the start of the day, write down one or two things you are grateful for.   This can train the mind to speak and act with a state of thanksgiving.  It's amazing what that can do for our virtues and behavior
   
   
4. Mindful breathing:  Every so often, stop to close your eyes for a couple minutes and breathe using the 5-5-5 cadence detailed below.   Breathing techniques like this can be carried over into meditation/prayer/self reflection, and is an integral way of signaling a calming effect on the rest of the body.   
   1. 5 second inhale through the nose, (pushing out the stomach instead of chest). Fill the lungs completely
   2. 5 second hold max inhale
   3. 5 second exhale, slowly through pursed lips. Empty lungs completely.
   4. Repeat 10 times
      
      
5. Mindful exercise:  The benefits of exercise in this context is impossible to ignore.  It must be included as part of any effort to improve our mental and emotional well-being.   Choose an activity that you enjoy,  but is also challenging.   Start with something new,  or take your current ability to the next level.  Either way, seek out resources to educate yourself (or consult with our wellness team to help) on how you can improve!  Focus intensely on the muscles and the movement involved, but also on all of the benefits it is having on your body.   Aim to get at least 150 minutes of exercise per week.
   
   
6. Mindful eating:  This a huge topic.  I sourced some excellent mindful eating advice from our resident RD Wendy Brookhouse to help curb the tendency to eat purely based on stress, boredom, or closer proximity to the kitchen these days!
   
   Mindful eating involves recognizing your hunger cues, choosing foods that nurture and meet your needs, following a meal pattern to adequately fuel your body, and creating an environment that allows you to taste your food while honoring your fullness cues.
   
   Before grabbing a snack or eat a meal, consider your hunger and fullness level.  If you are ravenous(1), neutral (5), or unbearably full(10), it should influence the amount of food you choose, and how much you consume. If you are slightly hungry (4 of 10) and know it’s been more than four hours since you last ate, a small portion of a few foods could meet your needs.  If you ate lightly during the day, have been physically active, and/or recognize you have nutrition needs unfulfilled, prepare a meal including servings of a variety of foods to adequately fuel your needs. The key is to eat the amount your body needs to satisfy your hunger instead of avoiding food, or undereating, then indulging and overeating later.
   When it’s time to eat, recognize your nutrient needs by considering the items you should consumed to meet your health needs. Once you have you chosen your foods, create an environment that encourages a focus on your intake, one free of distractions such as screens, clutter, and work items.  Always place food on a plate or bowl, don’t eat out of a container, and eat sitting down -preferably at a table. Eat slowly! Put your fork down between each fully chewed bite, and taste the flavors.  Stop when half the food still remains on your plate or bowl and rate your fullness level.  If you’re satisfied (6-7), save the remainder for another time.  If you’re still hungry(4-5), reassess your needs again.  Challenge yourself to leave items on your plate once you’re hunger is satisfied.
   Practice mindful eating by slowing down, listening to your body, eating on a regular basis, and considering the quality of your daily meals and snacks.
   
   
7. Mindful skill development:  pick something that you do not know how to do.  It doesn't even have to be a useful skill -   maybe it's juggling,  bouncing a golf ball on the wedge,  shooting free throws,  throwing darts, etc.  Or, more useful skills like  Learn the guitar riffs in your favorite songs,  take youtube piano lessons, or   Whatever it is, search out good how-to material, apply meaningful practice, and chart your progress as you learn.  This rewards and fills the mind with confidence

Mindfulness is not a stand-alone cure for many situations, but we should realize that the mind can be trained to focus on positive things, just like it does on negative!    The peripheries in life should be used to sharpen the center of your picture, not blotch it out.  

Recommend viewing
As a follow-up, I invite you to watch this Ted Talk by renowned positive psychologist Shawn Anchor.  He puts happiness in an EXCELLENT framework, in terms of our perception of work and success.  It's a funny and worthwhile 12 minutes!

​Until next time!