FINDING PEACE IN A

FRANTIC WORLD

AN INTRODUCTION TO

MINDFULNESS

GETTING TO KNOW YOU

• Your name

• What do you know about mindfulness on your table?

• What would be helpful for you to take away from this

workshop?

• Introductions – what do we know about mindfulness?

• What is mindfulness and how does it work?

• Stepping out of autopilot

• Mind the gap!

• Taming our thoughts

• Living life mindfully

• Action planning and next steps

OVERVIEW OF THE DAY….

WHAT IS MINDFULNESS AND

HOW DOES IT WORK?

AN INTRODUCTION TO

MINDFULNESS “Mindfulness is a translation of a word that simply means awareness. It’s a direct, intuitive knowing of what you are doing while you are doing it. It’s knowing what’s going on inside your mind and body, and what’s going on in the outside world as well.

Most of the time our attention is not where we intended it to be.

Our attention is hijacked by our thoughts and emotions, by our concerns, by our worries for the future, and our regrets and memories of the past.

Mindful awareness is about learning to pay attention, in the present moment, and without judgement.

It’s like training a muscle - training attention to be where you want it to be. This reduces our tendency to work on autopilot, allowing us to us choose how we respond & react.” (Professor Mark Williams)

AN INTRODUCTION TO

MINDFULNESS

“…simply being aware of what is happening right now without

wishing it were different; enjoying the pleasant without holding

on when it changes (which it will); being with the unpleasant

without fearing it will always be this way (which it won’t)”

• - James Baraz

MINDFULNESS IS…

Awareness

Non

judgement

Moment

by

moment

Open

curiosity

Emotions

Body

Thoughts

ORIGINS OF MINDFULNESS

• CABA 2015 members well-being survey:

– 34% feel stressed in their day to day life – 8% signed

off as a result

– 30% have experienced some form of mental health

issue at some point (up 7% on 2013)

• The world we live and work in:

– The impact of constant connectivity

– The impact of social media

– More for less culture

WHY SHOULD MINDFULNESS

MATTER TO ME?

BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS

AT WORK • Improved collaboration

• Improved creativity and innovation

• Reduced absence through sickness

• Better decision making

• Improved focus

• Stronger leadership

• Kinder working relationships

BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS

FOR YOU • Reduces baseline heart rate

• Reduces risk of cardio-vascular disease

• Reduces blood pressure

• Calms breathing rate

• Reduces chronic pain and psychological impacts of

illness

• Improved emotional intelligence

• Reduced anxiety & depression

• On average, higher levels of wellbeing and happiness

MINDFULNESS = BRAIN TRAINING

Practicing mindfulness physically changes the structure of

the brain for the better

Concentrating on the sensations

of breathing

Attention wanders

Noticing distractions

Noticing our reaction to distraction

Returning attention to the

sensation of breathing

Areas of the Neo-cortex (Executive functioning -

higher brain thinking)

• Increased gyrification

Hippocampus (associated with learning and

memory)

• Increased grey matter

Amygdala (the brains fear center)

• Decreased grey matter

The brains activity

• Increases when practicing mindfulness

MINDFULNESS AND YOUR

BRAIN

Baseline

Practising mindfulness

MINDFULNESS IS NOT….

• complicated

• a religion

• a technique to ‘zone out’ or make your mind go blank

• a ‘positive thinking’ tool

• a practice where you have to be cross legged or chant

• time consuming

MINDFULNESS IS….

• a way to see the world more clearly and engage fully in your experiences

• a tool to help you make wiser decisions

• a method of mental training

• a practice that requires commitment, intention, persistence and patience

• a way of calming the frantic brain

AUTOPILOT

• Do you sometimes find yourself zoning out?

• Have you ever completed a journey home with no

recollection of your travels?

• Do you find yourself in conversations having missed

chunks of what has been said?

AUTOPILOT

THE ADVANTAGES &

DISADVANTAGES OF AUTOPILOT

• In groups of 2 or 3 please discuss autopilot

• Where can it help you in life?

• Where does it/could it cause problems for you?

• What might you be missing?

MARK WILLIAMS ON

MINDFULNESS & STRESS

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soA6kz

xeKj0&t=4s

Attention

Intention

Mindful

Attitude

HOW WE PRACTICE

MINDFULNESS

THREE STEP BREATHING SPACE

Observing and accepting thoughts,

emotions and bodily sensations

Narrowing the focus of your attention

Present moment sensations of breathing

(interrupting the brains narrative)

Open, relaxed, present moment

awareness, ready to re-focus on the task

in hand

MINDFULNESS IS NOT ABOUT

CLEARING YOUR MIND…

Mind the gap!

MIND THE GAP…

THOUGHTS ARE NOT FACTS….

Reggie entered the bank

He drew a gun

He waved it at the cashier, smiling at her as he uttered the

words “bang bang”

He left the bank, holding his mother’s hand

MIND THE GAP…

THOUGHTS ARE NOT FACTS….

MIND THE GAP!

How you would

like things to be How you think

things are

How you think

things should

be

How things really are

in this moment in time

Pre

se

nt

mo

me

nt

fac

ts

Yo

ur

men

tal

co

nstr

uc

t

THREE STEP BREATHING SPACE

Observing and accepting thoughts,

emotions and bodily sensations

Narrowing the focus of your attention

Present moment sensations of breathing

(interrupting the brains narrative)

Open, relaxed, present moment

awareness, ready to re-focus on the task

in hand

AWARENESS OF PHYSICAL

SENSATIONS

BODY SCAN EXERCISE Relaxation may be the outcome but its not the aim…

Why?

• Improve focus and attention

• Helps to reconnect with the body

− How the body feels has a profound impact on the way you work

− Using the body as an early warning system

How?

• Starting at the feet and moving slowly up the body ending at the crown

of the head

• Attitude:

− Approach with openness and curiosity

− Observe and take note but do not try to fix or change

• Method:

− Focus attention, observe in present moment, move to next

− If mind wanders, notice where and refocus

TAKING RESPONSIBILITY

FOR OUR THOUGHTS AND

BELIEFS

ARE YOU A VICTIM OF OUT-

DATED MENTAL

PROGRAMMING?

OBSERVING YOUR INNER BULLY

Even the most successful people carry round an inner bully.

What does your inner bully whisper in your ear?

Noticing your inner bully…. Acknowledging it’s a thought

not a fact…. reducing its impact

LIVING LIFE MINDFULLY:

YOUR MINDFULNESS

TOOLKIT

LIVING LIFE IN THE PRESENT

MOMENT

SAVOURING

• Child-like curiosity

• Observation as if for the first time

• Slowing things down

MINDFUL EATING

GRATITUDE

• What is it in your day that you could be grateful for right

now?

• Discuss with someone on your table

• This will be explored in Miriam’s workshop

MINDFUL LISTENING

ACCEPTING THOUGHTS ARE

MENTAL CONSTRUCTS

SITTING PRACTICE

MINDFULNESS IS BRAIN

TRAINING

Formal practice

Three step breathing

Body scan

Mindful eating

Mindfulness of breath

Mindfulness of sounds

Developing mindfulness

Everyday mindfulness

Eating, Drinking

Showering

Exercising, Walking

MINDFULNESS SUMMARY

• Mindfulness is…

• Mindfulness works by…

• Mindfulness has a positive impact on the brain…

• Mindfulness is a form of brain training

• Mindfulness key themes:

– Stepping out of autopilot

– Thoughts are not facts

– Observing without responding

– Approach vs avoidance

– Judgement vs acceptance

– Being kinder to yourself

NEUROPLASTICITY – MAKING

HABITS STICK

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELpfY

CZa87g&t=60s

DIFFERENT WAYS TO LEARN

MINDFULNESS • CABA website

• Taught course

– 8 week introduction

• Mobile App

– Headspace

– Stop, think, breathe

• Book

– Mindfulness a guide to finding peace in a frantic world

• Self directed learning

QUESTIONS, REFLECTIONS AND

INSIGHTS

ACTION PLANNING AND NEXT

STEPS