Mindfulness isn't just for Buddhists
When I first discovered Mindfulness, I was in the midst of a very stormy part of my life. This was probably the hardest time to try to learn how to be Mindful, yet the most important. With waves of anxiety crashing down on me, eruptions of tears and the deafening thoughts coming at the speed of light how in the world does someone block all of that out and just "be"?
The answer is simple: Just do it, try it, fail at it and try again and again. Eventually it becomes so much easier to do. It gives peace and even pleasure at times. I haven't read any studies on it, but my guess would be that it even excites the dopamine levels in our brains.
When I realize that things are getting out of control and chaos has ensued, I stop. I literally stop in my tracks (which is not necessary) and "look" at where I am, and I breathe. I notice any smells that might be lingering, sounds in the background, or the temperature of the air, and try to focus on just that moment. No other thoughts are allowed. Practicing Mindfulness is almost like seeing yourself outside of your body. It doesn't matter where you are or who's around. It can be done anywhere.
To help you start this process I've come up with a list of "5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness" below as well as some links to other great sites that I highly suggest you check out. Mindfulness is a secret tool to counter anxiety. You sure don't have to call yourself a Buddhist, which is where the practice of Mindfulness comes from, but it doesn't take a neurorocketsurgeon to figure out they clearly have much lower levels of stress.
In fact, they have peace.
"5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness"
1.) First become aware of your breathing: How is it flowing? Notice the rise and fall of your chest or diaphragm. Is the air cool or warm? How fast, how deep are you breathing?
Just notice it and feel it. You may notice your breathing starts to get slower and deeper, or you may not. Just be aware of it. Try to even imagine inhaling a peaceful color (I use sky blue) and then exhaling your stress.
2.) Your thoughts are just thoughts: Recognize intruding or passing thoughts, acknowledge them and then let them pass by. They don't need your attention at this time.
3.) Act deliberately and slowly: During whatever task it is you have on your plate at the time. Move through it with intention and purpose. For example: "I'm washing the dishes. The water feels warm on my hands, I notice the way the soap smells. Clean is good."
4.) Three words: Come up with three words that describe where you are, what you're doing, focus in on your senses.
5.) Notice your posture: Are you tense, tight, slouched, standing, sitting. Make yourself more physically comfortable.
Here's a few links that I want to share on Mindfulness that are really helpful.
Mindfulness Practice
Mindfulness Exercises
Mindfulness Meditation Youtube Video
The answer is simple: Just do it, try it, fail at it and try again and again. Eventually it becomes so much easier to do. It gives peace and even pleasure at times. I haven't read any studies on it, but my guess would be that it even excites the dopamine levels in our brains.
When I realize that things are getting out of control and chaos has ensued, I stop. I literally stop in my tracks (which is not necessary) and "look" at where I am, and I breathe. I notice any smells that might be lingering, sounds in the background, or the temperature of the air, and try to focus on just that moment. No other thoughts are allowed. Practicing Mindfulness is almost like seeing yourself outside of your body. It doesn't matter where you are or who's around. It can be done anywhere.
To help you start this process I've come up with a list of "5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness" below as well as some links to other great sites that I highly suggest you check out. Mindfulness is a secret tool to counter anxiety. You sure don't have to call yourself a Buddhist, which is where the practice of Mindfulness comes from, but it doesn't take a neurorocketsurgeon to figure out they clearly have much lower levels of stress.
In fact, they have peace.
"5 Tips for Practicing Mindfulness"
1.) First become aware of your breathing: How is it flowing? Notice the rise and fall of your chest or diaphragm. Is the air cool or warm? How fast, how deep are you breathing?
Just notice it and feel it. You may notice your breathing starts to get slower and deeper, or you may not. Just be aware of it. Try to even imagine inhaling a peaceful color (I use sky blue) and then exhaling your stress.
2.) Your thoughts are just thoughts: Recognize intruding or passing thoughts, acknowledge them and then let them pass by. They don't need your attention at this time.
3.) Act deliberately and slowly: During whatever task it is you have on your plate at the time. Move through it with intention and purpose. For example: "I'm washing the dishes. The water feels warm on my hands, I notice the way the soap smells. Clean is good."
4.) Three words: Come up with three words that describe where you are, what you're doing, focus in on your senses.
5.) Notice your posture: Are you tense, tight, slouched, standing, sitting. Make yourself more physically comfortable.
Here's a few links that I want to share on Mindfulness that are really helpful.
Mindfulness Practice
Mindfulness Exercises
Mindfulness Meditation Youtube Video
What is Depression?
Depression is a mood disorder with symptoms of extreme and persistent sadness, loss of interest in activities and loss of interest in life in general. Having depression is not just a "bad day" or even a "bad week", in order to be diagnosed as "Depression", one needs to have had 5 symptoms of depression for more than 2 weeks.
Depression can be "situational". Meaning related to an event or situation in your life such as: death of a loved one, divorce, job loss, job change, switching schools, moving, a new baby (postpartum depression) or any other significant change is one's life. But sometimes it's not...
Sometimes depression is genetic, sometimes it's brought on by substance abuse or trying to fight an addiction. Depression can signify an imbalance in your brain chemistry. Neurotransmitters such as serotonin are responsible for the communication between brain cells. For those of us who have an imbalance in one or more of these neurotransmitters we can become very susceptible to depression.
Depression is also much more common in those with a family history of depression or other mental illness.
Hormones can also contribute to depression. Women going through menopause with a drop in estrogen are more susceptible to depression, hormonal imbalances related to thyroid issues and others.
Some of the symptoms of depression include:
- Sadness
- Crying
- Thoughts of death
- Feeling like you'd be better off dead
- Suicidal thoughts
- Suicidal plans
- Insomnia
- Sleeping too much
- Loss of appetite
- Eating too much
- Loss of interest in life: social, hobbies, work, relationships, sex
- Weight loss or weight gain
- Irritability or Anger over little things
- Trouble concentrating
- Memory problems
- Anxiety
- Physical pain: such as back pain, headaches etc..
- Procrastination
- Slowed thinking and/or movements
Depression is a very serious mental disorder.
Thanks to those who have been advocating for awareness I think many of us know now what depression is supposed to "look like". Although the list above includes many of the symptoms of depression, depression is not a one size fits all mental illness. Every single person's situation is completely unique and different. Therefor what works for someone else might not work for you or your loved one. Regardless it is to be taken very seriously. Untreated depression is life threatening. It shouldn't take the suicidal death of a celebrity for us to realize the severity of this disease.
What is Generalized Anxiety Disorder?
Generalized anxiety disorder is characterized by persistent, excessive, and unrealistic worry about everyday things.
People with the disorder, which is also referred to as GAD, experience exaggerated worry and tension, often expecting the worst, even when there is no apparent reason for concern. They anticipate disaster and are overly concerned about money, health, family, work, or other issues. GAD is diagnosed when a person worries excessively about a variety of everyday problems for at least 6 months.
Sometimes just the thought of getting through the day produces anxiety. They don’t know how to stop the worry cycle and feel it is beyond their control, even though they usually realize that their anxiety is more intense than the situation warrants.GAD affects 6.8 million adults, or 3.1% of the U.S. population, in any given year. Women are twice as likely to be affected.
The disorder comes on gradually and can begin across the life cycle, though the risk is highest between childhood and middle age. Although the exact cause of GAD is unknown, there is evidence that biological factors, family background, and life experiences, particularly stressful ones, play a role.
Having an anxiety disorder does not mean you are weak. It does not mean you are "crazy". Having an anxiety disorder is your mind and body's way of saying "Enough! I can't process this anymore! Too much as happened and I need you to slow down and nuture me, help me deal with this."
Anxiety has been my life's shadow for 15 years. I know the feelings of powerlessness. I know the unexpected dread that creeps up. Your heart starts to beat faster, palms get sweaty, thoughts race and this happens SO much to the point that it almost feel like, "This is who I am." or "I don't know how else to be!".
My family physician once told me once, "YOU are not anxiety. You might have anxiety, but anxiety is not WHO you are." I will never forget those words, and I will never stop sharing those words. After she told me that, I spent some time pondering this idea on my way home and realized how very right she was! But how in the heck was I supposed to fix my ingrained thinking? How was I supposed to differentiate myself from anxiety when it had been a part of my life for so long? I had no idea, so the next time when I started to get to that point when my anxiety levels rose, I started to tell myself out loud even at times, "I AM NOT ANXIETY. I might have anxiety, but Leah is not anxiety and anxiety is not Leah." This actually did bring about a bit of relief. It took my focus outside of myself for a minute, outside of my busy bus stop brain and made me think about what I was telling myself.
When I was first diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) I refused to believe that it was just as "simple" as that. Boom! I've got a diagnosis, now what? It took me a few years to realize that medication and therapy were not going to be the only answers. I had a lot of digging to do. I had a lot of learning ahead of me. Maybe that's where you are right now? Maybe you've got this down and you've stumbled here in seek of further support or support of another? Either way we're happy you've found us.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder can manifest into so many different physical, mental and emotional symptoms. Here are the ones that most people seem to experience. You don't need to feel ALL of these in order to have GAD.
Physical Symptoms of GAD:
- Heart Palpitations
- Racing Heart
- Chest Pain
- Dizziness
- Sweating
- Shortness of Breath
- Dry mouth
- Pins and needles
- Difficulty Swallowing
- Muscle Tension
- Fatigue
- Insomnia
- Physical feelings of restlessness
- Nausea
- Twitching
- Headaches
- Loss of appetite
- Diarrhea
Mental/Emotional Symptoms of GAD:
- Persistent/Constant uncontrollable worry
- Mood swings
- Irritability
- Always anticipating the worst
- Problems concentrating
- Feeling apprehensive
- Feeling like something bad is going to happen (dread)
- Feeling like your mind has gone blank
- Feelings of detachment or depersonalization
- Depression
- Feeling overwhelmed
- Feeling like you can't go on
Those are two long lists of really horrible things to feel and have to endure everyday. The good news is, you don't have to. The troublesome news is...it's going to take some work. But I believe you can do it! Remember, YOU are not anxiety.
None of this information is to replace that of a qualified Medical Health Practitioner. If you experience any of these symptoms, please seek proper care.
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