Since I last wrote a lot has occurred and in many ways nothing! I am referring to the daily practice of mindfulness. A colleague when I asked him whether he had considered mindfulness, said "well its better than sitting round doing nothing". What a wag! And yes he was being funny, but maybe for many people that's what they think mindfulness is, just nothing.
Well when it comes to physical effort of course that's right, but the real effort seems to come with the developing practice of bare attention or awareness.
So why bother? Well I can attest that there are real benefits to this practice and they seem at first small and subtle but accumulate over time. As the daily practice in the formal sense becomes more regular , it becomes almost a need as those periods of stillness and quiet seem so precious.
The calmness becomes a very welcome product of those episodes of awareness, remembering of course that it is a product of awareness and not its aim. As John Kabatz-Inn says this isn't a "dime store relaxation method". The awareness is the desired aim, but it doesn't always bring calm. I find it can be invaluable in unearthing issues of concern that can be on the edge of my awareness. Issues that seem to niggle and result in agitation or restlessness but never coming to full awareness. However, being with them and allowing to emerge can result in their becoming present and if dealt with by noticing rather than reacting with aversion they can be integrated into awareness.
Of course some discomforts are only to present and a visit to the dentist was perhaps the most trying place to be present in the moment. Yet again a curiosity about the experience and all the sensations , sights and smells was a fascinating time.
More of the daily practice on my next post.
Showing posts with label mindfulness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mindfulness. Show all posts
Friday, 13 February 2015
Tuesday, 4 November 2014
Mindful matters.
So its been a while and I am glad to say its been a positive time. I have found the practice of mindfulness very interesting and also useful. It is strange to think that long journeys commuting to London from here in South Wales can be a place to practice, but they can. With a CD of meditation practices on my IPad, I can use the time to practice my practice!I guess that means so can you if you decide to follow this way of developing mindfulness/awareness.
What though are the tangible benefits? Like many people I find that the practice of "bare attention" can reveal not only much about myself but also much about what surrounds me. Perhaps an example will help.
I undertook my practice as usual in the time between Newport and Bristol on the train. Its a handy 20 minute space where I can close my eyes and practice the breathing exercises that help develop practice.
It was a rather uneventful journey, and a very grey and drizzly early morning as we approached Didcot on the journey to London. Yet I noticed that looking at the grey skies of Berkshire just how many textures and shades of grey there were in that early morning sky. It was a really positive moment of awareness. It didn't make my journey any quicker , but strangely pleasant.
So there is much to be seen and more to experience if we truly are aware of where and importantly who we are.
What though are the tangible benefits? Like many people I find that the practice of "bare attention" can reveal not only much about myself but also much about what surrounds me. Perhaps an example will help.
I undertook my practice as usual in the time between Newport and Bristol on the train. Its a handy 20 minute space where I can close my eyes and practice the breathing exercises that help develop practice.
It was a rather uneventful journey, and a very grey and drizzly early morning as we approached Didcot on the journey to London. Yet I noticed that looking at the grey skies of Berkshire just how many textures and shades of grey there were in that early morning sky. It was a really positive moment of awareness. It didn't make my journey any quicker , but strangely pleasant.
So there is much to be seen and more to experience if we truly are aware of where and importantly who we are.
Tuesday, 26 August 2014
It's been a while.
In my last post, I was saying that I had adopted the practice of Mindfulness. I used the Williams and Penman book "Finding peace in a frantic world", it was clear , easy to read and the audio material very helpful. However, I found I needed to really get to grips with this in a more structured way. I enrolled on an 8 week course here in sunny Bridgend for the bargain price of £120!
I think my motivation was to get more information but really I felt the need to be back in a group. I find I spend much of my time working alone and I missed the experience of learning in the company of others. So I enrolled and managed to clear seven out of eight evenings needed to attend.
No surprises in that it entailed practice of mindfulness, reflection on progress and homework. it was great to be back in a group and even nicer not to have to facilitate it but just enjoy it. My fellow students were a mixed bunch of people, many had health problems and real issues of stress and anxiety. I felt a bit of an interloper really as I was not in a similar place, but in the course of the programme I had a bereavement and a health scare that tested my practice.
The course ended and we were invited to attend a full day of practice at a local Friends House (Quakers). that was really enjoyable and required lots of attention. So what now?
I continue with a daily practice of meditation and find it remains beneficial. It seems preferable to be trying to be in a mindful place rather than a mindless one!
I have now offered to facilitate a Mindful Pause at the RCN HQ on world mental health day, and though I cannot teach the practice of Mindfulness I think a taster session will be fine.
I am now considering further training and possibly another formal course and perhaps a direction to consider is becoming a teacher of Mindfulness. there is a path here that could be taken and which I believe could be fruitful.
So sorry for the gap in postings, but I have been busy.
I think my motivation was to get more information but really I felt the need to be back in a group. I find I spend much of my time working alone and I missed the experience of learning in the company of others. So I enrolled and managed to clear seven out of eight evenings needed to attend.
No surprises in that it entailed practice of mindfulness, reflection on progress and homework. it was great to be back in a group and even nicer not to have to facilitate it but just enjoy it. My fellow students were a mixed bunch of people, many had health problems and real issues of stress and anxiety. I felt a bit of an interloper really as I was not in a similar place, but in the course of the programme I had a bereavement and a health scare that tested my practice.
The course ended and we were invited to attend a full day of practice at a local Friends House (Quakers). that was really enjoyable and required lots of attention. So what now?
I continue with a daily practice of meditation and find it remains beneficial. It seems preferable to be trying to be in a mindful place rather than a mindless one!
I have now offered to facilitate a Mindful Pause at the RCN HQ on world mental health day, and though I cannot teach the practice of Mindfulness I think a taster session will be fine.
I am now considering further training and possibly another formal course and perhaps a direction to consider is becoming a teacher of Mindfulness. there is a path here that could be taken and which I believe could be fruitful.
So sorry for the gap in postings, but I have been busy.
Monday, 12 May 2014
I need help!!
So mindfulness has proved a really useful adjunct to my daily life and indeed at times has really helped with the demands of work and life itself. Yet, its been a struggle at times to realise its benefits when I am not the most consistent of people. I have found breathing spaces absolutely invaluable and cues in my day like waiting for Tubes and green men (at traffic lights, not from space!) to show to allow me to cross the road have been really good to assist the "cracks" in the day to stop and pause.
I have decided now that its time to undergo a formal training course and I intend to start in a few weeks time a 8 week course here in sunny Bridgend.
I will be posting the process and am really keen to see how it will boost my practice and enable me to find the integration I need.
Due to a variety of factors I started my day today with a Breathing Space and it took me 30 minutes to find the peace to consistently note my breathing. I think that shows how I need to practice more and how everyday life and mental "chatter" can be so intrusive and toxic to what we need.
So a possible new direction and further being explored , so more to write soon.
I have decided now that its time to undergo a formal training course and I intend to start in a few weeks time a 8 week course here in sunny Bridgend.
I will be posting the process and am really keen to see how it will boost my practice and enable me to find the integration I need.
Due to a variety of factors I started my day today with a Breathing Space and it took me 30 minutes to find the peace to consistently note my breathing. I think that shows how I need to practice more and how everyday life and mental "chatter" can be so intrusive and toxic to what we need.
So a possible new direction and further being explored , so more to write soon.
Friday, 28 March 2014
Slip , slop and slide!
Unusual title I know but kind of captures what's been happening over the last six months or so. Its been a long gap and of course I think I have eluded to my difficulty with consistency before. however, all is not lost and I have found my initial training in mindfulness very helpful. Since last I wrote I have been for a job interview (2nd place alas), and yesterday I sat in the car in the M6 for three hours going nowhere but watching my poor car get a bit low on fuel and also rather hot.
it was interesting to note how my anxiety levels were slowly rising as I considered all manner of potential outcomes and yet settled after some very brisk "noticing" to just be there and wait.
So a clear indication for me that mindfulness has everyday utility and also effective.
I will post more shortly about some more ideas (honest)
it was interesting to note how my anxiety levels were slowly rising as I considered all manner of potential outcomes and yet settled after some very brisk "noticing" to just be there and wait.
So a clear indication for me that mindfulness has everyday utility and also effective.
I will post more shortly about some more ideas (honest)
Friday, 6 September 2013
Week four of Mindfulness training 6/9/13
The observant among you will have seen there is a huge gap in the posting sequence. I am afraid that my annual leave and a return to a busy work schedule has knocked some of this off course. Now that shouldn't have happened and I guess if you value something (or indeed someone) then that's a pretty lame excuse.
However, all is not lost in the world of mindfulness training. I can sense that some learning has occurred and the practice of meditation is really a way or indeed a path to greater awareness of the moment.
I am using a audio recording to practice and it commences with a gentle sounding bell to denote the commencement and the closure of the session.
In the book you are urged to find "bells" in your everyday life that can signal brief moments of clarity and mindfulness. One that it suggests is that of the red man at road crossings when you are walking. It gives you approximately two minutes to note your current situation and root yourself in your breathing
So if you are in London and see a man calmly standing at a red signal despite every one else dashing across then that will probably be me!
However, all is not lost in the world of mindfulness training. I can sense that some learning has occurred and the practice of meditation is really a way or indeed a path to greater awareness of the moment.
I am using a audio recording to practice and it commences with a gentle sounding bell to denote the commencement and the closure of the session.
In the book you are urged to find "bells" in your everyday life that can signal brief moments of clarity and mindfulness. One that it suggests is that of the red man at road crossings when you are walking. It gives you approximately two minutes to note your current situation and root yourself in your breathing
So if you are in London and see a man calmly standing at a red signal despite every one else dashing across then that will probably be me!
Monday, 22 July 2013
Mindfulness Week 3 : 22/7/13
There's much to write about in mental health services at the moment , but with your patience I am going to continue to consider the issue of Mindfulness and my on going practice. It has been really hard to build a sense of discipline into this area of my life and I guess discipline is not a virtue I possess but am keen to develop. It really is striking what can get in the way when you have to find all of 8 minutes for a meditation exercise. I recall clearly when I have had the task of writing or even the dreaded marking when a lecturer.
It was surprising then how much time I could waste on walking from room to room , or tasks that needed doing suddenly seemed urgent. I found myself engaged in any distracting behaviour rather than get marking that pile of dissertations.
In many ways this is similar , there are lots of reasons why I should do other things rather than pay attention to the needs of practice. Yet I persist, and have found real moments of calm and quiet. If we wait for the world we live in to be like that , then we can wait a very long time!
I have found one of the most revealing issues to be the constant chatter of internal dialogue that demands attention but which can be really fruitless, at worst this seems to take the form of ruminating and can be tiring. Yet a simple attentive episode of "noticing" can be so restorative, it seems to have the capacity to introduce actual choice as to the significance of what we experience.
I have found the exercises related to listening quite revealing (although dominated by the local jackdaws) , as they clearly point towards the listening we can undertake to internal thought "chatter" and whether choose to do more than notice its presence.
So yes still persisting and even more importantly feeling a real sense of benefit.
It was surprising then how much time I could waste on walking from room to room , or tasks that needed doing suddenly seemed urgent. I found myself engaged in any distracting behaviour rather than get marking that pile of dissertations.
In many ways this is similar , there are lots of reasons why I should do other things rather than pay attention to the needs of practice. Yet I persist, and have found real moments of calm and quiet. If we wait for the world we live in to be like that , then we can wait a very long time!
I have found one of the most revealing issues to be the constant chatter of internal dialogue that demands attention but which can be really fruitless, at worst this seems to take the form of ruminating and can be tiring. Yet a simple attentive episode of "noticing" can be so restorative, it seems to have the capacity to introduce actual choice as to the significance of what we experience.
I have found the exercises related to listening quite revealing (although dominated by the local jackdaws) , as they clearly point towards the listening we can undertake to internal thought "chatter" and whether choose to do more than notice its presence.
So yes still persisting and even more importantly feeling a real sense of benefit.
Thursday, 27 June 2013
Mindfulness :Week 2
So two weeks of mindfulness practice have gone by, and what a really interesting (to me) couple of weeks it has been. I am now firmly into week 3 and really enjoying it.
I think some of the major challenges have been carving out time and also reconsidering how I engage with everyday life.
It has been a challenge occasionally to undertake the meditation exercises and I have resorted to doing them on my early morning commute to London at times. But, the good news is that it can be done!
I have also reconsidered exactly what happens when I spend time just thinking. I always thought that the quiet time I enjoy in the early morning with a strong cup of Assam tea was a moment of reflection and preparation for my day.
However, using the practice of mindfulness I can see that it was usually far from restful. It was characterised by planning, anticipating and at times ruminating over what may happen, what very probably would happen and at times what would rarely happen.Far from restful and at times quite exhausting and also pointless. So what difference can mindfulness make?
Perhaps I can give you an example of yesterdays journey to a CQC meeting in London.
My train was cancelled, then the next train was delayed.In fairness this is a rare occurrence for me but still a frustrating start and I hate being late to a meeting.
I then got onto Paddington underground station and had to wait for a Circle line train.
However, as time went on I stepped to the open sun filled end of the platform stood in the sunshine, closed my eyes and mindfully focussed on my breathing. I may have spent only a minute or two, but I felt the sun and noted the sensations coming through my feet and just stayed in the moment.
It was not only a quick destressor but a very pleasurable moment. No real requirement other than to place into practice what I have been learning.
I hope that such occurrences of using what I am learning will continue to present themselves. I wonder if you would find such means of managing everyday issues helpful to?
I think some of the major challenges have been carving out time and also reconsidering how I engage with everyday life.
It has been a challenge occasionally to undertake the meditation exercises and I have resorted to doing them on my early morning commute to London at times. But, the good news is that it can be done!
I have also reconsidered exactly what happens when I spend time just thinking. I always thought that the quiet time I enjoy in the early morning with a strong cup of Assam tea was a moment of reflection and preparation for my day.
However, using the practice of mindfulness I can see that it was usually far from restful. It was characterised by planning, anticipating and at times ruminating over what may happen, what very probably would happen and at times what would rarely happen.Far from restful and at times quite exhausting and also pointless. So what difference can mindfulness make?
Perhaps I can give you an example of yesterdays journey to a CQC meeting in London.
My train was cancelled, then the next train was delayed.In fairness this is a rare occurrence for me but still a frustrating start and I hate being late to a meeting.
I then got onto Paddington underground station and had to wait for a Circle line train.
However, as time went on I stepped to the open sun filled end of the platform stood in the sunshine, closed my eyes and mindfully focussed on my breathing. I may have spent only a minute or two, but I felt the sun and noted the sensations coming through my feet and just stayed in the moment.
It was not only a quick destressor but a very pleasurable moment. No real requirement other than to place into practice what I have been learning.
I hope that such occurrences of using what I am learning will continue to present themselves. I wonder if you would find such means of managing everyday issues helpful to?
Tuesday, 11 June 2013
Mindfulness: Week 1
So my first week of mindfulness practice ends today and only seven more weeks of the course to go. I must admit like most issues requiring discipline I have found this a challenge. So far I have enjoyed the delights of chocolate, examined the intricacies of a raisin and undertaken routine tasks in a mindful manner.As the week has progressed the two daily meditations on awareness of body and breath have been fairly easy to fit in my day as only eight minutes long. Somehow though they seem to be ending more quickly and leaving me wanting more.
So what are the tangible benefits of this approach to life, and what does the future hold on the programme?
Firstly there does seem to be a growing awareness of the "moment" and engaging with "now" rather than the past or future. A simple example being when a meeting started looking difficult as the IT was not present I found myself rushing down a corridor and getting in a real sweat about it. I found myself aware of this rushing and then just slowly returning to a sensible pace and feeling a lot better for it. I guess I intervened and prevented a situation escalating.
There also seem to be benfits in the awareness of the thoughts that can intrude and require attention (and therefore energy) when they are really rather pointless rehearsals or speculation about future events.So what is next on the course? I enter week two anticipating rather more lenghty meditation sessions, in fact I think they are about three times longer.
I will report back on the end of the second week.
So what are the tangible benefits of this approach to life, and what does the future hold on the programme?
Firstly there does seem to be a growing awareness of the "moment" and engaging with "now" rather than the past or future. A simple example being when a meeting started looking difficult as the IT was not present I found myself rushing down a corridor and getting in a real sweat about it. I found myself aware of this rushing and then just slowly returning to a sensible pace and feeling a lot better for it. I guess I intervened and prevented a situation escalating.
There also seem to be benfits in the awareness of the thoughts that can intrude and require attention (and therefore energy) when they are really rather pointless rehearsals or speculation about future events.So what is next on the course? I enter week two anticipating rather more lenghty meditation sessions, in fact I think they are about three times longer.
I will report back on the end of the second week.
Tuesday, 4 June 2013
Mindfulness, getting ready
This course of learning over 8 weeks starts with a taster (literally) event to prepare you for the future work. It all starts with a meditation exercise requiring chocolate. Now its not something I really ever buy so last night at Paddington following a long day I quickly purchased a bar . I settled into my seat on the 20:15 to Swansea and read some more of the Mindfulness book.
Now I am no stranger to commuter etiquette but I did feel a bit strange sniffing and admiring the chocolate before I ate it!
Fortunately I was ( I hope ) discreet and undertook the exercise.
All I will say is that the process of noticing the various flavours as it dissolved on my tongue made this the most enjoyable chocolate bar I have ever eaten.
I think I learnt the process of being in the moment and savouring an experience rather than rushing onto the next event or idea or even task allowing myself to truly engage with the experience.
I look forward to going forward and savouring not just a raisin (all will become clear) but also anticipating an ability to notice rather than engage (especially with those pesky intrusive thoughts)
Now I am no stranger to commuter etiquette but I did feel a bit strange sniffing and admiring the chocolate before I ate it!
Fortunately I was ( I hope ) discreet and undertook the exercise.
All I will say is that the process of noticing the various flavours as it dissolved on my tongue made this the most enjoyable chocolate bar I have ever eaten.
I think I learnt the process of being in the moment and savouring an experience rather than rushing onto the next event or idea or even task allowing myself to truly engage with the experience.
I look forward to going forward and savouring not just a raisin (all will become clear) but also anticipating an ability to notice rather than engage (especially with those pesky intrusive thoughts)
Monday, 3 June 2013
Mindfulness : an Eight week programme
I have been discussing recently the issue with colleagues of levels of morbidity amongst the nursing proffession. The RCN provides a excellent welfare service and the level of demand is rising year on year. I couldn't help wondering if there was more that could be offered or even done in order to try and adopt a more healthy approach to the stresses of life than all the usual coping mechanisms we may all use at some time.
My attention was drawn by various events to the work of John Kabat-Zin who like Lord Layard before him has caught the eye of the top level of Goverment. The approach of Mindfulness whilst drawn from Buddist meditation practice has been integrated into approaches such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and also Stress reduction. Well Ok you may say but isn't it all a bit West Coast USA?
Not really , apparently endorsed by NICE , MBCT is recommended for people who have endured repeated episodes of depression.
So armed with such endorsements I have purchased the book Mindfulness by Mark Williams and Danny Penman and I am embarking on a 8 week course in Mindfulness practice.
First exercise involves eating Chocolate so should improve my journey home tonight
I'll keep you posted
Ian
My attention was drawn by various events to the work of John Kabat-Zin who like Lord Layard before him has caught the eye of the top level of Goverment. The approach of Mindfulness whilst drawn from Buddist meditation practice has been integrated into approaches such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and also Stress reduction. Well Ok you may say but isn't it all a bit West Coast USA?
Not really , apparently endorsed by NICE , MBCT is recommended for people who have endured repeated episodes of depression.
So armed with such endorsements I have purchased the book Mindfulness by Mark Williams and Danny Penman and I am embarking on a 8 week course in Mindfulness practice.
First exercise involves eating Chocolate so should improve my journey home tonight
I'll keep you posted
Ian
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