MINDFULNESS AS A PATHWAY TO WELLBEING FOR GIFTED

MINDFULNESS AS A PATHWAY TO WELL-BEING FOR GIFTED STUDENTS AND THEIR TEACHERS TO COPE WITH STRESS AND ANXIETY Dr. Dorothy A. Sisk University of Denver 2019 Denver, Colorado

Major Workshop Objective TO DISCUSS AND EXPERIENCE MINDFULNESS AS A CONCEPT AND ACTIVITIES THAT WILL HELP GIFTED STUDENTS AND THEIR TEACHERS TO BLOOM AND FLORISH!!

ART AND PRACTICE OF MINDFULNESS TO SEE A WORLD IN A GRAIN OF SAND A HEAVEN IN A WILD FLOWER, HOLD INFINITY IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND ETERNITY IN AN HOUR. William Blake

Activity: Turn to someone next to you and share what that quotation "said" to you. Also, share why you came to this workshop and what you expect/want to learn/share?

MINDFULNESS IS THE ART OF LIVING IN THE MOMENT WITH YOUR BODY AND YOUR MIND.

TWO VERY DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS MADE INCREDIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR UNDERSTANDING AND PRACTICE OF MINDFULNESS 1) A Buddhist Monk Thich Nhat Hanh 2) A Physician Dr. Jon Kabat Zinn

FIVE WONDERFUL BOOKS BY THICH NHAT HANH WILL GUIDE US IN EXPLORING MINDFULNESS : 1) HOW TO SIT 2) HOW TO WALK 3) HOW TO RELAX 4) HOW TO EAT 5) HOW TO LOVE

THICH NHAT HANH SUGGESTS THE USE OF A GATHA, OR SHORT VERSE TO GET INTO THE PRESENT MOMENT. ACTIVITY: BREATHING IN, I DWELL IN THE PRESENT MOMENT, BREATHING OUT, I KNOW IT IS A WONDERFUL MOMENT. (HOW TO RELAX, PG. 9)

ACTIVITY: SNACK MEDITATION Take this raisin and say: This raisin is a gift from the universe. Hold it in your mouth and savor it.

Thich Nhat Hanh said Love has four elements: Loving kindness, Compassion, Joy and Equanimity Ask yourself who can I make smile this morning? Are you able to increase another person's confidence and enthusiasm? These activities are favorites of gifted students!!

SCIENCE OF MINDFULNESS • John Kabat-Zinn started the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Clinic at the Massachusetts Medical Center in 1979. At that time, the word mindfulness was nowhere in the medical lexicon. Today, there are nearly l, 000 certified MBSR instructors teaching mindfulness techniques including meditation in nearly every state and in more than 30 countries.

MBSR CLINICS Early on John Kabat-Zinn worked with treatment resistant patients of other doctors. After 8 weeks of mindfulness training, the treatment resistant patients showed remarkable transformation. The MBSR patients had symptom reduction in blood pressure, psoriasis, fibromyalgia, depression and chronic pain.

INTERVENTIONS WITH GIFTED STUDENTS MINDFULNESS RESEARCH INDICATES THAT MINDFULNESS PRACTICES PROMOTE THE ABILITY OF STUDENTS TO FEEL IN CONTROL, MAKE MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS, ACCEPT EXPERIENCES WITHOUT DENYING THE FACTS, MANAGE DIFFICULT FEELINGS, AND BECOME MORE CALM, RESILIENT, COMPASSIONATE AND EMPATHIC.

GIFTED STUDENTS WHO ARE GROUPED BY CHRONOLOGICAL AGE IN CLASSROOMS OFTEN FIND THEMSELVES UNABLE TO MEET EITHER THEIR INTELLECTUAL NEEDS OR THEIR SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL NEEDS

MINDFULNESS PROGRAMS • CARE • SMART • TLS • LEARNING TO BREATHE • INNER KIDS • MINDUP

ACTIVITIES TO USE WITH GIFTED STUDENTS • LOVING KINDNESS STATEMENTS • BODY SCAN

LOVING KINDNESS GATHA MAY I BE HAPPY MAY I BE KIND MAY I BE LOVING MAY I BE HELPFUL Goldstein (2007)

IMPORTANCE OF COMPASSION Mindfulness is more than moment-to-moment awareness, said Shauna Shapiro the author of Art and Science of Mindfulness. it is a kind of conscious awareness that helps us to relate to ourselves and others with compassion.

Mindfulness without compassion is problematic said James Doty, a neurosurgeon. He said the more one practices compassion, it cultivates compassion by helping us to see our interconnectedness, and this “clear seeing” leads to greater compassion.

THE CENTER FOR COMPASSION AND ALTRUISM, RESEARCH AND EDUCATION (CCARE) James Doty in his book Into the Magic Shop shares his journey in building a CARE, a training program for educators and the general public to develop compassion and reduce ailments such as social anxiety.

Cultivating Compassion Activity: Use self-talk and add care and compassion to your attention. Instead of controlling or judging your experience, take an interest in it with an attitude of compassion and openness. Say to yourself: I care about you. I'm interested. Tell me about your experience.

A NEW MODEL OF POSITIVE EXPERIENCE Fred Bryant in his book Savoring: A New Model of Positive Experience said selfcompassion enhances the impact of good things in our lives. He suggested ten ways to develop "savoring. " 1. Share your good feelings with others. 2. Take a mental photograph. 3. Congratulate yourself. 4. Sharpen your sensory perception. 5. Shout it from the rooftops.

FIVE MORE WAYS TO DEVELOP SAVORING 6. Compare the outcome to something worse. 7. Get absorbed in the moment. 8. Count your blessings and give thanks. 9. Avoid kill joy thinking. 10. Remind yourself of how fast time flies.

HEALTHY MINDS STRENGTHEN MINDFULNESS Daniel Siegel at UCLA said a healthy mind leads to a healthy brain. On his mind platter Siegel and his colleague David Rock placed 7 dishes: Sleep time Physical time Focus time Time in (reflection and meditation) Down time Play time Connecting time ANYTHING MISSING ON YOUR PLATE? ?

REST AND EXERCISE • Take time for personal self-care and model what you expect from others; balance is the key • Check the research on rest and exercise; note the connection to relieving stress • Find a personal trainer or a group for exercise • Seek nutritional help/exercise assistance —check it out

BECOMING CLUTTER FREE • Clutter is both internal and external—determine how to balance what comes in and goes out • Become focused in managing your inner clutter; internal chatter evaporates with mindfulness

NURTURING MINDFULNESS • Develop exercises for perspective-taking, use “what-if we” statements and play with ideas • Become comfortable with using an intuitive approach • Explore hunches, guesses, and estimations • Ask provocative questions

MODEL IT! Bono, Emmons and Mc. Cullough (2004) said: • Modeling gratitude encourages similar behavior in others. • Modeling gratitude leads to more satisfaction, and less burnout. Find one person and share 1 -2 elements of your current position (parent, teacher, counselor, administrator) for which you are grateful.

Gratitude: Three Aspects of Appreciation 1. Noting Gratitude to Oneself: Note to yourself things that you can be grateful for (on a weekly basis). 2. Savoring: Note to yourself or others what you appreciate aesthetically, like a beautiful sunset, a good meal; mindfulness. 3. Expressing Gratitude to Others: Express appreciation to those people you value. Source: www. dianegehart. com

Activity: Three-Good-Things Exercise Write three good things that happen each day for a week. The three things can be small in importance (“I was able to talk with a troubled student and build her self image” or big (“I have been asked to present my curriculum to the district meetings and won the excellent teacher award for the year!!!”). For each positive event, write: “Why did this good thing happen? ” “What does this mean to me? ” “How can I have more of this good thing in the future? ” Source: http: //www. authentichappiness. sas. upenn. edu/ newsletter. aspx? id=1551

The World According to Mr. Rogers "You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices can come from a deep sense of who you are. " (Rogers , 2003, p. 32)

Mindfulness builds a Core Self • A core self is the part of you that shapes your reality. It places you at the center of experiences that you personally create. • You know that you are real. • You don't feel controlled by others. • You don't live for approval; you aren't crushed by disapproval. • You have long-range goals to work toward.

HOW IT FEELS TO HAVE A CORE SELF • You work through difficult situations for your own sense of dignity and self-worth. • You give respect and receive it from others. • You understand your own emotional life. • You are not swayed by other people's emotions. • You feel safe in the world and like where you belong. (Tanzi & Chopra, 2012, p. l 77)

Hardwiring Mindfulness Rick Hanson recommends: “Taking in the Good” STEP 1. Have a positive experience • For example, think about things for which you’re grateful, bring to mind a friend, or recognize a task you’ve completed. As much as you can, make ideas like these become emotionally rewarding experiences; otherwise, it’s merely positive thinking.

Hardwiring Mindfulness STEP 2. Enrich it • Stay with the positive experience for five to ten seconds or longer. Open yourself to the feelings in it and try to sense/feel it in your body; then let it fill your mind. Enjoy it. Then gently encourage the experience to be more intense.

Hardwiring Mindfulness STEP 3. Absorb it • Intend and sense that the experience is sinking within you, as you sink into it. • Notice something pleasant that’s already present in your experience, such as a relaxed sense of breathing, a feeling of comfort, or curiosity. • Think of something you are glad about, in your current life or in your past. • Bring to mind someone who makes you feel cared for. • Bring to mind someone you like. • Think of some experiences and things that help you feel peaceful. . . grateful. . . happy. . . loved. . . loving.

MOVING TOWARD LASTING MINDFULNESS • Give of yourself, take care of others, and nurture them. • Work at something you love. • Set worthy long-range goals that will take years to achieve. • Be open-minded. • Have emotional resilience. • Learn from the past, and then put it behind you. • Live for the present. • Plan for the future without anxiety, fear, or dread. • Develop close, warm social bonds. (Tanzi & Chopra, 2012, p. l 85)

"Discovering the truth about ourselves is a lifetime's work, but it's worth the effort. " (Rogers, 2003)

References Bono, G. , Emmons, R. A. , & Mc. Cullough, M. E. (2004). Gratitude in practice and the practice of gratitude. In P. A. Linley, & S. Joseph (Eds. ), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 464− 481). Hoboken, NJ, US: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Bryant, F. B. , & Veroff, J. (2007). Savoring: A new model of positive experience. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Darley, J. M. , and Batson, C. D. (1973). From Jerusalem to Jericho: A study of Situational and Dispositional Variables in Helping Behavior”. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 27, 100108. Doty, R. J. (2016). Into the Magic Shop: A Neurosurgeon’s Quest to Discover the Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart, New York: Avery Publishing. Goldstein, J. (2007). A heart full of peace. Boston: Wisdom Publications. Hanh, T. N. (2014). How to sit. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press. Hanh, T. N. (2014). How to eat. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press. Hanh, T. N. (2015). How to walk. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press. Hanh, T. N. (2015). How to relax. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press. Hanh, T. N. (2015). How to love. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press.

Hanson, R. (2013). Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence, New York: Harmony. Linehan, M. , Armstrong, H. , Suarez, A. , Allmon, D. & Heard, H. (1991). Cognitive-behavioral treatment of chronically parasuicidal borderline patients. Archives of General Psychiatry, 48, 1060 -1064. Rogers, F. (2003). The World According to Mister Rogers. NY: Hachette Books. S a l t z m a n, A. (2014). A still quiet place: A mindfulness program for teaching students and adolescents to ease stress and difficult emotions. Oakland CA: New Harbinger Publications Inc. Shapiro, S. L. , & Carlson, L. E. (2009). The art and science of mindfulness: Integrating mindfulness into psychology and the helping professions. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Siegel, D. (2007). The mindful brain: Reflection and attunement in the cultivation of well- being. New York: Norton. Tanzi, R. , & Chopra, D. (2012). Super brain: Unleashing the explosive power of your mind to maximize health, happiness, and spiritual well-being. NY: Harmony. The Hawn Foundation. (2011). The mind-up curriculum(grades 6 -8). New York: Scholastic.

Online References Authentic Happiness https: //www. authentichappiness. sas. upenn. edu/ Effective Therapy for Adults, Adolescents, Couples, and Families www. dianegehart. com Mindfulness in Education Network: www. mindfuled. org