Tag: peace

Mindfulness

Originally posted 10/19/2020

Welcome to another Mental Health Monday! In the midst of all
the chaos of our world right now, I wanted to give some time to one of my
favorite coping skills—mindfulness. We all have moments of mindfulness in our lives, sometimes when we don’t realize that is what we are doing. There are so many elements that can make up a practice of mindfulness, but it can also be very simple. Please understand that the purpose of mindfulness is not to be overly self-focused or self-absorbed; it is about taking a few moments to calm the chaos and focus in the moment. This helps lead to greater focus on the tasks at hand and the others around us. We need to remember that we can’t pour from an empty cup when we are trying to be who the others in our lives need us to be.A few simple mindfulness exercises that I use in my own life are mindful breathing, progressive relaxation, and five senses focus. There are several ways to go about each one, but here is an easy example of each:


Mindful breathing: Sit in a comfortable and neutral
position (some people do this lying down—if I attempt that, I will generally
fall asleep! 😊 ) Close your eyes. Take in a deep breath, filling your lungs and feeling the space created in your abdomen. If I am really struggling to focus, I will count as I inhale. This helps me to focus on my breath rather than anything else around me. Once you have fulling inhaled, pause for a second, feeling the space and fullness of your breath. Then, slowly breathe out, trying to take approximately the same amount of time breathing out
as you did breathing in. Taking even 6-8 breaths this way can help to refocus on the present and calm the chaos.


Progressive relaxation: Again, sit in a comfortable
and neutral position (I’m a little better at doing this one lying down, but
sometimes there is still a little napping!) Beginning with your toes, briefly
tense and scrunch them and then intentionally relax them. Pause to give attention just to your toes and what it takes to relax them. Next, move on to your whole foot—briefly tense and then intentionally relax, noting what it takes to relax your foot. Proceed like this up your legs (calf, knee, thigh), your backside, lower abdomen, middle abdomen, shoulders, upper arm, lower arm, wrist, hand, fingers, neck, jaw, cheeks, eyes and forehead. With intentional focus given to each part of the body in progression, the depth of relaxation will be greater. You can also start with the forehead and proceed downward. However, I find that I hold more tension in my upper body, so I choose to focus above my shoulders last. This is another practice that can be done in just a couple of focused minutes but can really decrease situational stress.


Five senses focus:  Another exercise that can be done anywhere
and in just a few minutes. Wherever you are and whatever you are currently
doing, take a moment to check in with your senses.


·        What do you see around you? We often look but don’t really see. Taking time to look at the details of your surroundings helps to focus you in the present moment.


·  What do you hear? There are so many sounds around us all the time that we think we are blocking out. However, sometimes our brains are working in the background to process them, increasing our tension without us recognizing why. Taking time to acknowledge those sounds for a moment lets your brain process and then (hopefully) move on from them.


·        What do you smell? Strong smells, both good and bad, rarely escape our notice. However, there are usually several smells happening all at once. We just process the strongest. Take a moment to process all that you can smell where you are at that moment.


·       What are you touching? Not just the things you are actively touching, but what about passive touch? Your clothes, where you are sitting, the floor, the air around you—all of those things are touching you and giving sensory input to your brain. Focus on each for a moment and let it process.


·     What do you taste? This is one of my favorites! In addition to just loving to eat, taking the time meals are eaten at work or while I’m in the middle of things. Nutrition experts have said for years that this is not the best way to eat—it often leads to overeating because we aren’t thinking about what we are doing. The practice of slowing down to eat mindfully allows us to truly experience what we are eating and helps us to be aware of when it stops tasting as good—an early signal that we are starting to get full. I once led a skills group where we ended each of our sessions with mindfully eating a piece of candy. The candy of choice was chocolate (there are just so many good things about it!!), but we also tried butterscotch, cinnamon (not a favorite for mindful eating!), caramels, and fruit flavored candy. It was fun to take that moment to fully experience each candy for all it could be.


As you look for ways to take small moments to rest and refresh in times of stress, hopefully these few exercises will come to mind, helping you focus on the moment and regroup to keep moving forward.


Thanks for reading! 😊
EW



Peace

Originally posted 10/11/20

Psalm 4

1 Answer me when I call to you,

    my righteous God.

Give me relief from my distress;

    have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

2 How long will you people turn my glory into shame?

    How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?

3 Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself;

    the Lord hears when I call to him.

4 Tremble and do not sin;

    when you are on your beds,

    search your hearts and be silent.

5 Offer the sacrifices of the righteous

    and trust in the Lord.

6 Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?”

    Let the light of your face shine on us.

7 Fill my heart with joy

    when their grain and new wine abound.

8 In peace I will lie down and sleep,

    for you alone, Lord,

    make me dwell in safety.

In April, 2018 my grandmother was in the hospital. She had broken her hip and needed surgery to repair it. Trauma, pain, and pain medication do not mix with dementia well—particularly with the added elements of a different place, different staff, and a very different routine. My grandmother spent the majority of those days very confused, and the nights were worse. After spending 36 hours at the hospital, a sweet nurse encouraged me to leave for the night and try to get some rest. I asked that she call if there were any issues and left with my mom—hoping to sleep at her house for the night. About 15 minutes after my mom and I got to her house, we got the call that my grandmother was confused and agitated. When darkness hit, she believed that she had been kidnapped and was being held in a basement by her kidnappers. I made my way back to the hospital to sit with her again.

She was agitated and scared when I got there, not remembering her surgery, not understanding why she was there, seeing things on her walls and in the corners of her room (thanks to the Morphine she had been given), and not recognizing me. I sat down, took her hand, and tried to soothe her. After what seemed like hours of her continued fear and unrest, I was out of words. Nothing I was saying was bringing her comfort, though she would not let go of my hand. I opened my Bible and quietly began reading Psalms. When I got to Psalm 4, she calmed. I continued repeating it until she fell asleep and then prayed it over her as she slept.

God’s Word brings peace—even when nothing else can. He alone makes us dwell in safety. We have nothing to fear because He is with us. Circumstances and situations can bring feelings of fear, especially as those situations feel like they are closing or leaving us with no way out. He is with us in those feelings as well. He goes before us, beside us and behind us as we walk through those times.

I continued to read Psalm 4 to my grandmother every night I spent with her during that hospital stay and all the others she had in her remaining days. It brought us both peace and memories to cherish.

Thanks for reading! 😊 EW