EL29 Mindfulness Meditation - Edmonton Lifelong …my-ella.com/Spring Session Class Handouts/EL29/Lec. 3.5...1 EL29 Mindfulness Meditation Lecture 3.5: Being a mindful senior Quick

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EL29 Mindfulness Meditation

Lecture 3.5: Being a mindful senior

Quick check: How much can you recall so far?

Name three (3) benefits of corporate mindfulness training.

!  Increase ability to manage stress and self-regulate

!  Increase in social and emotional intelligence.

!  Increase in productivity.

!  Increase in ability to listen

!  Increase in empathy and compassion.

!  Increase in creativity and flexibility

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Lecture Overview

! Topics: • Mindful speech • Mindful actions • Being a happy senior

Key Learnings: !  Key Learning #1. Mindful Speech - As we age, our brains tend to lose

their “gatekeeping” ability when we speak. Gatekeeping prevents us from saying inappropriate things. Mindful speech is an important skill to learn and will keep us out of trouble!

!  Key Learning #2: Mindful Actions – Our brains also tend to lose

memory pathways and appropriate action pathways as we age, resulting in suffering and at times inappropriate behaviors. Being mindful of our actions is another important skill to learn as we age.

!  Key Learning #3: Happiness in old age - Being a senior can be one of the most happy and meaningful stages of life, but we need to practice wellness a lot. Mindfulness meditation can be a useful tool in your wellness toolkit and help you to become a happier person.

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Examples of MindLESSness !  Breaking things, spilling things, clumsiness, accidents

because of carelessness, inattention or thinking about something else.

!  Failing to notice subtle or not-so-subtle feelings of physical discomfort, pain, tension etc.

!  Forgetting someone’s name as soon as you hear it. !  Being preoccupied with the future or the past. !  Eating without being aware of eating. !  Reacting emotionally in certain ways – feeling like an

emotion just “came out of nowhere”. !  Daydreaming or thinking of other things when doing

chores. !  Doing several things at once rather than focusing on one

thing at a time. !  Distracting yourself with things like eating, alcohol,

pornography, drugs, work.

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Are you becoming an old curmudgeon when you talk?

Homo sapiens curmudgeon femalis Homo sapiens curmudgeon maleis

What is the Eight-Fold Path?Wisdom:• Right understanding

• Right motivation Moral discipline:• Right speech• Right action

• Right livelihood

Mental discipline:• Right effort

• Right mindfulness

• Right meditation

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What is right speech? Traditional Buddhist View !  Speaking truthfully !  Avoiding misleading

speech –telling different people different things

!  Avoiding cruel speech (shouting slandering, cursing, causing suffering)

!  Not exaggerating or embellishing

For Seniors !  All of the traditional

Buddhists aspects, plus; !  Maintaining cognitive

health of neuronal pathways related to speech.

!  Maintaining the respect of family & friends

!  Staying out of health care institutions!

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Constructing speech involves complex neuronal pathways – the frontal cortex plays

a role in deciding “what to say” !  As we age, neuronal

pathways to the gatekeeping frontal cortex can start to weaken.

!  Impulses that arise in other parts of the brain don’t get vetted and we blurt out whatever.

!  But, the brain does have plasticity and practice can strengthen “gatekeeping” pathways.

!  Be mindful of our speech – think before you talk!

Practicing mindful speech !  Practice “deep listening” – really try to

understand what the other person is saying and what they are feeling – watch for facial micro-expressions.

!  Slow down and think before you speak. Is this “right speech” that avoids suffering? Is it helpful and compassionate?

!  Be aware of when you are speaking (internally, say “mindful of speaking”)

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Quick check: How much can you recall so far?

!  Which of the following is NOT a reason to practice mindful speech a)  Maintaining cognitive

health of neuronal pathways related to speech.

b)  Maintaining the respect of family & friends

c)  Staying our of health care institutions!

d)  Maintaining our self-esteem

!  Which part of the brain is important for impulse control? a)  Frontal cortex b)  Cerebellum c)  Amygdala d)  Broca area






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Are you becoming an old curmudgeon in your actions?

Homo sapiens curmudgeon femalis Homo sapiens curmudgeon maleis

What is the Eight-Fold Path?Wisdom:• Right understanding

• Right motivation Moral discipline:• Right speech

• Right action• Right livelihood

Mental discipline:• Right effort

• Right mindfulness

• Right meditation

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What is right action? Traditional Buddhist View !  Avoiding killing or causing

suffering to other beings !  Practicing generosity,

loving-kindness, avoiding stealing.

!  Responsible sexual behavior

!  Avoiding consumption of alcohol, drugs, harmful foods.

For Seniors !  All of the traditional

Buddhists aspects, plus; !  Maintaining cognitive

health of neuronal pathways related to motor actions.

!  Maintaining the respect of family & friends

!  Staying out of health care institutions!

!  Staying out of jail!!

Simple actions and the brain

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The neurobiology of more complex actions – e.g. sexual

!  Again, with aging inhibition circuits in the brain can start to weaken.

!  Can lead to problematic actions & behaviors.

!  Developing the habit of being mindful of our actions can help maintain neuronal circuitry.

NeuroQuantology | June 2013 | Volume 11 | Issue 2 | Page 332-359 Kim SW et al., Neurobiology of sexual desire Figure 2. Higher brain structures such as the orbital frontal cortex, selected prefrontal areas (prelimbic area in animals) receive and interpret incoming sensory information. When a rewarding sensory input or thought is detected, pyramidal cells in the prelimbic area send signals to the core of the nucleus accumbens where motivation, urge and craving are generated so that the person has sufficient motivation (desire) to engage in a behavior to secure the targeted object. The molecule that mediates this signal is glutamate. The prefrontal brain simultaneously sends signals to the ventral tegmental area to activate dopamine neurons in that area. When these dopamine neurons are activated, dopamine is released in the core of the nucleus accumbens and augments glutamate function. Together they generate a powerful motivation to engage in foraging and other reward- seeking behavior. Once the rewards have been fulfilled, animals and humans feel satisfaction, pleasure and/or excitement. When these circuits are over-heated, mammals feel uncontrollable urges to engage in a behavior even if the behavior might bring about unbearable negative consequences subsequently (e.g. loss of money from gambling, divorce, etc.). These comprise behavioral or drug addictions. Key: Pfc – prefrontal cortex; mPOA - medial preoptic area; HPT - hypothalamus; VMH - ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (illustration by David Mottet).

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Practicing mindful actions !  Slow down and think before you act.

Is this “right action” that avoids suffering? Is it socially acceptable? Against the law? Will it hurt someone else’s feelings?

!  Be aware of when you are acting (internally, say “acting mindfully”)

Mindfully laying down your keys or purse, or glasses, etc.

!  When you set something down, slow down a little and be really aware of what you are doing.

!  Say internally …..dropping keys on my nightstand

!  Look at where you are placing your keys.

!  Develop little habbits of placing your stuff in the same spot all the time.

!  Have a little “important stuff” basket by your front door

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Where did I leave my keys!!! !  A certain amount of

memory loss is normal as we age.

!  But it can be more than just frustrating – it can even be life-threatening.

!  Mindful attention to what we are doing in the present moment can help.

Dangerous unmindful actions that can get you in real trouble!

Not being fully mindful while cooking

Not being fully mindful while driving

Not being fully mindful while crossing roads or walking in icy conditions

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Solutions while cooking !  Be aware of the fact that you

are cooking – internally say, “cooking, cooking”, etc.

!  Stay on task and avoid trying to multi-task. Avoid distractions.

!  Mentally check to see that burners are off when you are finished or get your partner (if you have one) to double check for you.

!  Be sure to have a fire extinguisher and smoke/CO alarm in your home – know your escape routes.

Not being fully mindful while cooking

Solutions while driving

!  Avoid the obvious distractions like texting or using your phone while driving.

!  Be mindfully aware that you are driving all the time – keep checking mirrors and your surroundings.

!  Know where you are all of the time.

!  Consider a driver trainer refresher course.

!  When you get to your destination and you have no memory of having gotten there – you weren’t mindful!

Not being fully mindful while driving

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Solutions for safe walking !  Where proper footwear and /or any

aides you need (e.g. canes or walkers or spikey shoes in the winter).

!  Don’t assume cars will stop for you. !  Practice mindful walking as you walk –

be very aware when you come to an intersection. Look around – where are you – where are the dangers.

!  Find safe walking routes that avoid busy intersections.

!  Don’t let fear keep you indoors – walking every day is good for your health!

Not being fully mindful While crossing roads or

walking in icy conditions

Mindful Eating & Tea !  Eating mindfully, and slowly is

an action Zen-based meditation.

!  Placing emphasis on the present moment, nourishing one's body and spirit, being wakeful, and drawing attention to the basic elements governing life no matter the time or place.

!  In this way drinking tea was practiced in ancient China as a discipline all in itself - a spiritual path which could lead to a transcendence by engaging with what may be seen as a mundane activity.

!  Realizing the interconnectedness of all the elements that must come together to make tea.

!  When we eat slowly, it shifts bodily resources away from “fight or flight” to “rest and digest”.

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Start with a couple of mindful everyday activities

!  Mindful washing dishes – don’t be in a hurry. Feel the water, the texture of plates, soapiness, etc.

!  Mindful bedtime routines – slow down, be aware of what you are doing.

Quick chat with your group

!  What do you think?

!  Does any of this make sense and worth trying?

!  Have you had some bad experiences by not being mindful?

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Wellness benefits of meditation

http://www.emmaseppala.com/20-scientific-reasons-to-start-meditating-today/#.VrKKgjZkeSB

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Calming down the fight or flight instinct

!  Evolved to keep us alive.

!  All hands on deck during a life-threatening situation.

!  But, then calm everything down when the danger is over.

!  Over activation of this mechanism leads to stress.

!  Mindfulness helps.



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Aim for 10,000

hours to be a real

expert! (in anything, or about 1 year @ 2 hours/day)

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Part 2: Hand’s on practice - Tea Meditation

Documents

EL29 Mindfulness Meditation - Edmonton Lifelong …my-ella.com/Spring Session Class Handouts/EL29/Lec. 3.5...1 EL29 Mindfulness Meditation Lecture 3.5: Being a mindful senior Quick