This week we are weighing in with ways to address stress in this challenging time. You'll find many tools to use now, and even when life returns to the new normal--whatever that may be. From mindfulness, to breathing, and even what you eat can make a difference in your experience of daily life.
For a mindfulness meditation moment, we have a wonderful offering from our trusted colleague, friend and patient, Dr. J. Zink. He's been a master counselor and psychotherapist to countless corporations and executive families for over 30 years and an author of this wonderful book, Upbringing: Raising A Responsible Child. We're thankful for his contribution to the health of our LWI family!
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J. ZINK, Ph.D.
Psychotherapist (Ret.)
Here is a helpful exercise to reduce stress in these times of Covid-19 and quarantine challenges.
Imagine you are in the place where you were the happiest and most peaceful in your life.
Rather than remember it, or worse, try to remember it, close your eyes, take three deeply inhaled and slowly exhaled breaths, and go there. Discover or rediscover as many specific details as possible. Engage as many of your senses as you can for this de-stressing exercise. Taste the experience. Savor individual odors, and listen again sharply for the ambient sounds of the place, sounds you may have once heard and possibly forgotten, but now give yourself permission to remember again. Reap as many delicious details of the experience as you can and be in that moment, enjoying more fully the moment, than you did when you first experienced it.
Done effectively, this self-hypnotic experience, if only for a few moments of re-focus and relaxation, can lower your heart rate, reduce your blood pressure, and allow your mind and body to experience one thing to the exclusion of everything else that is yelling at you for attention.
I was fortunate enough to spend about twenty minutes backstage with The Dali Lama about twenty years ago and the above exercise was nearly the entire focus of our conversation. I had asked His Holiness how long it took him to learn to clear his mind.
“Oh, Jay” he said. “It was twenty years.”
I was hoping, of course, that he could offer me some tricks or short cuts. He saw immediately my disappointment. Before he could come to my rescue, I said, “What about learning to focus on one thing to the exclusion of everything else?”
That is when I got that beatific smile he is famous for as he said, “of course, that is the basis for self-hypnosis, isn’t it?“
So. Give yourself permission to experience this altered state of deep relaxation. It is especially effective when you wake up anxious at 3am and your mind, and heart, start to racing.
Make it happen.
Love,
Dr. J.
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 From Dr. Cheffet
Our Emotional Echo Chamber
As we move into the 6th week of COVID 19 quarantine, we are likely experiencing a range of emotions influenced by long term exposure to a single environment. Some of us may live with our children or aging parents, while others may live alone. Spiritually, we may find that this “quality time,” either alone or with others, can create feelings that fluctuate on a spectrum from frustration to gratitude. As we contemplate what our new normal will look like when the stay-at-home orders are lifted, we may swing from moments of excitement to anxiety. As we guide ourselves through these trying times, we must take a moment to understand the ripple effects we are experiencing from our environments.
As we try to gain a greater understanding of the emotional interplay of our environment, it is helpful to be aware of the biologic changes stress and anxiety can be causing. The amygdala is a part of the brain, often called the “reptilian brain,” signifying that it is involved in our most primitive thoughts and emotions. It is most active during times of fear, stress and pleasure. From an evolutionary standpoint, the amygdala’s response to stress has allowed humans to adapt to changing environments, such as the “fight or flight” response that provides our ability to recognize and respond to threats. However, it is very clear that prolonged stress is not healthy for neurologic emotional development and flexibility. Repeated stress results in the brain releasing higher than normal levels of cortisol and inflammatory markers. Therefore, increased stress will not only increase the neuro-synaptic connections that amplify feelings of stress but can also manifest as physical pain and inflammation.
So how can we make our homes and work environments more “brain-friendly” as our society prepares to re-open? First, we need to be mindful of our own emotional interplay with others. We can wake up feeling peaceful and hopeful, however we can physically feel our emotions shift as soon as we interact with another person who may be feeling anxious or sad. Day after day, this emotional echo chamber can be physically and mentally exhausting.
To help maintain whole person wellness, it is important to check-in with your own physical and spiritual status. As Linda points out in the next section, nutrition can have a big role in helping you find resilience during times of stress. In previous newsletters, Meghan has also offered excellent ideas for exercise that can help reduce stress during quarantine. In addition, we would like to encourage you to take time each day to assess your spiritual health. A simple way to do this is to find a quiet space with no distractions (electronic or human) and take 20 minutes to do a breathing exercise. Forty minutes is even better, but if you can’t dedicate 20 minutes, do what you can, even if it’s during another activity, such as walking the dog. During this time, try to close your eyes and feel the sensation of breathing in and out. Just by doing mindful breathing, you will naturally slow down the rate of your respiratory rate. In addition, it has been shown that intentionally slowing down the rate of your breathing can result in decreased stress, decreased pain and overall improved health. This can be done once a day or as needed for times when you feel that your mental health is needing an additional assessment.
As we start to open our doors to society again, we are bound to feel anxious and uncertain on what activities or exposures are safe or recommended. If we have health issues or loved ones who would be considered “high risk” for complications from COVID19, we can expect that our anxiety will increase in the coming weeks as exposure to other people naturally increases. Spiritually, we are craving walks on the beach and get-togethers with friends and family, however, this pandemic experience will undoubtedly have left a spiritual mark on us all. Therefore, it is crucial to use the next few weeks to find ways to help ourselves remain mentally and physical resilient to the ripple effect this social isolation has caused. Increased awareness of our own spiritual needs is one of our greatest resources in the formation of our self-care plan.
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or overwhelmed, dismissing the physical aspects or symptoms of stress. Western culture teaches us to ignore many
