All things calm in the center of what it means to be a human being, embracing the moments of our lives with joy, fullness, and hope. www.calm.amyfullerphd.com
All of the meditations on this page are taken from our book ‘Mindfulness: Finding Peace in a Frantic World’. The book contains the complete 8 week mindfulness course developed at Oxford University.
Dr. Amy Fuller's insight:
Free meditations to listen to from Mindfulness: Finding Peace in a Frantic World.
LOST Here is a lovely poem to contemplate and marinate in, especially in times when you feel lost and away from home. “ Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you Are not lost.
Meditation and mindfulness aren't just buzz words. A growing body of scientific research shows that the simple act of sitting still in thought confers long-term health benefits -- and even changes in brain function.
Your brain and heart have the ability to communicate with each other and they always do to a certain extent. This connection can be strengthened and developed
Dr. Amy Fuller's insight:
I like theses instructions for increasing the connection between head and heart:
Heart Focus: Shift your attention to the area of the heart and breathe slowly and deeply.
Heart Breathing: Keep your focus in the heart by gently breathing – five seconds in and five seconds out – through your heart. Do this two or three times.
Heart Feeling: Activate and sustain a genuine feeling of appreciation or care for someone or something in your life. Focus on the good heart feeling as you continue to breathe through the area of your heart.
- See more at: http://www.thehealersjournal.com/2013/06/15/heart-and-brain-connection-intuitive-strengthen/#sthash.LeJfHMz8.dpuf
This is a slideshow that defines the basics of mindfulness with an emphasis on suffering/stress. Easy to follow and great introduction to what mindfulness is.
5 Hawaiian Words To Redefine Health, Happiness And Power In Your Life Huffington Post For many first-time visitors, Hawaii is a place where perfect weather and pristine beaches make for good vacationing and pretty postcards.
By now you may know that GPS for the Soul is a stress-relieving mobile app, geared toward helping you get back on course when life gets in the way.
Dr. Amy Fuller's insight:
2 minute video to explain how the "GPS for the Soul" app works to gage the built in stress level and helps to "course correct" using gratitude, compassion and breathing.
The concept of ‘the simple life’ means different things to different people. In my mind, simple living equates to capitalizing on the fundamentals that truly make you happy and purging the needless remainders. It’s the notion of creating tranquility in your life by eliminating various roadblocks of clutter so you can concentrate your time and attention on the people and effects that matter most.
Alas, the actual process of ‘simplifying’ is not easy.
Dr. Amy Fuller's insight:
Disclaimer...I have not read all the recommended 30 articles, but it seems to be a great compilation of articles for someone investing in simplicity...
Recognizing our common humanity helps us overcome all barriers and leads to belonging. When we overly identify with sub-groups we create prejudice, racism, and comparisions...which are negatively correlated with our health.
I'm not sure if I mentioned square breathing here or elsewhere, but last night a friend of mine who reads this blog asked about it. I learned square breathing in yoga class, but it is not just for ...
Dr. Amy Fuller's insight:
This image describes "Square breathing"
I like the image, but it it leaves out how the belly is involved in the square. The square image can be a movement made with the hands to illustrate. On the first inhale the hands move away from the belly as it expands. Then the upward motion as the breath is held. The inward motion as the exhale allows the belly to return to resting position. Then down to fill the belly again. The belly doesn't really fill, the lungs do, but deep breathing means the lungs fill and the diagraphm pushes down forcing the belly to expand.
"Throughout history, societies have been interested in fostering virtues, in training us to be more virtuous, but we're one of the first generations to have zero public interest in this. You're allowed to work on your body (going to the gym has very high status as an activity), but announce that you're going to work on being more virtuous, and people will be guaranteed to look at you as if you're insane.
It sounds deeply weird, even creepy, to suggest that one might work at being better or nicer. It shouldn't, and that’s what my Manifesto is all about."
Jon Kabat-Zinn (né Kabat) (born June 5, 1944) is Professor of Medicine Emeritus and founding director of the Stress Reduction Clinic and the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
The fun, incredibly smart writers at Sesame Street have done it again with this adorably funny Cookie Monster video about self-regulation -Me Want it (But Me Wait!
My Mother always told me I had to learn to be more grateful. Well, she would love this article, because it outlines out gratefulness helps us in so many ways, making us less stressed, a better attitude, and improved relationships. I am grateful for this article!
A new neuroscientific study shows that compassion training can help us cope with other people's distress.
Empathy can be painful. Or so suggests a growing body of neuroscientific research. When we witness suffering and distress in others, our natural tendency to empathize can bring us vicarious pain.
Is there a better way of approaching distress in other people? A recent study, published in the journal Cerebral Cortex, suggests that we can better cope with others’ negative emotions by strengthening our own compassion skills, which the researchers define as “feeling concern for another’s suffering and desiring to enhance that individual’s welfare.”
“Empathy is really important for understanding others’ emotions very deeply, but there is a downside of empathy when it comes to the suffering of others,” says Olga Klimecki, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Germany and the lead author of the study. “When we share the suffering of others too much, our negative emotions increase. It carries the danger of an emotional burnout.”
A brilliant booklet about how to our bodies talk with us through good feelings and not so pleasurable feelings... from colds, to heart burn. What memos is your body sending you that you maybe be missing out on... this great knowledge is closer then your hands and feet. :)
What are your absolute minimum requirements for self-care?
Have you even identified a minimum?
Do you have any idea what I’m talking about?
Author Jennifer Louden wrote a fantastic blog post a while back in which she perfectly illustrated why we need minimum daily requirements for self-care and what happens when we don’t get them.
Zeb: always running ahead for what he loves. Justin: We watched him watch this giraffe for a full 20 minutes. Me: They waited for me while I read every
When I mentioned I was going to be sharing my "best therapeutic techniques," I imagine some of you were surprised when I said deep breathing would be first on my list to share. This should tell you...
Elevated Existence Magazine (blog) Spirituality is Good for Your Health, Research Shows Elevated Existence Magazine (blog) Spiritual interventions such as religious-based counseling, meditation and forgiveness protocols may enhance spiritually...
Science shows that we are actually wired for compassion, not self-interest.
Our acts of compassion uplift others and make them happy. We may not know it, but by uplifting others we are also helping ourselves; research by Fowler and Christakis has shown that happiness spreads and that if the people around us are happy, we, in turn become happier.
Extensive exploration of compassion from how we cultivate it to how it benefits our bodies, minds and mood. Practicing compassion wards off stress, depression, illness and increases happiness, longevity, and desired behavior. Compassion changes the world.
According to the article, “Compassion is defined as the emotional response when perceiving suffering and involves an authentic desire to help. It is not surprising that compassion is a natural tendency since it is essential for human survival.” While perhaps it is a natural tendency, it is not an overly common occurrence in today’s dog-eat-dog world. However, if people were truly committed to extending compassion on a more regular basis, we would all be in a better place. How about starting a trend today?!
Dr. Amy Fuller, Marriage & Family Therapist passionate about healing & empowering a fuller life through Relational, Emotional, Mental & Spiritual Health/Growth. www.AmyFullerPhd.com
To get content containing either thought or leadership enter:
To get content containing both thought and leadership enter:
To get content containing the expression thought leadership enter:
You can enter several keywords and you can refine them whenever you want. Our suggestion engine uses more signals but entering a few keywords here will rapidly give you great content to curate.
Your new post is loading...
Scoop.it!
Great self-care practices! Practical ways to destress and slow down a little bit as the year speeds up.