A practical guide to the use of mindfulness

One of the best ways to practice mindfulness on your own is to learn meditation. "The purpose of meditation is to center and balance the mind," Gersten says. "ADHD symptoms tend to throw the mind out of balance." A study in Mind & Brain, The Journal of Psychiatry found that students with ADHD who meditated twice a day reported a 50 percent reduction in stress and anxiety. Meditation requires only 10 to 20 minutes a day, and classes and manuals are widely available

Early findings from the centre’s research, involving 25 adults and eight adolescents, half of whom had the combined (both inattentive and hyperactive) form of ADHD were very promising, with significant improvements recorded, and participants satisfied with the programme. Research results also suggest that brain activity and dopamine levels may vary between those who meditate regularly and those who do not.

As unlikely as it might sound, mindfulness meditation can be highly effectively in helping people live successfully with ADHD. While most people with ADHD think meditation is impossible for someone with such a busy and disorganized mind, this is actually the reason it is so beneficial. Using specially modified exercises designed for people with ADHD, complete stillness or the ability to “empty your mind” is not required.

Although med ica tion treat ment is effec tive for many indi vid u als with ADHD, includ ing ado les cents adults, there remains an under stand able need to explore and develop inter ven tions that can com ple ment or even sub sti tute for med ica tion. This is true for a vari ety of rea sons includ ing:

1) Not all adults with ADHD ben e fit from med ica tion.2) Among those who ben e fit, many have resid ual dif fi cul ties that need to be addressed via other means.3) Some adults with ADHD expe ri ence adverse effects that pre vent them from remain ing on medication.Dr. David Rabiner

Mind ful ness med i ta tion is described as involv ing 3 basic steps: 1) bring ing atten tion to an “atten tional anchor” such as breath ing; 2) not ing that dis trac tion occurs and let ting go of the dis trac tion; and, 3) refo cus ing back to the “atten tional anchor”.

This sequence is repeated many times dur ing the course of each med i ta tive ses sion. As the indi vid ual becomes bet ter able to main tain focus on the atten tional anchor, the notion of “pay ing atten tion to atten tion” is intro duced and indi vid u als are encour aged to bring their atten tion to the present moment fre quently dur ing the course of the day.

(David Rabiner)

“A superb book, an important book, a book that breaks new ground. Anyone who is interested in the treatment of ADHD in adults must own this. Rigorous in its research, accessible in its style, convincing in its argument, and novel in its premise, this book keeps its promise of offering a reliable mindfulness prescription. I hugely recommend this book!”—Edward Hallowell, MD, author of Driven to Distraction

Mindfulness Awareness Practices (MAPs) for ADHD is a six week class taught by two physicians who are experts in ADHD care: Dr. Lidia Zylowska, an adult psychiatrist, and Dr. Mark Bertin, a developmental pediatrician. The program provides an overview of ADHD including its causes, comprehensive treatments and a review of the neuroscience of ADHD and mindfulness-based interventions. The class also includes education into the impact of ADHD and executive function skills on day-to-day life. Each session includes mindfulness exercises taught in a manner suitable for those with attention issues or new to meditation.

Take 10 Deep Breaths Practice Mindfulness Exercise Every Day Get Enough Sleep Try a Yoga Class Have a Good Laugh Write It Down

The instructions with using mindfulness are simple. Here are 4 brief steps using the breath as an example:

Bring your attention to the sensation of breathing as an anchor to the present moment. This can be at the tip of the nose, the chest or the belly, wherever you notice it the most.

When the mind wanders, note where it wandered to.

Gently bring attention back to the anchor.

As Larry Rosenberg says in his book Breath by Breath: The Liberating Practice of Insight Meditation, repeat step 3 several billion times.

The Mindful Attention System for ADHD is an 8-week mindfulness training program that gives your child the tools he or she needs to begin to rewire neural pathways in the brain and increase focus. The program is designed to increase motivation, improve sustained focus, teach success strategies, and develop lifelong mindfulness habits.

This easy-to-listen-to audio program has been fine-tuned by a decade of hands-on research and experience with students with ADHD.