mindfulness for stress management€¦ · first we need self-compassion ( treating ourselves with...

Mindfulness for Stress Management

Presented by Lucinda van Buuren

RN, Life Coach, Mindfulness and Meditation Coach

NSW Nurses & Midwives Association – Future Ready 19th October 2019

Copyright The Mindful Nurse Australia 2019

Topics to be covered

• What is Stress

• Why is Stress Management and Stress Awareness vital in all aspects of our lives

• What is Meditation

• What is Mindfulness

• How does Mindfulness reduce Stress

• Mindfulness in a Moment – A Reset Button (Becoming Aware)


Medical Definition of Stress

“Stress: In a medical or biological context stress is a physical, mental, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension. Stresses can be external (from the environment, psychological, or social situations) or internal Illness, or from a medical procedure). Stress can initiate the “fight or flight” response, a complex reaction of neurologic and endocrinologic systems.”

William C Shiel Jr, MD, FACP, FACR, Medicinenet.comCopyright The Mindful Nurse Australia 2019

“If you had to sum up how you feel about stress, which statement would be more accurate”

Kelly McGonigal, The Upside of Stress

A) “Stress is harmful and should be avoided, reduced, and managed”.

B) “Stress is helpful and should be accepted, utilized, and embraced”.


What is the Stress ResponseAutonomic Nervous System

Sympathetic Nervous System

• Prepares for fight/ flight/ freeze

Parasympathetic Nervous System

• Slows things down

• Homeostasis, Rest and Repair


Caveman Craziness Fight, Flight & Freeze Responses

https://youtu.be/rKdkW2416FE


Why is Stress Management Vital and a Necessity in Nursing Practice

NURSING CODE OF CONDUCT Effective from March 2018

Nurses have a RESPONSIBILITY to maintain their physical and mental health to practise safely and effectively. To promote health for nursing practice, nurses must abide by the five key points. Today we will focus on point B) and C)

B) Act to reduce the effect of fatigue and stress on their health, and on the ability to provide safe care

C) Encourage and support colleagues to seek help if they are concerned that their colleagues health maybe affecting their ability to practice safely, utilising services such as Nurse & Midwife Support, the national health support service for nurses, midwives and studentsCopyright The Mindful Nurse Australia 2019

Burnout

• “Healthcare professionals are at higher risk of psychological distress and subsequent poor well-being and burnout”.

• Burnout is defined as “becoming exhausted by making excessive demands on energy, strength or resources, which describes the result of prolonged occupational stress”.

• Burnout or prolonged occupational stress leads to reduced work performance and lower patient care, increased errors, increased sick leave, reduced empathy and reduced effective interpersonal communication”.

"Mindfulness-based intervention to reduce burnout and psychological distress, and improve wellbeing in psychiatry trainees: a pilot study", Mathew Kang, Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria


What is Meditation

• Meditation is a practice where an individual uses a technique – such asmindfulness, or focusing their mind on a particular object, thought or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state. (Wikipedia)

• Meditation is a state of experiencing pure awareness.

• It helps the person to identify that their thoughts are not them.

• It encourages the person to become the observer of their mind.

• With this realisation you can release negative thoughts and emotions by learning to let go of these thoughts and to detach from these thoughts.


What is Mindfulness


Paying Attention to Something,

in a Particular Way,

on Purpose,

in the Present Moment,

Non-Judgementally.

(Kabat-Zinn, 2003)

Mindfulness

Thich NHAT HANH

• Mindfulness is the capacity to be aware of what is going on in this moment and by being in touch with what is happening now we can feel happiness and gratitude where we are.


Other Definitions of Mindfulness

1) Mindfulness is letting go.

Not taking things for granted, noticing and appreciating the little things

2) Mindfulness means to return to the present moment.

In reality no one’s mind stays in the present moment and we consciously return to the present moment through awareness of breath and senses

3) Mindfulness is the self-regulation of attention with an attitude of curiosity, openness and acceptance.

Self-regulation is taking control of your attention, an curious open approach

"Definitions of Mindfulness That Might Surprise you" Ryan M, Niemiec Psy D –Psychology Today


The Amygdala =

• The Amygdala, along with the hippocampus, are part of the limbic system.

• The Amygdala plays a key role in the processing of emotions and is central to survival, arousal and autonomic responses.

• It’s the security guard or the smoke detector of your body.

• As you become self-aware you will be able to recognise whether you have an over-activated Amygdala, and if so use your mindfulness skills learnt to calm this and gain clarity.

Copyright The Mindful Nurse Australia 2019©2013 Debra E. Burdick Mindfulness Skills Workbook for Clinicians and Clients

internal and external

awareness


How Does Mindfulness create Change The Science Of Meditation

Https://Www.Youtube.Com/Watch?V=vta0j8ffcvs

Neuroplasticity is the ability of the brain to change itself.

Mindfulness practice is an excellent way to trigger positive changes in the brain


©2013 Debra E. Burdick Mindfulness Skills Workbook for Clinicians and Clients

The Relationship between awareness, competence and safety(modified from Chiarella & White, 2013).


Competent Incompetent

Aware Aware they are competentSAFE

Aware they are incompetentPOTENTIALLY SAFE

Unaware Unaware they are competent

POTENTIALLY UNSAFE

Unaware they are incompetent

UNSAFE

Insights into insight: analysis of case files of nurse and midwife registrant performance complaints, Mary Chiarella, Rachel Vernon, Collegian 26 (2019) 341-347

From this article:

“Insight is often cited as the key reason why a health professional is considered safe to remain on the register, or in its absence, unsafe to remain”.

“It is clear from this analysis that reflection alone does not constitute the reassurance about insight that regulators are seeking”.

“Practicing mindfulness leads to insight, awareness and conscious reflection which is vital for public safety and our own safety and well being.


The Stress Response

When we are in stress response our working brain - The Prefrontal Cortex is OFFLINE

The PFC is the Conductor of the Brain

Responsible For-Planning

-Organising

-Regulating Attention

-Decision Making

-Moderating Behaviour

-Personality Expression

-Motivation

-Mood

©2013 Debra E. Burdick Mindfulness Skills Workbook for Clinicians and Clients


Three Moments Of MindfulnessConnection

DisconnectionReconnection

Three Motivations of Mindfulness

Intention

Attention

Attitude

Kindness, Caring, Compassion

INSIGHT » AWARENESS » CONSCIOUS REFLECTION » CONSCIOUS ACTION » GROWTH


Non-judgemental awareness

• It is not the same as passively accepting whatever happens, including harmful things.

• It does not mean failing to evaluate whether others’ actions or your own are harmful, or failing to protect yourself from victimisation, or failing to prevent yourself from causing harm.

• Quite the opposite: NON-JUDGEMENTAL MINDFULNESS enables one to respond to such situations from awareness and thoughtfulness rather than habit, over-reaction, compulsion, addiction etc


Cultivating Acceptance, Compassion and Gratitude

• Acceptance – Accepting simply what is while working to change what you can and accepting those things you simply can’t change.

• Accepting Others, Accepting What Is, Accepting Yourself

• Compassion – Kindness, caring and willingness to help others. First we need self-compassion ( treating ourselves with the same love, care and kindness we would treat someone else).

• When mindfulness is at the forefront of our struggles, we respond to ourselves with compassion, kindness and support. How we cope in times of difficulty, start to change. Resilience is born.


“If you had to sum up how you feel about stress, which statement would be more accurate”

Kelly McGonigal, The Upside of Stress

A) “Stress is harmful and should be avoided, reduced, and managed”.

B) “Stress is helpful and should be accepted, utilized, and embraced”.


Using Mindfulness enables you to redefine Stress and use it to your advantage for growth

• I consciously embrace stress – Acceptance

• I utilise the energy from the stress to motivate my conscious actions

• I consciously use the focus of stress as a indicator of where I need to be curious, explore and take action to create change and growth

• I consciously embrace and have gratitude for the connections and strength in close relationships, community when we work through stressful times together.

• Stress can be utilised by consciously understanding it, embracing it, and leveraging it to your advantage.


Be Proactive with Your Health

• Your Health Mattershttps://www.nmsupport.org.au/news/what-does-nurse-midwife-

support-do

Apps:

• Retreat,

• Calm

• Headspace

Courses:

• MBSR Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction

• Books

• Local Mindfulness Meditation Groups

Mindfulness

mindfulness for stress management€¦ · first we need self-compassion ( treating ourselves with...

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