Mind & Body

Question 1

What are mind-body therapies?

Answer 1

therapies that use the body to affect the mind

eg: CBT, support groups, meditation, prayer, arts, yoga, hypnosis etc

Question 2

What is meant by the word ‘mind’?

Answer 2

NOT synonymous with brain
mental states; thoughts, emotions, beliefs, attitudes, images
conscious/unconscious
each state has an associated physiology

Question 3

History of mind-body connection

Answer 3

practiced by Indigenous people
Enlightenment + Descartes
benefits = surgery, trauma care
20thC = meditation, mindfulness

Question 4

Benefits of mind-body therapies

Answer 4

control over emotional/mental state may help health, reduce severity/frequency of symptoms, recover quicker

Question 5

Mind-body therapies and prevention of disease

Answer 5

can prevent stress
prolonged stress = BP, heart problems, anxiety, fatigue, insomnia, digestive disorders, mental health, fertility, diabetes
effect on immune system

Question 6

Managing symptoms with mind-body therapies

Answer 6

impact the experience of symptoms
+ sense of control, optimism, support
eg: mindful breathing during labour to help pain

Question 7

Mind-body therapies and pharmaceutical treatment

Answer 7

help treatment by using body’s power to heal itself

reduce reliance of pharmaceuticals by reducing stress hormones

Question 8

Stress experience

Answer 8

increased HR, faster/shallow breathing, tight muscles and bones (neck/jaw)
fight/flight mechanism - sympathetic NS releases stress hormones

Question 9

What is stress?

Answer 9

physical reaction to perceived threat
caused by stressors/triggers
change of response = slow breathing, stress inoculation

Question 10

Becoming aware of stressors and reactions

Answer 10

find cause + coping strategies = dec neg effects of stress

Eg: mindfulness

Question 11

Identifying what is going on (stress)

Answer 11

1. what is the source of stress?
   2, what can I do about stressors in life?
2. How do I experience stress?
3. How do I cope with stress?

Question 12

Adjusting your attitude (stress)

Answer 12

approach situation as a challenge and NOT a threat = minimise risk of triggering stress response + damage to health

clearer thinking, better decision making/ motor control

Question 13

6 tips to change your attitude (stress)

Answer 13

1. situation is a challenge
2. accept control/uncontrol
   3 assert feelings
3. divide job into smaller parts
4. schedule time
5. learn therapeutic approaches

Question 14

Stress and effect on health

Answer 14

death (Karoshi - Japan)
link between stress and illness
blame on self for being stressed/sick

Question 15

Effects of stress (work)

Answer 15

decision making, memory lapses, procrastination, inefficiency, mood swings, physical symptoms on work days

Question 16

Mindfulness - history

Answer 16

practiced by Indigenous people
Western - origin in Buddhism introduced by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Teasdale, Williams, Segal - Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

Question 17

What is mindfulness?

Answer 17

being aware of yourself, others, world around

paying attention: on purpose, present moment, non-judgementally

Question 18

Wisdom dimension - mindfulness

Answer 18

‘case be the case’
accept things as they are and choose response to it

non-judgemental mindfulness = creative response + choices

Question 19

Compassion dimension - mindfulness

Answer 19

rest simply with things as they are

kindness to self, others, world

Question 20

Benefits of mindfulness training

Answer 20

= better health, WB, quality of life. self-esteem, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, empathetic
less likely to; experience distress (depression/anxiety), neg thoughts

Question 21

Foundation of practice (mindfulness)

Answer 21

mindfulness = mindfulness practice

mental training

Question 22

Conscious choice – coming out of automatic pilot

Answer 22

autopilot = fast/intuitive, unconscious, automatic, everyday decisions, biased

intentional = slow/logical, conscious, effortful, complex decisions, reliable

Question 23

Automatic pilot

Answer 23

can miss: subtle cues, tone of voice, non-verbal cues

Question 24

Automatic pilot connected to actions and behaviours

Answer 24

routine can have little bearing on the truth

neg automatic routines can undermine wellbeing - mindfulness can counteract it

Question 25

The confusion between ‘mindful’ and ‘meditation’

Answer 25

mindfullness = awareness, present-centred, open, intentional, kind
mindfulness meditation = formal practices to develop mindfulness (breath)
meditation; faith, devotion, dwell on reality

Question 26

Mindfulness of the breath

Answer 26

emotions change breath + breath changes emotions

emotional barometer - regulate emotions and read self

Question 27

Building neural pathways

Answer 27

neuroplasticity = reshape brain, rewire in response to behaviour
repeated behaviour over time

Question 28

Four skills coming out of mindfulness meditation

Answer 28

1. seeing your attention isn’t where you want it to be
2. unpicking attention from where you don’t want it to be
3. placing attention where wanted
4. keeping attention where you want it

Question 29

Being gentle with wandering mind

Answer 29

gently/kindly drawing attention back
be patient
noticing what is actually going on

Question 30

Value of experience (mindfulness)

Answer 30

4 interconnected aspects; thoughts, feelings, sensations, impulses
discern interacting weather system in our minds