Over a period of six weeks, I embarked on a personal study to discover the effectiveness
of the meditative practice of mindfulness on creating real and lasting change in relation to
negative thinking. I became aware that I would ruminate pessimistic thoughts of situations from
the past, current issues, and potential future problems. Although this practice of mulling over
stressful situations, both real and imagined, had a limited repertoire, they would swirl around in
my head like a revolving door. These scenarios would become more frequent and last longer as
my level of stress rose or my anger was stirred by adverse circumstances I could not control.
Week one began on Monday, September 29, 2014. I dedicated the entire seven
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No intervention was used to stop ruminating, I simply kept count of the instances that I
was aware of obsessive thoughts. To keep the count accurate, I utilized an application on my
iPhone called, Karma Jar. The program was developed based on the practice of a Buddhist
monk who would place a white stone in a glass jar when he had positive thoughts, and dark
stones in the jar when he experienced negative thinking. As the jar filled up, I could visually
compare and count the number of times when ruminating would take over my attention.
Looking at a jar full of dark stones at the end of every day that first week allowed me to see the
scope of the problem. By the end of the week, I had endured 144 incidents of ruminating.
In spite of being overwhelmed by the severity of my problem with rumination, I felt
extremely motivated to change, and enthusiastically began the mindfulness phase of the study.
The first few hours of implementing the intervention seemed difficult and tedious, but I was
quickly surprised at how much better I got in a very short space of time.
The Practice and Study of Mindfulness
I discovered that by not judging the thoughts, and the anxiety or depression they
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As the first mindfulness week progressed and I counted a dramatic drop in the number of
ruminating interludes. I also noticed that I was learning to quickly disengage from ruminative
thought patterns. My awareness of the onset of an episode became sharper, allowing me to have
increasingly longer periods of time in between ruminating thoughts. This respite from self-
inflicted torment, and the liberating of my brain to flourish in more constructive thoughts, was
the best reward I could have received.
The remaining observation weeks continued to show a sharp decline in ruminative
thinking with as few as three per day in the final week. The Oxford study concludes that,
“rumination occurs to some extent as a common human experience, but becomes particularly
dysfunctional when it is excessive and uncontrollable. The idea is that greater skill in mindful
awareness, either naturally occurring or cultivated in meditation practices, does not mean that
people do not ruminate, but that they are better at noticing it when it occurs, so that they
subsequently can disengage from it” (Raes, Williams 2010).
Outcome
What the Oxford study discovered corresponds to my own personal
stressful. If people incorporate margins in their life, and escape from reality for a brief period of
...xposed to extremely stressful situations that may have the potential to cause psychological harm. Many of the participants were visibly distressed” (McLeod 7). These stressful situations produced many signs of tension such as stuttering, sweating, trembling and biting lips. Three of the participants had severe seizures that forced the experiment to stop.
...ions. There were a lot of surveys to complete within the two-week time period of the study. The surveys should be spread out a little more and be over a month’s time so they do not cause stress.
Over twenty-five hundred years ago, Buddha Guatama practiced meditation and came to what is known as “The Four Noble Truth,” an important principle in Buddhism (Elder, 2010). This principle informs the reader of what suffering is and how affect is. This is a great example of how valuable meditation is- on the very first session ever recorded, the awareness that came from it would later be the foundation of a new religion. This proves how powerful meditation can be. Furthermore, some form of meditation can be found in various religions. Although the styles, techniques, and ideology behind the meditation can vary per religion, personal transformation is the key goal (Modi, Singh, 2012). Today, in Western society, mindful meditation (a form of meditation) has grown in popularity, used for relaxation and to help treat those who suffer from mental illness’ and mood disorders. Viewed as alternative medicine for the mind and soul, it is beneficial for our emotional and mental
This type of mindfulness meditation is known as shamatha in Buddhism. It basically forces you to focus on the present because you have to continue to follow the inhale and exhale of your breath. You can be mindful of the way you eat, taking a shower, driving to work or enjoying quiet time with your spouse. Every moment in every day is an opportunity to practice mindfulness. In Buddhism, the Buddha realized that focusing on just his breath allowed him to accurately perceive reality and attain enlightenment.
When mindfulness is thought of, mediation comes to mind. However, meditation is not the only way mindfulness is used. Mindfulness practices may have originated from Buddhism, yet mindfulness interventions are based on the philosophy that promotes positive outcomes for mental and physical health (Hardison & Roll, 2016). It is also defined at a state of
The circumstances that cause stress are called stressors. Stressors vary in harshness and duration. For example, the responsibility of caring for a sick parent may be an ongoing source of major stress, whereas getting stuck in a traffic jam may cause mild, short-term stress. Some events, such as the death of a loved one, are stressful for everyone. But in other situations, individuals may respond differently to the same event—what a stressor is for one person may not be stressor for another. For example, a student who is unprepared for a chemistry test and anticipates a bad grade may feel stress, on the other hand a classmate who stud...
There are different ways in which one can experience stress and it is important to remember that stress is an essential part of life. Not all stressful situations are negative. Receiving a promotion at work, the birth of a child or taking a trip can all be stressful but are not threatening. The reason why one may see these situations as stressful is because they may feel unprepared to deal with them. To eliminate confusion and misuse of words Hans Selye gave names to the different types of stress one may experience, he described damaging or unpleasant experiences as distress and pleasurable or satisfying experiences are called eustress (Rice, 2012).
To begin with, mindfulness is when someone can pay attention to the present moment “without being devoted to different points of view” (Martin, 1997). Along with staying focused on the present moment, mindfulness is when the particular person does not judge the current experience as the person tries to comprehend the present situation. Mindfulness makes a person reflect on one’s self by not only figuring out one’s thoughts, but also the feelings that go along with it. The complex nature of mindfulness demonstrates that it has multiple purposes that cultivates a person into realizing the potential of the brain (Davis & Hayes,
The proposal study will identify the mindfulness of each participant as they go through the training program to analyze their own actions/reactions and behaviors within their selves. To develop an effectiveness meditation program, the study will help maintain the healthy, functional development of a healthy individuals within the sixteen universities. The appropriate study will become beneficial and reliable to evaluate and acknowledge the self-aware and the environment of individuals within the six-month study.
Practicing mindfulness is something that most people probably have on their daily to-do list, but never getting around to it because they either don’t believe it’ll work or feel too busy with their lives to stop for literally just a minute to breathe. When going into this activity, my to-do is exactly what was in mind. It’s the list that is never completed. So, having this as an actual assignment was exactly what I needed to get a jumpstart on my mindfulness techniques in my daily life.
To increase the efficacy of my behavioral plan I came up with three specific goals to help me keep up with my intentions. First, I designated specific times on Tuesday, Thursd...
It became difficult to sleep at night. My restless mind made nights long, and days empty. The itinerary of my daily routine consisted of “I don’t care”s and “ok, it’s fine”s. Less of my classes were about Biology; and more of my classes were chosen based on whatever wasn’t filled up. Depression.
Personality Changes: When a person is stressed they may experience feelings of irritability, hostility, anger aggression, miscommunication, isolation, disinterest in appearance, impulsivity such as gambling and compulsive behavior rituals such as cleaning.
When stressful events occur, three types of responses take place, an emotional response, a physiological response, and a behavioral response. Negative emotional responses such as anxiety, anger, and grief are common responses to stress. However, in some cases, an individual may exhibit positive emotions when coping with stressful situations. According to Folkman and Moskowiz, positive emotions promote resilience in the face of stress by promoting creativity, problem solving, flexibility, and can enhance physical and psychological health (Weiten & Lloyd, 2006, p. 84). The fight or flight response is a physiological reaction to a perceived threat of danger, in which the body prepares itself to either fight or flee an attacker.