MINDFULNESS CAN HELP US BE KIND

As our annual holiday of giving comes to an end, we often begin a new year full of hopes, intentions and resolutions to take better care of ourselves. Many of us also vow to take better care of others. We want to be more kind. But it’s hard to be more kind to others when we feel our own cup of kindness is….

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JAN 2019

MINDFUL HEARING, MINDFUL LISTENING

Hearing and listening are often confused. Hearing is one of the five major sense perceptions, along with seeing, tasting, smelling and touching. We use the sense of hearing when we are in conversation with another person and we may refer to that elemental sense of hearing as listening.

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DEC 2018

MINDFULNESS FOR A NATION UNDER STRESS

We have a serious public health epidemic. Public health officials are increasingly alarmed by the growing epidemic of stress, anxiety, depression, loneliness and suicide in America. The American Psychological Association recently found more than half of Americans said they consider this the lowest point in U.S. history they….

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OCT 2018

MINDFULNESS AND COMMUNICATION

Human beings are social creatures by our very nature. We depend on each other. We need each other. Even though we may feel self-sufficient and fiercely independent, research shows our interpersonal relationships and social support are extremely important to our physical, mental and emotional health.

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NOV 2018

S.T.O.P. A SIMPLE MINDFULNESS PRACTICE

The fast pace of modern life is taking its toll on our mental and physical health. Multiple surveys in the past year have documented an alarming increase in perceived stress, anxiety, depression and suicide.  Our  health – our very lives – depend on our ability to manage stress in healthy ways at home, at work….

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AUG 2018

PRACTICE MINDFUL BREATHING FOR ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION

A recent American Psychiatric Association poll found anxiety in Americans has increased sharply over the past year, up five points since 2017. Also in the past year, a Blue Cross Blue Shield report found major depression has risen by 33 percent since 2013. This rate is rising even faster among millennials….

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SEPT 2018

MINDFUL SELF-COMPASSION

Your compassionate human desire to take good care of others is critical to the well-being of your family, friends, co-workers and community – and taking good care of yourself is the foundation for your care of everyone else.

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APR 2018

MINDFULNESS FOR SENIORS

You and I have two primary modes of mental activity: the doing mode and the being mode. Although we are called human beings, we spend the majority of our time in the doing mode rather than the being mode.

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JUN 2018

SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER

In addition to cold weather, winter sometimes brings sadness and depression.  Some people experience depression only during the winter. Others with year-round depression have worsening symptoms in winter. Terms such as “winter blues,” “wintertime depression” and “winter-onset depression” refer….

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FEB 2018

MINDFULNESS AND INNER BEAUTY

You may already have a positive self-image and feel good about your body. You may consider your body to be “the temple of the Holy Spirit.” Or you may have a negative body image, even hating your body. Whether you love your body or hate it, you can benefit from the body scan, a foundational practice from….

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MAR 2018

COMBINING MINDFULNESS AND EXERCISE FOR HEALTH

As you approach the new year, you may be making resolutions for positive health behavior changes. Birthdays and other anniversaries also prompt us to take stock and vow to adopt healthy lifestyle habits. Two of the most common promises we make to ourselves are to increase our physical activity….

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JAN 2018

BEFRIENDING YOUR BODY WITH MINDFULNESS

Being disconnected from or being self-critical of your body can have serious health consequences. An 18-year-old woman had bilateral breast implants at an out-of-state clinic. Since her early teens, she had wanted this surgery because she thought her....

MANAGING WEIGHT WITH MINDFULNESS

Where is your attention when you eat?  Do you love the pleasure of eating so much that you overeat from sheer enjoyment rather than from physiologic hunger cues? Do you overeat as a self-soothing antidote for emotional stress, anxiety or depression?

MINDFULLY MANAGING ANGER

Anger can be a healthy emotional response or a serious health risk. Managing anger appropriately does not require that we deny it, repress it or get completely rid of it. Brief, mild-to-moderate episodes of anger and righteous indignation can be a useful stimulus….

LIVING WELL WITH CANCER

Both my parents experienced the sudden change in life’s priorities associated with the diagnosis of inoperable cancer.  Suddenly, things that have occupied our mind, time and energy are reappraised in light of a stark reminder of life’s uncertainty and our mortality.

YOGA + KIDS = FUN

Yoga can be fun and healthy for you and your kids – physically, mentally and emotionally.What is yoga?  The word “yoga” means to yoke, unite, connect or join together. Yoga helps connect the body, mind, heart and emotions. It can also help connect you to other....

LET FOOD BE YOUR MEDICINE

The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) is the world’s premier nutrition education resource. Harvard Medical School and the Department of Nutrition at HSPH developed the Healthy Eating Plate to provide the general public with….

THE MINDFUL GIFT OF LOVING KINDNESS

The holiday season is filled with emotion for most people. While this emotion is often happy, positive and loving, for many people it can be very unhappy and even depressing. Holiday music can trigger emotional associations with the absence of a loved one or….

MINDFULNESS AND GRATITUDE FOR YOUR AGING EYES

One of the most common symptoms of aging is the decline in accommodation, the process by which the eye changes (accommodates) focus to maintain a clear image of objects at different distances.

USING ANTIBIOTICS WISELY

Is it necessary, or even safe, to take an antibiotic for your next illness?  This question is becoming a routine part of conversations between consumers and health providers. The way we answer this question has serious implications. Consumers and health care.....

LIFESTYLE MEDICINE FOR CANCER SURVIVORS

A cancer survivor is anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer, from the time of diagnosis through the rest of his or her life. Modern medical, radiation and surgical treatments have led to a growing population of cancer survivors, who now number over 12 million, or one in.....

STRESS AND DIABETES

I will never forget my patient who developed Type 1, insulin dependent diabetes after her spouse was violently murdered. While there is no research supporting a causal link between the two, it seemed to us both that the intense emotional trauma of this.....

SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER

In addition to cold weather, winter sometimes brings sadness and depression.  Some people experience depression only during the winter. Others with year-round depression have worsening symptoms in winter. Terms such as “winter blues,” “wintertime depression” ….

MINDFUL EATING - WHAT YOU EAT & HOW YOU EAT

The world's leading nutrition researchers are sending a very clear public health message based on the best scientific evidence available: To promote health, prevent disease and extend life, half your food servings should come from fruits and vegetables.

STRESS AND ORAL HEALTH

For many people, there is a relationship between stress and oral health.  The presence of oral disease and dental disorders can cause stress from low self-image, which can have a negative effect on well-being and personal happiness. Stress, chronic anxiety and.....

CHOCOLATE MEDITATION

Cocoa contains phytonutrients (plant chemicals) called flavanols that may help protect you against coronary heart disease (heart attacks). Compared to milk chocolate, dark chocolate contains two to three times the amount of these beneficial plant chemicals.

MINDFULNESS FOR OVERALL FITNESS

The three primary domains of your overall fitness are physical activity, healthy eating and emotional well-being.  These three foundational domains interact with each other to help you maintain whole-person health of your body, mind and emotions.