「マインドフルネス」　　”Mindfulness”

“Mindfulness”

Rather than being bogged down by distractions such as past experiences or preconceived notions, we focus on the five senses of our bodies, and perceive and accept reality as it is, such as our feelings at this moment and our current physical situation.

The concept of mindfulness comes from Buddhism

The person who popularized the term “mindfulness” is Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and founding director of the university’s Mindfulness Center.

In defining mindfulness, Dr. Kabat-Zinn aimed to “eliminate religiosity.” This is said to be the key to shedding scientific light on mindfulness and spreading it into the medical field.

The concept of mindfulness is said to originate from Buddhism, and the idea has been around in Japan for over 1,500 years. For this reason, many Japanese people seem to be confused about the difference between mindfulness and Zen.

Mindfulness is a state of mind that is focused on the present moment, and the roots of mindfulness techniques, such as Zen and Buddhist meditation, are also said to be training methods for achieving a state of mindfulness. Can be defined. In other words, many well-known meditation methods can be said to be ways to reach the psychological state of mindfulness.

The effect becomes clear little by little

Since Dr. Kabat-Zinn proposed mindfulness, it has been practiced in many medical institutions, and many papers have been written researching its effects. As a result, the benefits of mindfulness became increasingly recognized, and at the same time many meditation centers were established in the United States, and it began to be adopted by intellectually curious entrepreneurs and artists.

In the 2000s, with the development of brain science, it has become scientifically clear that mindfulness is effective in improving mental health and productivity.

So, what are the effects of mindfulness?

The first one is physical. It has been proven to improve immunity, lower blood pressure, lower blood cholesterol and blood sugar levels, and is said to balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves, helping you sleep better.

The second is the mental aspect. It has been proven to relieve tension and depression, reduce anxiety, and improve stress tolerance.

Thirdly, in terms of brain function, concentration and memory have improved, allowing you to concentrate on each task even when you are working on multiple tasks at the same time, and improving the quality of your work and study. This leads to high performance.

Research has shown that people who meditated for 40 minutes or more every day for many years experienced an increase in the thickness of their cerebral cortex, the part of the brain that is responsible for perception, thinking, reasoning, and memory.

Try practicing with breathing

Although many papers have been published demonstrating the effects of mindfulness, it is still relatively unfamiliar in Japan, and many people may not know what to do even if they are told to “focus on the present moment.” Is it not?

How can you achieve a state of mindfulness? Here we will briefly explain one method of breathing meditation that uses “breathing,” which is the basis of mindfulness.

[STEP1]

First, adjust your posture.

Sit shallowly in a chair, spread your legs slightly apart, and stretch your back by imagining that a string is being pulled from above your head. Place your hands in your lap, palms facing up, close your eyes, and relax your body.

[STEP2]

Next, focus on breathing as you are.

The basics are “nasal breathing,” in which you inhale through your nose and exhale through your nose, and try to breathe normally. Concentrate on the air flowing through your nose and the swelling of your belly.

[STEP3]

When you notice your thoughts wandering, return your attention to your breathing.

Ideally, you should avoid places like your bed, futon, or sofa that are associated with sleep, and choose a place where you feel safe while meditating.

The time can be short at first. It is important to incorporate this into your daily routine, even if it is short, and continue to do so. Once you get used to it, try aiming for 20 to 30 minutes every day.

By correcting your posture and focusing on your breathing, you can calm your thoughts and give yourself more time to distance yourself from past painful experiences and worries about the future.

We breathe approximately 30,000 times a day. Most of this is done unconsciously.

It is said that many people today, who are busy every day and whose sympathetic nervous system tends to dominate, tend to have shallow breathing, making it difficult to perform in a way that suits them.

That’s why it’s important to start by focusing on your breathing.

Improve your well-being through breathing and posture

Breathing is the only way to consciously control the autonomic nervous system, which works without rest in an unconscious state. By breathing deeply and slowly, you can activate the parasympathetic nervous system and calm your mood.

Don’t you all take deep breaths when you’re nervous or sigh when you feel stressed? In fact, this behavior can also be explained from the relationship between breathing and the autonomic nervous system.

Breathing, where you pause for a moment and focus on breathing out and breathing in without worrying about the past or future, is a simple technique to “focus your attention on the here and now,” as exemplified by meditation and mindfulness. Therefore, it can be said to be an effort to enrich lives from an anti-aging and preventive medicine perspective.

Breathing is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system when we inhale, and the parasympathetic nervous system when we exhale. The autonomic nervous system cannot be controlled by one’s will, but it can be controlled to some extent through breathing techniques.

If you make your exhalation longer than your inhalation, your parasympathetic nervous system will become dominant, so if you’re feeling nervous or want to relax, try focusing on your exhalation.