Practising mindfulness through times of uncertainty

Fear, panic, stress have the potential to define us – how we live, work, feel and manage our day to day. But there is another way. We can make choices about how we deal with adversity so that we stay connected, resilient and maintain good mental health.

 Keeping fear, anxiety and panic in check

The rapid spread of the coronavirus is having a severe and sudden impact on our life. Health, work, private and social life are uncertain. Many of us share similar feelings of fear and anxiety. That’s our actual, direct experience, and we can’t do very much about it. It’s called primary experience.

Unfortunately, we often cause ourselves extra unnecessary stress and pressure by following that experience up with various thoughts, emotions and judgements.

These kinds of reactions can proliferate and escalate. One thought leads to others, which lead to more feelings of panic, more judgements and we feel overwhelmed and isolated.

Before we know it we are drowning in a sea of despair. This is called secondary experience. How do you deal with this?

Taking back control - how we respond to stress, anxiety, panic, fear is a choice

When we become aware that our feelings of panic, fear and anxiety are caused by our own personal reaction to the situation (and not the situation itself), then choice becomes possible.

Our reactions are not usually conscious, but automatic and habitual. By contrast our responses are conscious, chosen and creative.

Mindfulness practice can help us come back to our primary experience, to what’s actually happening. And in doing so, it can help us maintain good mental health, to stay calm and resourceful.

Taking back control - my top tips for maintaining good mental well-being

Get to know your circadian rhythm: what are your low points in the day? What do you do then? How do you react to and recover from periods or bursts of intense output of energy? When do you feel most vital and sharp: morning, afternoon or evening? When do you rest? Knowing your circadian rhythm informs the structure of your day.

Create a structure for your working day at home and write it down. Stick to it so you can stay grounded, focused and resourceful throughout the day. Include all meal times and breaks. Here is a sample structure for a home working day.

Pause 5x daily to take 3 deep breaths (it takes about 20 seconds). Set your alarm or make yourself a post-it note to remember. Connecting with the body and breath in this way activates the parasympathetic nervous-system that lets the brain know that you are safe; it brings us back into our direct sensory experience (primary experience), into the here and now where we can feel safe, grounded and calm. It’s a direct antidote to spiralling off in our head (secondary experience) which activates the sympathetic nervous system, the alarm system (amygdala) of the brain;

Take regular mindful breaks (before you need one): taking regular breaks keeps us resourceful, creative and productive throughout the day vs feeling completely wiped-out and exhausted at the end of the day. Set your alarm after 60 or 90 minutes.

Here are some ideas for what you can do in your mindful break.

Reduce information input: Pay attention to how often you check the news or surf the internet: Decide to watch the news two or three times a day but no more. Our mind often suffers from over-stimulation due to information overload. It dulls and clouds the mind, puts it into high alert mode and fosters negative emotion.

Practice self-care: Do one thing daily to consciously care for yourself. Caring for oneself is not selfish or self-indulgent as often thought. Self-care nourishes the mind and heart. When that happens we feel well inside and have more to give to others too: cycling, yoga, reading, time in the garden, a bath, combing your hair, making an effort dressing yourself (even at home), eating regularly and healthily, keeping your environment clean and tidy (keeps us grounded and secure), a short nap (clears and restores the mind from over-stimulation), regular conversations with close friends.

Have a regular practice once a week: yoga, running, meditation, cycling, martial arts, painting, making music, baking bread, cooking, crafting, knitting etc. This is a practice not a habit. A habit slips into the background, we do it without thinking. A practice requires a re-commitment - in this it reminds us that we live lives of meaning, that we take responsibility for our wellbeing so that we can enhance the lives of others too.

Have a work buddy: Ask a colleague to be your work buddy and arrange to talk with each other via phone or video call once or twice daily. Share how your work day has been, what you’ve managed to do, what you’ve found challenging. Avoid going into catastrophic thinking together. Help each other come back to primary experience, to what’s actually going on, the here and now and make wise choices and decisions that are rooted in reality.

Self-kindness: one of the keys to reducing stress, panic and anxiety and increasing resilience is self-kindness. When we become more aware of our habitual reactions, we often don’t like what we notice and tend to judge ourselves harshly. This adds more unnecessary suffering. Bringing kindness, curiosity, acceptance and friendliness to our experience, saying to yourself: “This is how I react and feel, this is human, others react and feel this way”, helps us to avoid getting caught up in negative emotions (secondary experience). Self-kindness helps us to become more emotionally robust and resilient.

Common humanity and mindful well-wishing: pause several times a day, connect with the quality of your heart and from this place wish yourself and others well, hold them in your mind: colleagues, friends, loved ones, people in your neighbourhood, in your borough, throughout the world… Remember that yes, physically we distance ourselves from others right now but we are all here and in it together; connected with each other.

Reflection & wisdom: Take a moment to reflect on the truth of change and of our interdependence; on the frailty and preciousness of our life: it helps us relax the body and mind, helps us relax into how things are vs wishing them to be different when they are not which takes energy and headspace; it broadens our perspective on things and reminds us that we are not alone in this.

30-minute online meditation & mindfulness sessions

I am offering 30-minute online meditation & mindfulness sessions.

No prior experience is necessary. Please note, participants will be muted so not to worry if children are around and interrupt as others won’t hear. Booking is essential. For more information and to make a booking (free, by donation and standard rate places), follow this link.

Wishing you all well. If you have any questions, or would like to share your ideas, please get in touch.