Group items tagged

haracterized by a direct reduced reactivity of “lower” emotion-generative brain regions without an active recruitment of “higher” brain regions,

o assess whether mindfulness practice can be best described as a top–down emotion regulation strategy, as a bottom–up emotion regulation strategy, or as a combination of both strategies, on the basis of functional neuro-imaging studies employing emotion regulation paradigms.

the way we think and the way we handle how we feel plays a big part in mental health

People undertaking mindfulness training have shown

Mindfulness is a potentially life-changing way to alter our feelings in positive ways, and an ever-expanding body of evidence shows that it really works.

are ways of paying attention to the present moment, using techniques like meditation, breathing and yoga.

Mindfulness meditation has been shown to affect how the brain works and even its structure.

ncreased activity in the area of the brain associated with positive emotion – the pre-frontal cortex – which is generally less active in people who are depressed.

More than 100 studies have shown changes in brain wave activity during meditation and researchers have found that areas of the brain linked to emotional regulation are larger in people who have meditated regularly for five years.

recurrent depressionanxiety disorders addictive behaviour stress chronic pain chronic fatigue syndromeinsomniaplus more mental and physical problems.

Mindfulness in the workplace can improve productivity and decrease sickness absence, and increasingly employers are looking to benefit from its effect on workplace wellbeing.

Almost three-quarters of GPs think mindfulness meditation would be helpful for people with mental health problems, and a third already refer patients to MBCT on a regular basis.

. When you're mindful, you exist solely in the moment, noticing what is going on right then to the fullest. The practice of acceptance goes along with mindfulness

In acceptance you observe your thoughts and feelings from a distance, without judging them good or bad

Instead of saying "I am anxious," notice the physical sensation and acknowledge that it is there

help clients daily learn skills to help them better cope with the effects of anxiety on their mind and bodies.

Mindfulness is most frequently associated with a practice of meditation. Even five minutes of meditation daily has been proven to show benefit.

Some of my clients report washing the dishes as being meditative for them, or gardening, or listening to music.

Any activity where you can be fully in the moment contributes to your ability to quiet that voice in the mind that causes anxiety.

By being mindful you are not denying your feelings, nor ignoring them. You are integrating them into your "whole self" and allowing your mind to get out of the way so that your body can naturally heal itself.

Even as our minds get busy, the physical sensations of anxiety such as muscle tension, tightness in the chest or stomach, fluttering heartbeat are still present. Every few moments our minds do a "check in" to be sure that all systems are functioning properly. When the mind locates the symptoms of anxiety it sends off a "code red" and all of the symptoms feel exacerbated.

Who’s to say if you should experience “unwanted” thoughts and emotions” as you start to become aware of them? That’s your call. (We do emotion regulation all the time.) But it’s not the issue; it’s the deception.

Getting in touch with your true nature, de-stressing, and being happy are all possible without suppressing negative emotions.

Of course you’ll temporarily feel better if you don’t have to face your unwanted thoughts and emotions

But you’ll have to meditate again to get that high

You start to judge uncomfortable thoughts and feelings as inferior, unreal, or bad.

ou get good at stuffing anger and other negative emotions

If and when a traumatic or emotionally painful experience occurs, you don’t fully process it, and cut your grieving process dangerously short.

You expect meditation to fix your problems for you, resolve your relationship conflicts, and make you happy

xpecting that meditation will get rid of the negative emotions

You detach from your partner or loved one when they’re upset or experiencing an emotion you see as undesirable

Because you’ve trained yourself to avoid them

You struggle to empathize with others, or understand their pain. If you don’t feel your own pain — you can’t expect to have compassion for another’s pain.

You lose your ability to naturally feel upset, sad, or concerned when there’s an issue in your life that you need to address

Your ability to feel positive emotions is also affecte

d. Because you don’t allow experience of the negative.

You start to feel dissatisfied with your life, and alone

Applications of mindfulness include emotional problems such as stress and anxiety; behavioral problems such as eating, parenting, and addiction; disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, and borderline personality disorders; somatic problems including psoriasis, fibromyalgia, and chronic pain.

Mindfulness is not a state of doing but a state of being in which you are fully aware of the present moment and do not evaluate your inner or outer environment.

Mindfulness is a state of self-regulation of your attention and the ability to direct it towards breathing, eating, or something else. Curiosity, openness, and acceptance are all part of being mindful.

mindfulness can be defined as paying attention in a particular way on purpose in a present moment and non-judgmentally.

People who are depressed, often have lots of negative popping thoughts about their past

A combination of mindfulness based stress reduction and cognitive therapy has been shown to be very effective for treatment of depression.

MBCT was originally developed as a relapse prevention program to help people stay free of depression once they have fully recovered fr

om an episode.

Other studies have showed that the results achieved by MBCT were equivalent to the results achieved by antidepressants. Moreover, people who have bee trained in MBCT experienced less depression and significantly improved their quality of life.3

Participants are armed with knowledge regarding depression as an illness, and are given additional tools to combat their depressive symptoms as they arise

order to facilitate a complete and rapid progression to healing.

Clients who use this technique will often be able to revert to these methods in times of distress or when they are faced with situations that cause them to lose their sense of separation from their thoughts.

Training programs encompass a variety of activities, including role playing, lectures, yoga, meditation, group classes and sustained periods of silence.

. In addition, this method works equally as well to relieve the symptoms of various psychological issues including anxiety and panic.

The original platform was designed to address the needs of people who suffered from multiple events of depression

"largest temperature departure from average of any season on record."

it had rained in Mecca despite a temperature of 109 degrees,

the Copenhagen climate conference in 2009 would have marked the culmination of the global fight to slow a changing climat

George H.W. Bush, who flew in for the first conclave, Barack Obama didn't even attend.

I can say with some confidence that we're losing the fight, badly and quickly – losing it because, most of all, we remain in denial about the peril that human civilization is in.

you just need to do a little mat

Last month the world's nations, meeting in Rio for the 20th-anniversary reprise of a massive 1992 environmental summit, accomplished nothing.

Sir Nicholas Stern of Britain, called the "most important gathering since the Second World War

"This is our chance. If we miss it, it could take years before we get a new and better one. If ever."

Neither China nor the United States, which between them are responsible for 40 percent of global carbon emissions, was prepared to offer dramatic concessions, and so the conference drifted aimlessly for two weeks until world leaders jetted in for the final day

COPENHAGEN: THE MUNICH OF OUR TIMES?

"the scientific view that the increase in global temperature should be below two degrees Celsius."

"we agree that deep cuts in global emissions are required... so as to hold the increase in global temperature below two degrees Celsius."

about 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit – the accord ratified positions taken earlier in 2009 by the G8, and the so-called Major Economies Forum.

So far, we've raised the average temperature of the planet just under 0.8 degrees Celsius, and that has caused far more damage than most scientists expected

that two degrees is far too lenient a target.

All told, 167 countries responsible for more than 87 percent of the world's carbon emissions have signed on to the Copenhagen Accord, endorsing the two-degree target.

Residency requirements, guardianship requirements, delays in transfer of school records, lack of transportation, and lack of immunization records often prevent homeless children from enrolling in school

Homelessness has a devastating impact on children and youths’ educational opportunities.

while 87% of homeless youth are enrolled in school, only 77% attend school regularly.

2007-2008 school year 794,617 homeless children and youth were enrolled in public schools

Furthermore, the number does not include all preschool-age children, or any infants and toddlers.

22% lived in shelters, 65% lived with other family members or friends, 7% lived in motels, and 6% lived without shel

Homeless families move frequently due to limits to length of shelter stays, search for safe and affordable housing or employment, or to escape abusive family members. Too often, homeless children have to change schools because shelters or other temporary accommodations are not located within their school district. Homeless children and youth frequently transfer schools multiple times in a single year because of these conditions. 

According to the Institute for Children and Poverty, homeless children are nine times more likely to repeat a grade, four times more likely to drop out of school, and three times more likely to be placed in special education programs than their housed peers.

McKinney Act’s Education of Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY)

1987 in response to reports that only 57% of homeless children were enrolled in school. 

Enrollment of homeless students increased by 17% between the 2006-2007 and the 2007-2008 school years. Yet, while almost all states have revised laws and policies to improve access to education for homeless students, significant barriers to enrollment and attendence remain, including guardianship and immunization requirements, transportation problems and school fees. Barriers to success in school were found to include family mobility, poor health, and lack of food, clothing, and school supplies. [7] Many of these issues were addressed in the 2001 reauthor

Local educational agency (LEA) sub grants support a variety of activities, including identification and outreach; assistance with school enrollment and placement; transportation assistance; school supplies; coordination among local service providers; before and after school and summer educational programs; and referrals to support services.

State educational agency (SEA) funding helps support services such as toll-free hotlines; awareness raising activities for educators and service providers; preparation of educational materials for statewide distribution; technical assistance to schools, service providers, parents, and students; and enrollment assistance.

The EHCY Program provides formula grants to state educational agencies to ensure that all homeless children and youth have equal access to the same free and appropriate education, including preschool education, provided to other children and youth

ization of the McKinney-Vento Act, but due to a lack in funding, have not been fully addressed.

there was a 17% increase in homeless children and youth identified in public schools.

With numbers of homeless students nearing 800,000, states failed to provide subgrants to 41% of students identified as homeless

Yet, the EHCY program was funded at only $65 million in FY2009, less than one third of the $210 million minimum NAECHY estimates will be required to appropriately serve the rising number of homeless students in America.

43% percent of responding cities reported an increase in the overall number of homeless persons accessing emergency shelter and transitional housing programs during the last year

71% of responding cities reported increases in households with children accessing emergency shelter. 65% of these cities are predicting increases in overall requests for emergency shelter and 100% predict increases in requests for emergency shelter by households with children. Meanwhile, 52% of responding cities already report having to turn people away some or all of the time.

. The primary reason for family homelessness is the lack of affordable housing, though poverty, unemployment, low-paying jobs, family disputes, substance abuse, and other factors all play significant roles in family homelessness. Recent statistics indicate that 26% of those suffering from homelessness are considered “severely mentally ill;” 19% are employed; 15% are victims of domestic violence; 13% are physically disabled; 13 are veterans; and 2% are HIV positive.

Two subpopulations of children who face increased policy barriers to education are unaccompanied homeless youth and homeless preschoolers. Homeless youth are often prevented from enrolling in and attending school by curfew laws, liability concerns, and legal guardianship requirements. [12] Homeless preschoolers also face difficulty accessing public preschool education. Less than 16% of eligible preschool aged homeless children are enrolled in preschool programs. [13]

Congress reauthorized the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act in 2002.  It changed some of the responsibilities of school districts and states, including the requirement for each school district to have a designated homeless education liaison to build awareness in the school and community.  Despite some increase in funding to the initiative in the last few years, the program still lacks proper funding, and, therefore, cannot be adequately implemented on the state and local level.

While they are experiencing homelessness, however, it is essential that children remain in school.  School is one of the few stable, secure places in the lives of homeless children and youth -- a place where they can acquire the skills needed to help them escape poverty.