Jon Kabat-Zinn's 'Wherever You Go, There You Are'

How we see ourselves cannot be exactly how we are perceived by others. This is an ordinary situation for common people in daily lives because no one can know everything about another person and one’s impression is always depending on the background information on the particular occasion when judgment is made. If what we really are or what we see ourselves is an iceberg, only the small part above the sea is seen by the others but larger part below the sea is unseen. Sometimes, how people think of us is like a distorting mirror, which misrepresents the truth, makes funny exaggerations and misleads far away from who we are.

Last week we just experienced the prologue to Meditation, this week we promote with more involvedness and furthermore benefits we accomplish on rehearsing meditation. In the event that you spend more time in meditation, you will begin to see surprising changes throughout your life. It works like a magic. For this to happen, you ought to do twenty minutes sessions every day. It has been scientifically demonstrated that in the event of meditating, you remain quieter and healthier.

In Jon Krakauer’s masterpiece, Into Thin Air, he provides an in-depth explanation of what happened one disastrous day on Mount Everest. While the book is essentially a memoir, it incorporates the excitement of an adventure novel, the suspense of a mystery, and the factual detailing of a school textbook. Jon Krakauer doesn’t leave out any experience to the reader; he very carefully explains every detail so anyone can read his book, even those who have never heard of what happened in Spring of 1996 on Mount Everest.

Jon Kabat-Zinn’s mindfulness lessons are simply gold. It helps us in so many ways. I learned a lot of things from his teachings. His words are well-researched and practical in its nature.

Mindfulness meditation has been described ‘as the awareness that comes from paying attention to the present moment experience in a purposeful and non-judgmental manner’ (Bishop et al., 2004 cited in Brown, Bravo, Roos, & Pearson, 2014 p. 1020). Pearson, Brown, Bravo and Witkiewitz (2015) suggest there are five important features of mindfulness when practising such as focussing one’s attention to the present and avoiding distractions, non-judgmentally experiencing thoughts, non-reactivity to thoughts, labelling experiences and simply observing thoughts/feelings. Integrated with the literature, this portfolio will contain description of my experience with mindfulness meditation technique resulted from guided exercises from Rob Nairn’s book ‘Diamond

As you know, exercise is very important for your physical health. Exercising regularly helps keep your heart healthy, lowers your risk for type 2 diabetes as well as some cancers, and helps you get stronger muscles and bones. This is common knowledge for most people, but what if I told you that exercise has even more benefits that aren’t just physical? Today I will be informing you about the benefits of exercise on your mental health, resiliency and academic performance.

Is technology really creating a better world for people? With all the different types of technology, it is undoubtedly a part of everyone’s life today. Not only that, but technology could be viewed as consuming the world, dispersing information and so much that not all of it can be processed. Some people argue that technology is completely beneficial to its users, allowing quick access to all sorts of resources, but it is clear Foothill High School should join in the national “Shut Down Your Screen Week” because many teenagers have never been away from their devices for very long and could easily benefit from the forced interaction with real people around, and the psychological benefits of “unplugging” are numerous and attractive.

Stress comes from overpressures in daily life, lack of sleep and emotional burdens. A Massage Therapist’s use of healing touch affects not only the musculoskeletal structures, but also the nervous system, which in effect causes changes in the systemic reactions of the entire body. According to Marc White, the executive director of the Canadian Institute for the Relief of Pain and Disability, “Research shows that massage therapy including remedial exercise can reduce pain, anxiety and stress, improve joint movement, sleep and ones quality of life.” (https://www.rmtbc.ca/sites/default/files/files/ImprovingBCHealth_Dv(1).pdf). The sympathetic nervous system causes the body to react in a stressful or “fight or flight” response, slowing digestion and quickening the heart and respiratory rates. When the body remains in this state, as today’s lifestyle often requires, the body becomes worn down and less able to recover. Receiving a massage can stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, aiding to slow the heart rate, and increasing digestion and rest. This also initiates a more active immune system. Blood vessels dilate and circulate more red blood cells, bringing oxygen to tissues, and white blood cells, circulating immune response. Emotional stress can be stored inside muscle tissue and last for years. Massage

Political writer, social critic, and essayist, Barbara Ehrenreich showcases to an audience of the middle class; and anyone else who lives a life of “to do” lists and due dates that perhaps they're taking on their lives with the wrong approach. Persuasively, she discusses her personal experiences and unique observations of our obsession with preoccupation and busyness. She writes with humour, clever aphorisms, and clear examples to appeal to, interest and connect with the reader.

A 306-page autobiography entitled “Chasing the Devil,” recounts Sheriff David Reichert search for the Green River killer from 1972 to 2001. The book races awareness to prevent young woman from being caught up in a life of desperation and danger on streets. It manifest how passionate David Reichert is on being a competitor and a protector detective. Thus, after 20 years of playing a cat-and-mouse game to the Green River killer justice was served.

Today, it is common to see people glued to their phone or engrossed in their work. This fixation with distractions is largely due to over-organization. Over-organization is defined as being too preoccupied to take leisure time to think or complain. This is shown in Aldous Huxley’s technological satire Brave New World with the quote, “Seven and a half hours of mild, unexhausting labor and then soma rations and games and unrestricted copulation and the feelies. What more can they ask for?” (Huxley 224). Huxley’s depiction of a civilization full of distractions is a clear example of over-organization, illustrating the many leisure activities that preoccupy society. Since Huxley’s time, the evolving topic of over-organization has sparked controversy in offices, homes, and classrooms today.

Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher born in the late 19th century. He was a deep writer and thinker that many people saw as tough to understand. His notions on thought were abnormal, to say the least. He delivered his memorial address in 1955 in Germany. He gave a warning to humanity on the future of human thought and the influence that technology will have on it.

Over the course of this winter quarter, I have learned in my class of Psychology of Wellness how to incorporate mindfulness into my daily life. The definition of mindfulness is considered an art. In the book of the Fully Present, the authors Susan Smalley and Diana Winston transmitted their wisdom on how to learn, practice and cultivate this art. According to the mentioned authors, they defined mindfulness as “the art of observing your physical, emotional, and mental experiences with deliberate, open, and curious attention” (2010, p.78). This definition shared by the authors is simple, but it communicates what are the characteristics that an individual needs to consider when it comes to being mindful. Through this mindfulness project, I wanted

The projected study attempts to design a research that would examine the competence of mindfulness therapy. The design would evaluate the progress of the selected individuals who are receiving mindfulness therapy in comparison to those receiving another kind of therapy over a given period of time. The following articles will discuss about the effects of mindfulness therapy to different kinds of patients.

Yoga’s aim is to unite the mind, body and spirit. It is very therapeutic and relaxing but more than that, yoga have numerous health benefits that the body can enjoy.