Mindful June 2018

barry@mindful.org Our must-read story this issue: In our Get Real piece, “Look on the Bright Side…?” therapist Elaine Smookler explores how easily cynicism takes over our minds, despite the fact that optimism and openness are the healthier way to go. On page 62. A thousand years ago, when I was in grade 12, I had a physics teacher, Mr. Weeks, who was legendary for the powerful experiences that took place in his classroom. Until Mr. Weeks’s class, I found science tedious and boring, but he changed everything. His class was focused not on the answers, but on the questions. He injected awe and wonder into our mutual explorations of how the world worked. I hope we have all had a teacher like that. When I disputed one of the core…

What is your strongest sense perception? THE MOST ACUTE SENSE AMONG respondents was hearing, with 34%. Sight is the runner-up (28%), followed by the mysterious sixth sense, at 17%. Smell and touch were tied with 10% each, and only 1% chose taste. What is your favorite exercise to do mindfully? • Walking • Weight lifting • Hiking • Kayaking • Mindful aikido • Karate • Dancing • Cleaning the house • Barre classes • Reiki • Biking Body and mind: What’s their relationship? 55% THE MIND MANAGES THE BODY 43% WHO CAN TELL WHICH IS IN CHARGE? 2% THE BODY CONTROLS THE MIND “The more present and mindful I am, the more synchronized the body–mind connection is.” When do you feel most centered? IT DEPENDS ON THE SITUATION 64% DURING BODY…

A case for social meditation Meditation is often practiced alone, but two studies indicate that thinking of or being in the presence of others may confer different, and at times greater, benefits. Researchers in Leipzig, Germany, conducted two studies with 300 volunteers over nine months. In the first, an MRI showed that people who meditated alone by focusing on the breath or body had thickening of their prefrontal cortex, which is linked to attention control. Those who practiced loving-kindness meditation and then did a sharing and empathetic listening exercise with a partner had increases in the areas that process emotions and bring them into conscious awareness. The second study measured cortisol levels among all participants, and found that those who meditated alone felt calm, but their cortisol levels didn’t change.…

There’s little question that today’s college students are extremely hard on themselves. Looking at 27 years of data, researchers at the University of Wales found that compared to previous generations, college students now have higher academic expectations for themselves, which dovetails with higher rates of anxiety, among other neuroses. American students are more prone to self-oriented perfectionism—putting pressure on yourself to be perfect—but students in Canada, America, and the United Kingdom all struggle with socially prescribed perfectionism, or perceiving that others are judging them more harshly and that they must be “perfect” to win approval. As for why, researchers point to Western cultural shifts that are more individualistic, materialistic, and socially antagonistic and that today’s young people face “more competitive environments, more unrealistic expectations, and more anxious and controlling parents…

Eight parents in Texas painted empowering messages—like “Kindness changes everything”—on bathroom stalls at their kids’ school. A marine biologist was at first frightened when a humpback whale kept bumping into her. Then she realized it was heroically shielding her from a nearby shark. A young single dad in Little Rock, AR, never complained about walking 11 miles to work and back every day. When his coworkers found out, however, they pooled their money and bought him a car.…

Companies like Modern Meadow and Bolt are pioneering fabrics that are kinder to animals and the environment. So far, they’ve created a “bioleather” made from yeast-based collagen and a faux silk spun from sugar. A new facet to mindful eating, or just introvert heaven? Renowned Japanese ramen café Ichiran has opened a location in New York City, offering “flavor concentration booths” where customers eat solo, focusing only on their bowl of noodles. On a flight from Dubai to Amsterdam, one gassy passenger led to major hassles: His uncontrolled flatulence agitated some passengers so much that a fight broke out. The aircraft had to make an emergency landing to remove the olfactorily offended from the plane. UK author Bridget Lawless felt that relying on the trope of abused or murdered women…