Mindful Happiness

Anthony Quintiliani, Ph.D, LADC

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Total Human Experience in Brain Habits

Brain Habits –  Helpful Vs Unhelpful

Nora Volkow, MD, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse ( video below)  has noted that people suffering from addictions may experience some dysfunction in in brain areas related to personal motivation, reward recognition, and inhibitory controls.  Neuroscientists have utilized various brain imaging techniques to document this possibility in addicted individuals.  These finding bring us to a new look at ALL addicted behaviors as possible forms of brain-based disease (brain area, neuronal, neurotransmitter  malfunctions, habitual behaviors, and their related plasticity).  This more scientific research on addiction as disease moves well beyond common views noted in AA/12 Steps (it is a disease so it is not your fault); this more scientific research is specific to the brain’s role in developing and maintaining unhelpful, addictive habits.  Such habits often follow the escape from pain and approach to pleasure principles so well established in scientific psychology.  Core research has focused mainly on alcohol-drug addictions; however, a reinforced habit is a reinforced habit as far as brain functioning is concerned.  It is true that chemical addictions add specific molecular realities to addicted behaviors – molecular basis for instrumental and classical conditioning of habitual behaviors  leading to recognized changes in the brain’s reward centers.  All addictive behaviors – all unhelpful habits – narrow personal motivation to the rewarding effects, enhance craving for the rewarding effects, increase fear of being without the rewarding effects, and reduce one’s ability to slow or stop the habitual behavior itself.  Because people are self-medicating their moods and emotions, they tend NOT to learn more effective life coping skills (mindfulness, etc.), thus becoming even more dependent on the unhelpful habit for short-term relief of suffering and, perhaps, some intermittent joy.  It is quite common for depression, anxiety, fear, trauma, and other serious life challenges to be the emotional bases for initial self-medicating behaviors.

To assist readers in their personal efforts to attain mindful, wise mind skills – thus reducing the impact and probability of unhelpful habits and wise-mindaddictions – I am expanding this post to include more on my conceptual process about CABS-VAKGO-IS-Rels.  These letters represent: Cognition, Affect, Behavior, Sensorimotor, Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic, Gustatory, Olfactory, Intuitive, Spiritual, and Relational REALITIES on how humans function emotionally inside and outside of their own brain-mind and body.   This is the reality in human functioning, both helpful and unhelpful.  By focusing your attention on the various categories of human emotional experience (CABS-VAKGO-IS-Rels), you may be able to identify the areas of your brain that are helping you to maintain health and happiness AND the the areas that are moving you into poor health and more suffering.  Try to problem solve by noting what areas are your working allies to remain safe, productive, and happy as well as what areas serve as your ENEMIES.

Yes, even if you derive some brief pleasure or respite from suffering  from an unhelpful or addictive habit (via self-medication), this short-term emotional strategy ALWAYS leads to more suffering in both the original “thing” you are trying to escape AND in future addictions that simply add to your suffering and stress load. This is not difficult: find out which areas help you and which areas harm you; do more in the areas that help you, and do less in the areas that harm you.  Obtain qualified, licensed professional help as needed.

This formula may be helpful:

 Internal/External Cues/Stimuli (people, places, things, experiences) – LEAD TO } Thoughts, Beliefs, Emotions, Behaviors – LEAD TO } Consequences of the Selected Behaviors

If the consequences of the behavior are reinforcing (releasing dopamine in the brain’s reward centers) – you got what you wanted and the behavior is far more apt to continue until it becomes just about automatic (no other skills, neuronal sensitization, and brain plasticity).

Unhelpful Behaviors LEAD TO more suffering AND Helpful Behaviors LEAD TO less suffering/more happiness.

I hope you are able to use this information and wise mind skills to improve your emotional life – starting right now!

By Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, VermontChiYinYang_EleanorRLiebmanCenter

Author of Mindful Happiness

CLICK HERE to Order!

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Breathing Meditation Practices

From The Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation, Monkton, VermontChiYinYang_EleanorRLiebmanCenter

– Five Breathing and Meditation Practices –

Attention and concentration on the breath are common practices to attune meditation capacity. We use the breath as an object of attention in our mind training.   The better your quality of attention and concentration, the better your meditation flow.  In an earlier post, I provided instructions on using breath as an object of attention in pacifying the mind.
Today I will provide brief practice instructions for four other breath meditations.  These brief instructions are meant only as introductory formats.

Mindful-Happiness_Breath-Meditation-Practices-BurlingtonVermontCaution: Although it is rare, some people may become anxious when trying to do breath practices.  The anxiety may have many sources: vagus nerve issues, inattention due to digital addictions, a serious anxiety disorder, unresolved traumatic experience involving breaths of submission (in limbic hippocampus memory), etc.  If at any time in practicing these breathing techniques you experience strong discomfort, please STOP the practice.  Be aware that even though breath re-training can be highly effective in calming a dysregulated nervous system, it is not a substitute for prescribed medical or psychological treatment you may be receiving.  However, breath training may be highly compatible with such treatment.  Collaborate with your healthcare provider for advice here.

1) Mindful Awareness of Your Breath As It Is

Sit in a comfortable position, either lotus style or in a straight back chair, or use a stool to sit on with your knees on a meditation mat.  Keep your back and head straight, ears level with shoulders, eyes Mindful-Happiness_Breath-Meditation-Practices-JustBreatheslightly open and downward in direction, and the tip of the nose lined up with your navel (Dogen’s way).  Just allow your awareness to be set on the in and out movement of your breath.  Do not in any way control how your are breathing.  Simply allow your breath to breathe you – paying mindful attention to its flow.   When your attention moves off the breath, gently return your attention back to your breath.  If possible continue for at least 10-20 minutes.  If your attention moves off the breath, use self-compassion to carry it back the breath.  Be kind.

2) Counting the Breaths

Since mental activity (thoughts in the past or future – or even in the present) is often a common distraction in meditation practice, it may be helpful to count to ten for ten breaths.  Sit comfortably in a meditative posture. On the first breath say “one” to yourself on the exhalation; this is subvocal self-talk.  Make the sound of “one” in your mind last all the way to the end of the out-breath.  Then begin with the next breath – saying “two” on the exhalation and holding the thought all the way to the end of the out-Mindful-Happiness_Breath-Meditation-Practices-BreathingPaintingbreath.  Do this all the way up to ten for ten breaths.  When you reach “ten” simply begin again with “one.”  If your mind wonders off the breath before you reach ten, or you catch yourself beyond the count of ten, begin again with “one.”  You may want to make an mage of the number you are saying to yourself.  In this way both cognitive/verbal and visual parts of the brain are active – helping you to meditate.  If your mind continues to wonder off, say the number, make an image of the number, and FEEL the flow of the breath on exhalation.  If possible continue for at least 10-20 minutes.  If you have difficulty, be kind and considerate to yourself – and continue!

3) Variation on Square Breathing

Sit comfortably in a good meditation posture.  Begin with a couple full, deep, cleansing breaths. Then bring full concentration to how your heart and belly feel when you breath slowly and deeply.  On the first full in-breath pay attention to the right side (downward) of your torso from just below the heart area down to the hara (deep belly about 2 inches below the navel and about 2 inches in).  On the first out-breath pay close attention to how it feels when your attention moves (left) across the hare.  On the mindful-happiness-SquareBreathingnext in-breath notice how it feels when you pay attention to it moving (upward) from the hare and up the left side of the torso to the heart area, and on the next out-breaths simply pay attention to the moving breath as you pay attention to it moving right just below the heart area.  A square has been made. If possible practice for at least 10-20 minutes.

4) Gap Breathing Practice

Sit in meditative posture and take a couple full, deep, slow breaths.  Now pay complete attention to the noticed GAP between the in and out breath, and between the out and in breath.  Yes, there is a slight gap in time when you are not breathing.  Do not worry, this gap is natural. It is simply part of our slower, deeper breathing process.  Pay attention ONLY to the gap between the in/out and out/in breaths.  If you can do this, go psychologically deeper into the gap.  It may be bottomless!  If you have problems with mindful-Happiness-Breathing-AnthonyQuintilianiattention here, make an image on a gigantic, beautiful, far-away valley and pretend that your gap is in that deep, distant valley.  Continue to pay full attention only to the gap between your breaths.  If you have difficult, gently and self-compassionately bring your attention back to the gap and nothing else.  If possible practice for at least 10-2- minutes.

Practice these four breathing meditation, and if you like one best – do that one for the fifth.  Good luck on your journey.

 Anthony R. Quintiliani, Ph.D., LADC

Author of Mindful Happiness

CLICK HERE to Order!

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