Mindfulness Regina on Facebook

Hope you check out Mindfulness Regina on Facebook for unique videos, ideas and inspiration.   Please share with your friends.   Peace.  Dr. Todd Sojonky

When you're feeling anxious or stressed, these strategies will help you cope:

1. Take a time-out. ...
2. Eat well-balanced meals. ...
3. Limit alcohol and caffeine, which can aggravate anxiety and trigger panic attacks.
4. Get enough sleep. ...
5. Exercise daily to help you feel good and maintain your health. ...
6. Take deep breaths.

Harvard Unveils MRI Study Proving Meditation Literally Rebuilds The Brain's Gray Matter In 8 Weeks

Test subjects taking part in an 8-week program of mindfulness meditation showed results that astonished even the most experienced neuroscientists at Harvard University.  The study was led by a Harvard-affiliated team of researchers based at Massachusetts General Hospital, and the team’s MRI scans documented for the very first time in medical history how meditation produced massive changes inside the brain’s gray matter.  “Although the practice of meditation is associated with a sense of peacefulness and physical relaxation, practitioners have long claimed that meditation also provides cognitive and psychological benefits that persist throughout the day,” says study senior author Sara Lazar of the MGH Psychiatric Neuroimaging Research Program and a Harvard Medical School instructor in psychology. “This study demonstrates that changes in brain structure may underlie some of these reported improvements and that people are not just feeling better because they are spending time relaxing.”

Sue McGreevey of MGH writes: “Previous studies from Lazar’s group and others found structural differences between the brains of experienced meditation practitioners and individuals with no history of meditation, observing thickening of the cerebral cortex in areas associated with attention and emotional integration. But those investigations could not document that those differences were actually produced by meditation.”  Until now, that is.  The participants spent an average of 27 minutes per day practicing mindfulness exercises, and this is all it took to stimulate a major increase in gray matter density in the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with self-awareness, compassion, and introspection.  McGreevey adds: “Participant-reported reductions in stress also were correlated with decreased gray-matter density in the amygdala, which is known to play an important role in anxiety and stress. None of these changes were seen in the control group, indicating that they had not resulted merely from the passage of time.”

“It is fascinating to see the brain’s plasticity and that, by practicing meditation, we can play an active role in changing the brain and can increase our well-being and quality of life,” says Britta Hölzel, first author of the paper and a research fellow at MGH and Giessen University in Germany. You can read more about the remarkable study by visiting Harvard.edu.  If this is up your alley then you need to read this: “Listen As Sam Harris Explains How To Tame Your Mind (No Religion Required)”

Go to site for audio:http://www.feelguide.com/2014/11/19/harvard-unveils-mri-study-proving-meditation-literally-rebuilds-the-brains-gray-matter-in-8-weeks/

10 Minute Guided Meditation to ease Anxiety, Worry, and Urgency,

Five News Ali, 18, Sufferer of Anorexia Nervosa

"A Good Day" With Brother David Steindl-Rast

What is Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)?

Good introduction.  Workshop in Regina for November 23 has two openings.   Monthly training will be available send your email queries to todd.sojonky@sasktel.net for details.

Three Rational Humorous Songs

Mindfulness Workshop

Mindful Walking: Understanding Stress, Anxiety and Depression 

(limit of 14 people)

Saturday Nov. 23rd 

Living Spirit Centre 

3018 Doan Dr.

10:00am -12:00pm

$30.00 per person

Wear loose clothing and bring slippers or warm socks!

Please book directly through Dr. Todd Todd.sojonky@sasktel.net

Or 306 737-6533

Your Thoughts Make You Suffer ~ Eckhart Tolle mp4

Depression

This is an excellent tool for those living with depression!

Wonderful Albert Ellis Teaching

Mindful Walking

Our Inner Being

We are so addicted to looking outside ourselves that we have lost access to our inner being almost completely. We are terrified to look inward, because our culture has given us no idea of what we will find. We may even think that if we do, we will be in danger of madness. This is one of the last and most resourceful ploys of ego to prevent us from discovering our real nature.

So we make our lives so hectic that we eliminate the slightest risk of looking into ourselves. Even the idea of meditation can scare people. When they hear the words egoless or emptiness, they think that experiencing those states will be like being thrown out the door of a spaceship to float forever in a dark, chilling void. Nothing could be further from the truth. But in a world dedicated to distraction, silence and stillness terrify us; we protect ourselves from them with noise and frantic busyness. Looking into the nature of our mind is the last thing we would dare to do.   ---Rigpa

My Black Dog

Excellent Video on Depression

Top 5 Cures for Winter Depression

TOP 5 Cures for Winter Depression 
#1 Eat protein before noon. 
Researchers believe that keeping seratonin at healthy levels can alleviate depression, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, panic, and even excess anger.  Eating protein in the moring ensures that our bodies have the building blocks needed to make the amino acid tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin.  Tryptophan works best when consumed in conjunction with a small bit of carbohydrate, such as a scoop of quinoa, a handful of nuts, or a few tablespoons of vegetables.   High protein breakfast ideas.
#2 Supplement vitamin D-3, magnesium, B-complex, and fish oil.  Adding these supplements to your routine in the dark months of winter can do much to alleviate symptoms of depression.  Exposuring skin to the sun throughout the winter in northern climates is nearly impossible.  Vitamin D3 is a fat-soluable vitamin that requires a synthesis from exposure to sunlight as well as intake from the diet.  Salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna and eggs are good sources of vitamin D3, as are beef and liver.  Vegetarians are more prone to D3 deficiency. 

#3 Drink sunny tea & take herbs. Drinking a daily tea of flowers can bring a little sunshine into your home in the winter.  I recommend making a tea blend of equal parts of chamomile, lemon balm, and linden.  Steep four tablespoons of the blend in a quart of hot water, cover, and set aside for 20-30 minutes.  Strain and drinking warm flower tea throughout the day.  Following this method is an excellent way to improve sleep, reduce stress, and uplift your mood throughout the winter months.  Herbs such as St. John's Wort (see below) and Albizzia flower are also benefitial for low-level depression.  Learn more about natural support for depression, anxiety, or sleep issues.

#4 Learn to love outdoor exercise.  Fresh air and exercise have both been shown to improve symptoms of minor depression.  Combine the two with outdoor exercise.  Hike Oaks Botton or Forest Park, climb Mt. Tabor, walk to a yoga class, ride your bike to the grocery store, run the stairs up to your home, or take your dog out for a game of frisbee.  If you already exercise at a health club, make a point to take a few laps around the block as a warm up for your class or work out.  Most of all, get outside, breath deeply, have fun, and dress for the weather!

#5 Practice gratitude.  Studies from practice of positive psychology show that there is a huge benefit to keeping a journal by your bed and recording what you are grateful for every night.  Doing this for a week can cause improvement of mood for six months!  There are two parts to this practice: feeling grateful and expressing it.  What are you grateful for?        (From Daily Nectar)

Mindfulness Guided Meditation with Deepak Chopra

Jon Kabat-Zinn "As Good As It Gets"

Mindfulness with Jon Kabat-Zinn