Today’s Solutions: March 28, 2024

Mindfulness — the awareness and acceptance of a situation without judgment — has been shown to have benefits in treating many conditions such as anxiety and depression. It turns out that even a brief introduction to mindfulness helps people deal with physical pain and negative emotions, according to researchers from Columbia University.

After being introduced to only 20-minutes of mindfulness concepts participants were tested in two contexts while undergoing brain imaging scans — one for assessing response to physical pain induced by applying high heat to the forearm and another for gauging their response when presented with negative images.

In both instances, researchers found significant differences in brain signaling pathways when participants were asked to employ mindfulness techniques compared to when they were asked to respond as they normally would.

Participants also self-reported less pain and negative emotions when employing these mindfulness techniques.

So if mindfulness is so effective at pain management, as well as reducing stress, anxiety, depression, and high blood pressure (as has also been reported), what are some simple steps people can take in their daily life to incorporate mindfulness? Here are a few ways you can easily employ mindfulness in your daily life:

Pay attention

Take a moment to stop and simply observe your surroundings without judgment or action. Simply observe the colors, shapes, and sensations around you.

Accept yourself

Treat yourself the way you would treat a good friend.

Focus on the breath

Bring your awareness to your breathing, noticing the rhythm, the experience of breathing in and expelling out.

Body scan meditation

Bring your attention to one body part at a time and observe how it feels, starting from the top of your head, and down to your feet.

Sitting meditation

A good intro to sitting meditation is to sit comfortably with your back straight, but not tense, and simply focus on your breathing, as well as allow your thoughts to come and go as if they were clouds floating through a blue sky.

Walking meditation

When walking (or running), just simply focus on the act, observe how it feels, and how your body moves.

Source study: Social, Cognitive, and Affective Neuroscience Let it be: mindful acceptance down-regulates pain and negative emotion

Solutions News Source Print this article
More of Today's Solutions

Rowing against the current: Botswana’s women safari guides inspire and empower

In the calm of Botswana's Okavango Delta, where the morning sun creates a golden glow on the water's surface, an amazing metamorphosis is occurring. ...

Read More

The future of healing: 3D printing skin directly onto open wounds

Pennsylvania State University researchers achieved a major medical science breakthrough by being the first team ever to 3D print real human skin tissue directly ...

Read More

These solar-powered barges can scoop up 50 tons of plastic from rivers each day

While removing the plastic waste that currently contaminates the ocean today will be crucial for protecting marine ecosystems, it is arguably more important that ...

Read More

A bold step towards climate action and job creation: The American Climate Corps

The White House announced the creation of the American Climate Corps, a breakthrough program that will transform the climate action landscape. This ambitious project ...

Read More