A Quick Guide to Mindfulness

At one time or another, most educators experience stress.

Left unchecked, stress can become burnout. But mindfulness techniques—processes that train the mind to return to one thing, the breath, a sound, a phrase, or something else—can help you develop the capacity to focus on what's actually happening, and avoid becoming swept away by thoughts and stories swirling around in your head.

It may be helpful to remember a phrase coined by Washington, D.C.- based meditation teacher Tara Brach, “real but not true.” Yes, class sizes continue to rise. Unfortunately, that’s real. But research shows the aver- age person has between 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts per day. That means there’s no way that even a fraction of your thoughts about that real thing are true. Our thoughts—worries about the past and the future—are what allow stress to take root.

Still not sure how quietly placing your attention on one thing can pay off later? Consider this: During the summer, educators prepare for untold hours, hoping to make the upcoming school year a success. Mindfulness techniques work the same way. They help to prepare your mind so that you can depend on it when stressors appear.

An effective way to build mindful- ness is through practices that focus on the breath. Here are three techniques to try.

1. Breath Awareness—Place your attention on your breath. Don’t change or manipulate it. Allow your breath to flow at its normal rhythm. Notice where you feel your breath the most. Is it in your nostrils, the back of your throat, in your chest, or the rise and fall of your belly? Bring your mind to that place. When thoughts appear—and they will, over and over again!—return your attention there. The power of mindfulness lies in developing the capacity to notice when your mind has strayed from the thing where you have placed your attention and being able to return it to the breath or whatever you’ve chosen as your focus.
2. Breath Countdown—A great way to focus your mind, while also relaxing your body. This technique is also an antidote for insomnia. Lie in a comfortable position with your eyes closed. Place your attention on your breath. As you inhale, mentally say "28." As you exhale say "28" again. The next inhale is "27." The next exhale is "27," and so on. If you lose your place or become lost in thought, return to 28, and begin the count down again. Yes, you’re working your way toward zero. But that’s not the goal. Rather, you’re quieting your mind via slow, methodic repetition.
3. Sensation Breath—Say you're practicing a mindfulness technique during a time that you are also experiencing a strong emotion like sadness, anger, anxiety, or fear. First, take a moment to identify the emotion. Next, ask yourself where you feel the emotion in your body? Are your shoulders tight? Do you feel butterflies in your stomach? Is your heart racing? Once you know where you feel the emotion in your body, place your attention there, and allow the sensa- tion you're feeling to substitute for your breath. When thoughts arise, return to the sensation. As American Buddhist meditation teacher Pema Chödrön advises “Feel the feelings and drop the story.” The stories are your thoughts. As best you can, acknowledge them and let them go, and know that even a tough emotion can become the gateway that leads you toward more mindfulness and less stress.

Lisa Leigh is the editor of NEA Today and NEA Today for NEA- Retired Members. She is a 200-hour registered yoga teacher and a certified meditation instructor.