Category Archives: Health

Mindfulness Part II

When I wrote my initial post on mindfulness practice, I was a little over two weeks into the 6-week program at Masterpeace Studios.  Our group, which meets for two hours on Monday nights, has now met four times.  We took a week off of meeting between the 3rd and 4th weeks due to a conflict with the instructor’s schedule.

This break was nice for two reasons.  First, it just happened to fall during a very busy week, when I was prepping for and teaching CyclingSavvy and Matthew had a couple of other weekday evening commitments.  Second, the break effectively added a week to the workshop, building in an additional seven days to be held accountable for practicing.

Of course, no one is judging you, other than perhaps yourself, if you don’t practice (and you shouldn’t be judging yourself because mindfulness is all about nonjudgmental awareness), but having the workbook to record daily practice, and knowing that I am doing this as part of a group, is quite motivating.

That extra week was also the most challenging to my daily practice, given the previously mentioned busyness, but I made time for some kind of formal practice every day.

Observations
In general, I find formal practice, i.e., sitting down at a specific time with the intention of practicing, much easier than informal practice (e.g., being mindful during an activity of daily living, such as brushing your teeth or washing dishes).  I picked flossing my teeth as my activity for informal mindfulness, and it’s really hard to reign-in my mind (maybe a time of day issue?).

My work situation, both working part-time and working from home, makes it fairly easy for me to fit formal practice into my day during 4/5 of weekdays.  Mid-morning and mid-afternoon are pretty good times for me.

The days when I am home with Gabriel (Wednesdays and Sundays) are more challenging.  On Sundays, I can get some help from Matthew during the day.  On Wednesdays, I’m limited to nap time or the evening, after G is in bed.

For mindfulness of breathing, I really like guidance (i.e., listening to an audio track) to get started, but I’m finding that after 2-3 minutes, I’m ready for silence.  Most guided tracks have talking (i.e., guidance) interspersed with moments of silence.  To have the best of both worlds, I’ve been using a meditation timer along with the “Mindfulness of Breath” track on the CD.

Screenshot from OnlineMeditationTimer.com
Screenshot from OnlineMeditationTimer.com

I set the meditation timer for the total time I want to practice (10-15 minutes usually, at this point), start the track, and then, when I’m ready, stop the track and sit in silence with my breathing until the timer chimes.

Looking ahead
I’m not sure how I will do when the class, and the external incentive to practice, ends.  Keeping a log of my daily practice seems helpful, so I plan to continue that.  I’d welcome any tips or suggestions from those of you who have had success in incorporating regular meditation (mindfulness-based or otherwise) into your daily lives.

Resources
For a timer, I like OnlineMeditationTimer.com (also available as an app, if you have a phone that’s smarter than mine).  Here is a link to an Awareness of Breath Meditation that is similar to the one I use.  I also like this Standing Mindful Yoga sequence.

Mindfulness training

So, back in June, I wrote this post about stress and health.  I know what I can do to reduce stress and support mental (and physical) health: eat well, get enough sleep, exercise . . . .  I’m pretty good at all of those things (except for when the stress is interfering with sleep).

But what about the mind-body connection, and practices such as meditation and yoga?  I know there’s research backing it’s importance, but this is a weak link for me.

A year-and-a-half ago, when I was struggling with depression (a follow-up to my post-partum depression), my mom (who’s a licensed clinical social worker) sent me Jon Kabat-Zinn’s The Mindful Way through Depression.  She has quite a bit of experience with mindfulness practice and recommends it highly.  I’d like to say it changed my life, but that wasn’t quite what happened.

The book lays out an 8-week program, with readings and suggested practice for every day of the eight weeks.*  I had good intentions, and I stuck with it for two or three weeks (practicing most days), and then, I don’t know, life happened, and I put mindfulness practice on the back burner.

While talking with my mom last month, she once again encouraged me to look into mindfulness practices, specifically Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) workshops.*

A quick internet search turned up two main options in St. Louis.  The first local MBSR course that came up is one offered at UMSL.  It is primarily for UMSL employees (and their spouses/partners), but the site says they have a limited number of seats for the “general public.”  However, the next session doesn’t start until January, and driving out to UMSL once a week in [possible] winter weather didn’t sound that appealing.

The second option was the Mind-Body Stress Reduction program offered by Masterpeace Studios.  Held in Webster, the location of these classes was much more appealing, and there was a fall session about to start.  Convenient location, reasonable cost, and workable dates.  (The course offered at Masterpeace is a condensed 6-week version of what is normally an 8-week program.)

I went to their free intro class/info session on September 8th.  I turned in my registration paperwork that night, for the session to start the following week, but held off on writing a check.  Once I wrote that check, I would be committed, and I was still on the fence.  Did I really want to do this?  Could I make the commitment to practice every day for six weeks?

Even though it meant I would be out one night a week for the next six weeks (leaving Matthew solo with G at bedtime), Matthew was very supportive, and really encouraged me to go through with it.

I went into it unsure if mindfulness would “work” for me.  What if my brain just couldn’t do it?

Bridget, the instructor, told us from the beginning that the mind is a muscle.  If you want to be reap the benefits of mindfulness you have to practice.  When practicing, your mind will wander, and you just have to keep bringing it back, over and over again.  (Bridget uses the analogy of training a puppy to heel.)

With those things in mind, and with the motivation of being part of a class (that I paid good money to take) plus a log to record our daily practice sessions, I’m now into the third week of the course, and I’ve devoted time to practicing every day.

It’s not always easy, and I’m not “good” at it, but I’m doing the work, building that brain muscle.  I have to bring my mind “to heel” constantly — thoughts of decisions I’m trying to make are particularly intrusive.  Mindfulness practice won’t make the hard things go away, but it can lessen their negative effects.  No matter what was happening prior to practicing, I almost always feel calm and centered after practicing, ready to take another stab at life’s challenges.

I’ll check in again here in a couple of weeks with an update on my practice, challenges, observations, etc.

If you’re struggling with stress (and who isn’t?), anxiety, chronic pain, and/or depression, I’d highly recommend looking into Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.  If you’re not lucky enough to have a nearby program, you can try it on your own, using the book I mention below.  The University of Missouri Mindfulness Practice Center has some guided mindfulness meditations that you can listen to or download to help you get started.

 

*The original 8-week program, as practiced in Kabat-Zinn’s Stress Reduction and Relaxation Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, is described in his earlier book, Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of the Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness.  There is very strong scientific evidence for the benefits of mindfulness practice, and specifically the 8-week, which is explained well in the book.

Crazy days

When it rains, it pours, right?  Well, that was certainly the case during yesterday afternoon’s surprise thunderstorm, and it seems to apply to life this week!*

Picking up where we left off . . .

Collision aftermath
. . . I wasn’t expecting to hear anything about the bike until Wednesday, but the insurance adjustor pushed things a bit, and by late Monday afternoon I received word that Baby Jake’s frame was bent.  Bike totaled, case closed.

The driver who hit us was insured, and I should be receiving a check for replacement cost of the bike.   Which means I need to decide on a replacement.

Easy answer is replace with current model year Kona Jake.  The 2014 frame is orange, which, just, no.  Fortunately, the 2015 frame is a lovely blue.

2015Jake
Stock photo of 2015 Kona Jake from konaworld.com

The stock photo is odd to me, because it looks nothing like my fendered, smooth tired, commuter ready (rear rack, milk crate, etc.) Baby Jake, but I guess that’s the bike, underneath it all.

But of course there’s the voice in my head saying, “Do I really want the exact same bike?”  There are so many options out there . . . .

Twelve hours after the accident (around 1:00am on Monday morning), it became clear that my bike wasn’t the only thing injured in the collision.

Turns out that being in a car that is rear-ended is pretty much a classic cause of whiplash, and my neck wanted me to know it.  So now there’s a medical/bodily injury claim in addition to the property damage claim.  I’m hoping some physical therapy will get things back on track with no lingering effects.

Preschool and car trouble
For his first day of preschool, Gabriel traveled by car, rather than by bike.  Not what I had planned, but I was driving the car anyway to drop Baby Jake off at The Hub (perhaps the one and only time after Sunday that I won’t be paranoid about having the bike on the back of the car — it was already pretty messed up, what was another hit going to do?).

We were ready for the second day of preschool, though.

IMG_5800

Shortly after I took this photo, I was headed for yet another car trip (more than usual this week), when I noticed that one of the car tires looked suspiciously under-inflated.  After ten minutes and five complete cycles of the air compressor at a nearby gas station, I finally managed to get the pressure up to around 20psi (35psi is recommended for our tires), and I admitted defeat.

By that point, I had an appointment that I was in danger of being late for, and no great way to get there other than the car (would have had other options if I’d planned ahead).  I wasn’t sure I should be driving on the tire, with whatever was going on, but it was a relatively short trip [by car], so I went for it.

Fortunately, I found a gas station with a repair shop just a block from my destination.  I dropped the car off and made it to my appointment.  Meanwhile, the mechanics removed a nail and plugged the tire.  I breathed a big sigh of relief when I got the call that all was well (car trouble really stresses me out — I hate feeling so helpless!).

We’re due (or overdue?) for new tires anyway, so this incident just provided a little nudge.  For some reason, I thought my Kevlar-lined bike tires were as expensive (per tire) as our car tires, but that’s not quite the case.  I think a car tire is a bit over twice as much as my bike tire of choice.  Anyhow, after tomorrow morning, we should have new tires on our old car.

My plans for today include not leaving the house, and I’m hoping that’s the end of the excitement for the week (knock on wood)!

*Note to self: Self, you were right to be paranoid about parking the car under those big, old trees across the street.  Fortunately, with that in mind, our car was parked on the nearby cross street (away from big trees) when yesterday’s storm tore a big ol’ branch off of one of said trees.

Food philosophy: Great grains

Variety is the spice of life, and I certainly take that to heart when it comes to grains (and food in general!).  As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t go for lo-carb or fad diets (as a health- and eco-conscious vegetarian, a decent number of my calories come from whole grains and legumes), but I DO avoid eating large quantities of refined grains.

The first step for me was switching to products (bread, pasta, breakfast cereal, crackers, etc.) that were 100% whole wheat.  Growing up, my family used a lot of whole grains, and did most of our baking with 100% whole wheat pastry flour, so this wasn’t a huge switch for me, overall.  [Tip: when trying whole wheat pasta, start with angel hair; also, brand can matter.]

But there’s a lot more to the grain-scene than wheat, and, while I don’t have a medical reason to avoid wheat, I realized there were health benefits to expanding my grain consumption.

Fortunately, there are now a variety of easily accessible options in this department:

  • Brown rice
  • Quinoa
  • Millet
  • Oats, including oat groats (for risotto)
  • Corn meal (for polenta and cornbread)
  • Potatoes

That list is by no means exhaustive.  Some of the above straddle the line between grain vs. seed or starch vs. vegetable.  For my planning purposes, I tend to treat them all as grain/starch, though the distinctions can be important, nutrient-wise.

Avoiding an all-wheat, all-the-time diet does require a bit of effort, and it’s become part of my [informal] meal planning.  Sometimes it’s tricky, especially with a toddler, who, while a great eater overall, is not always into quinoa or millet.

Here’s what an average day looks like for me, grain-wise:

  • Breakfast: Oatmeal (I use a mix of rolled and steel-cut oats)
  • Breakfast #2/Morning snack: Wheat-based — 100% whole grain pancakes, waffles, toast w/peanut butter or egg, or quick bread
  • Lunch: Alternate grain
  • Afternoon snack: Often wheat-based, though sometimes granola, whole-grain corn chips, or non-wheat leftover
  • Dinner: Wheat-based

Lunch and dinner flip-flop, so if our lunch one day is wheat-based, I try to prioritize an alternate grain for dinner.  If I know we’ll be eating away from home (whether a restaurant or someone’s house), I usually assume the meal will be wheat-based, and plan accordingly throughout the day.

Even with a concerted effort to eat a variety of grains, I end up eating a decent bit of wheat — it’s pretty ubiquitous in the U.S. diet.  Here are some of my thoughts and experiences with the wheat alternatives.

Potatoes
We grow almost all of the potatoes we eat, which is great, because we know they’re not full of chemicals (a problem with conventionally grown potatoes), but not so great in terms of prep time.  Potatoes store best unwashed, so that means meal prep involves not just chopping and cooking the potatoes, but also rinsing and scrubbing off a substantial amount of dirt.  Strike one.

I also feel like, relative to other grains/starches, potatoes require a large amount of both fat (butter, olive oil, cheese, sour cream, etc.) and salt.  Strike two.

But there’s no strike three.  Potatoes are one of the only calorie crops (think grains and legumes) that don’t require special processing like milling or shelling, which make them a great option for the grow-your-own scene.  If you eat the skins, they are a good source of several nutrients and they help increase variety.  I didn’t realize how much the potato option helped with grain/starch variety until we ran out of potatoes in March.

Quinoa
Technically a seed, quinoa is one of the highest protein grains out there.  It also cooks relatively quickly (faster than brown rice) and works in a variety of dishes.

The protein and nutrients come with a price though, as this is one of the more expensive grains you can buy, even if you stick to “white” quinoa (still a whole grain, just a different variety than the more expensive “red”).  Until recently, I found the bulk bins at Local Harvest Grocery to be the best bet, priced a bit under $4/lb (making it cheaper than the WF bulk bins).  Unfortunately, on my most recent LH visit, the price had jumped to over $7/lb!

I was so surprised that I asked the cashier if the price was correct.  He confirmed that it was, though he didn’t know why.  (I haven’t gone back to see if there was a similar price jump at WF.)  I plan to continue eating quinoa, but at that price, I may not increase my consumption (currently averages one dinner plus one lunch [leftover] per week).

Toddler tips
Grain variety is a bit trickier with babies and toddlers.  Wheat-based products, like bread and noodles, lend themselves to little fingers (and are often kid favorites).  While you can buy alternate-grain version of pasta and bread, they tend to be pricey.

Adding peanut butter (or another nut butter) after cooking rice, millet, or quinoa is one trick that worked for us.  The nut butter a) increases tastiness and b) makes the grain easier for a toddler to handle on a spoon or fork (or even with fingers).

Before G was using a spoon, I made him oat clusters instead of oatmeal.  To prepare, I made a really think batch of oatmeal on the stove top, then chilled.  In the morning, I served bite-sized chunks of the oatmeal, dotted with peanut butter.  Perfect for little fingers, if a bit labor intensive.  Now he eats oatmeal with me every morning; I intentionally keep his on the thick side, for ease of spooning and less mess.

Finally, potatoes are a great finger food for babies and toddlers.

Your turn: what is your favorite non-wheat grain, and how do you use it?  Anything I should add to my regular rotation?

 

 

Deadly effects of stress: A health scare revisited

This weekend marks the one-year anniversary of Matthew’s health scare, when, after a long, hot day of gardening, he landed in the E.R. with severe abdominal pain.*  The events of that weekend seem almost surreal to me now.

We still don’t really know what caused the blood clot.  Tests last fall (repeated in the spring) showed no conditions, genetic or otherwise, that would predispose him to clots.  He has next-to-no lifestyle risk factors (eats well, exercises, doesn’t smoke), and his cholesterol and blood pressure have always been well within the healthy range.  There was just one “little” thing . . .

. . . STRESS!

Earlier this week, Matthew sent me a link to this Time article, which reports new findings on the link between stress and blood clotting.

We suspected extreme work-related stress may have been a factor in last summer’s blood clot, and, afterward, Matthew took some steps to reduce and better manage his stress levels.

The odd thing is that almost all of us, are, at some point in our lives fairly stressed, whether it’s due to work, home life, finances, health, personal relationships, or some combination of those factors.  We may, at times, be walking around with elevated white blood cell counts, perhaps even with low-level, early stage clots that our bodies dissolve on their own.

But we don’t all have serious blood clots that land us in the hospital for a few days, especially when we’re young and healthy.  So what made Matthew “special?”

That’s the million-dollar question, really.  Of the two of us, I would say he’s better at dealing with stress and not worrying or getting stressed in the first place.  Perhaps the chronic stress he was experiencing at work just overwhelmed his body’s ability to deal with the blood clot before it became a problem.

At any rate, it’s a good reminder that we can eat nutritious food and exercise until the cows come home, but our bodies are not just machines.  We also need to nurture our mental health.  Deep breathing, meditation, and relaxation exercises are good places to start.  This is very much a work in progress for me.

What are your tips and tricks for managing stress and relaxing?

*To be on the safe side, I’m keeping him out of the garden this weekend!  (Though the garden is, in general, one of his stress-relieving activities.)