So I think with no more ado, let's move on. Let's, let's see if we can make this a really interesting and useful. 30 odd minutes.
My name's Doctor Mike Scanlon. For those of you who don't know me, and I've been doing, webinar mindfulness with the vets, I think, for about 3 years, and we've run lots of courses together as well, all based on, helping build the resilience of people working in the veterinary profession, but also, more importantly, sometimes I think making sure we can still work in a complex, busy, environment like, like, a veterinary practise. And, and still find joy and pleasure in the rest of our lives.
And I think that's what so much of the weather is about. So I just thought I'd share with you what I'm encompassing and experiencing, I suppose, with a lot of the clients I'm seeing at the moment for 1 to 1 work, albeit, via video conference and usually, Zoom and That's that sense of if we just stop and think about what's happening at the moment. And If we imagine for a moment that As we go through life, perhaps it's a bit like driving a car.
And what so many people are doing is they're, fixing their sights on when this is all over. And they're talking about, you know, will it be done in 1 month? Will it be done in 2 months, 3 months?
Will we still be here in sort of late summer where, you know, what's going to happen? And, you know, the thing about it is, is that none of us can see the future. We can guess.
But if we spend too much time looking at the road going ahead but fixated on what's over that hump in the hills somewhere there in the distant future, and just imagine that for a moment that you're driving totally fixated on what's over the hump in the hill right at the end where the road sort of hits the horizon. And the problem with that is, is that we don't see anything. Of what's actually happening in this moment around us now because we are so fixated on.
What's coming? And the other thing I think that so many people are doing is that they're also looking behind them. And in a way it's a bit like trying to go forward looking in the rearview mirror of life, and if you imagine trying to drive, looking in the rearview mirror, you know, we're going to keep crashing and we're going to feel unsafe and we're going to be tentative and so many people are sort of harkening back to what it was like before and I wish we'd done this and I wish other people had done that and If we find ourselves trapped between the past And the future spending too much time and Not being in this present moment, then we limit our opportunities to make good decisions.
We limit our opportunities to find joy and pleasure and happiness in the life that we're leading today. So tonight's meditations are all about kind of a little bit back to basics, I think, but important nonetheless. But they are all about how we Re-engage, I suppose, with .
This present moment and so if I just, oh. If I just look at this, just watch this moment without trying to change it at all. What's happening, what do you feel, what do you see, what you hear, and, you know, it's been a beautiful, beautiful day today for many of us in this country, and I hope it has in wherever you're coming from today.
But actually, if we are spending our time worrying about what hasn't happened yet and worrying about what has happened and what is behind us in a mindless way. Then It's very hard to find a peace that is there for all of us if only we stop, listen out for it, look out for it, and find it. And that might be peaceful moments in our gardens.
It might be just peaceful moments lying in bed or sitting on our chairs or in between seeing people even, and it's about finding those moments where we can find peace and joy and we just won't find them. If we aren't living mindfully. So our first meditation tonight and the second meditation are all based on bringing us back and anchoring our attention, either using sound as an anchor, or the other thing we can use is we can.
Use the breath as an anchor as well. So If we can get ourselves comfortable and just make a bit of a commitment right now that let's use today's mindfulness to remind us of the power of now, you know, finding peace in this present moment. And let's take that sense of right.
I'm gonna be on top of this. I can plan for the future deliberately and on purpose, and I can learn from the past deliberately and on purpose, but being taken there mindlessly and finding myself. The Doesn't work.
It causes anxiety, it causes low mood, and it causes us to feel very unsure and uncertain, and we lose our sense of control over our lives, and now is not the time for that. Now is the time to find certainty where certainty exists, and the only way I think we can do that is by being more mindful. So let's gently get ourselves into our dignified.
Posture. And Perhaps sitting comfortably. And just relaxing into that, you know.
As we sit there, In this really comfortable dignified position. Let's see if we can find that mindful half smile. You know, it's, it's just a little smile of acceptance that, yeah, this is, this is where I am and I'm going to make the most of this right now.
So hopefully you're sitting in a reasonably quiet place. And moving into a comfortable position. And I'd just like you just to settle into your chair or your seat.
And For this mindfulness of sound exercise, it will help if you're able to either Just let your eyes close fully or partially. Let's begin this meditation with several calm breaths. Just paying attention to each breath as it comes in.
And it goes out. Not manipulating your breath or changing it or Being critical or making judgments about the way you're breathing, just breathing. Breathing in.
I'm breathing out. And let's pause. Now I'd like you to bring your attention and your awareness to the sounds.
All around you. Just listen. What do you hear?
I can actually hear birds on that side. I can hear. Billy padding around outside the door.
Wanting to come in. And what do you feel? As you listen.
Just said. And let your ears pick up sounds. Sounds that are near.
Maybe be sounds that afar all around. Perhaps just moving your head. With a gentle pivot.
But a slow Calm pivot in all directions. Just receiving the sound vibrations. I'm just noticing that you don't need to label the signs.
You certainly don't need to interpret them. You don't need to seek them out. You don't even actually have to like them.
Just sit in the middle of your sound environment. Notice that this Brings us into this. Present moment.
Let the sound come to you. That's it. Present itself.
To you taking in. Each and every sound. And let's just find our curious scientist mindful stance where we I'm just curious, because you might have found that your mind has latched on to a particular sound.
And has left this present moment and meandered down the path of interpretation. Thinking about a sound or its meaning. Just checking whether you've done that.
You might notice thoughts or feelings arising in response to the sound. You might find yourself judging the sound. That's a good sound.
That's not such a good sound. Or your reaction to it. And you know what, friends, all of that is OK.
If you notice your mind wandering. From the vibrations of the sound. Notice where it's been.
And then gently. Escort your attention back. Find your ears.
And once again, listen back to the sound. Just as it is. Letting sounds come.
And go as they please. Being liberated. By the fact that you don't need to name.
The sounds. You don't need to figure out what they mean. You don't have to like them.
Just let the sounds be sounds, you be you. And let yourself hear them. And for the last and a half Of this meditation.
I'd just like you to please. Just listen. Until you hear the thing say bells.
And let's listen to every vibration of the bowels at the end of this meditation. And then we open our eyes. So a minute and a half.
Just sitting with sound. Just watching this moment. Without trying to change it at all.
What do you feel? What do you hear? Well done.
And we've got some baby blackbirds outside fledglings, I think, and the noise they make is wonderful. So I was sitting here, kind of bathing in that sound, which was, which was lovely. Of course, The other one, the most common, of the mindfulness strategies we have for, anchoring our attention is the meditation of, of the breath.
And Let's take the opportunity today to just remind ourselves of the fact that, you know, the one thing we can always rely on is our breath. It's there, you know. And when all around us feels turbulent and the, the, the ship we're on is being buffeted around by choppy high seas, and we feel completely Uncertain and a little bit lost, we can stop at any time during the day, you know.
And we can use the and process, so we acknowledge. Oh God. What's going on here?
Gosh, this is difficult. We can name what we find. Oh my word, that's There's a sense of fear, there's trepidation.
Their struggle, and we can describe how it makes us feel, making me feel quite wobbly. And then we can immediately recognise that we have two choices then. And there's the first choices we can not stop.
And anchor ourselves. And find peace. We can just carry on.
But the other choice that we always have. Is to just take our attention. And anchor our minds and ourselves back into this present moment and notice that we are alive and we're OK and we're functioning.
And I just call that process and breathe, acknowledge name, describe. And then take one mindful breath. Anchor your attention, let go and back on with your day.
And I suppose, that's a quick way of anchoring one's attention to the breath and breathe. And what we're going to do now is the mindfulness of the breath meditation with a particular emphasis on bringing your attention back and anchoring your attention to the breath. So let's start the second meditation of the evening, mindfulness of the breath.
So we just want to make sure that we're comfortable enough to remain in this position. For about 89 minutes. Ideally with our back comfortably straight and gently supported.
Her chin just gently tucked towards the chest and the shoulders dropped. And now let your eyes close fully or partially. And let's all just take 3 easy.
Slow breaths. I bring your attention. Your body.
And to any sensations you might find in your body. What do you notice? Perhaps vibrations, pulsation.
Warm for coolness. Maybe ease or tension. Just let your body be as it is, whatever the sensations are.
Now, See where you can discover your breath. Most readily and most easily. Where do you feel?
Your breathing. Do you feel it in your nostrils? Of the air Comes in and out of my nose.
Do you feel it in your chest? As a rise and fall. Or do you feel your breathing in your abdomen?
As expansion and contraction. Where do you notice your breathing most easily? And most strongly.
And if you can feel your breath in many areas, just pick one. And allow your attention to stay on that location of your body. Where you feel the breath.
And allow yourself to feel the breath. And its sensations in your body. Just breathing.
You may notice. That from time to time your mind wanders. It's what human minds do.
They wander. And all you have to do It's gently. Return your attention.
Back to the breath. When you notice that it's wandered off. Just breathing.
And anchoring her attention to the breath. And we noticed that it's gone wandering. And accepting that wonder.
With a mindful half smile. Your mind wandering off. Is just part of the process.
And it doesn't matter how many times your mind wanders. Every time you bring it back with kindness. Back to your brain.
Letting go any judgments that may come along. Just gently. Returning your attention back to the bra.
Now, Bring your attention to the sensations, particularly of your inhalation. Notice what the sensations of the inhalation are. In the part of your body where you feel it most strongly.
A cooling, perhaps. Then notice the sensation of the exhalation. Again, Notice what the sensations of the exhalation are.
In the parts of your body where you feel your breath most strongly. No rushing. No need to make the inhalation and exhalation happen.
Just allowing your breath to move. From breathing in. To breathing out.
Come out. Breathing in. Notice any urge to rush.
Or to slow down. Just breathing. And like me, maybe your attention was just grabbed by something distracted by a sound.
Or a thought or a feeling. And once again, Just feel the air. And when your mind wanders, notice that.
And gently bring it back to your breath, just feel the breath. One breath. After the next.
Now let go of the focus on the location where you feel your breath most strongly. And allow yourself to feel your whole body move. With each breath.
With each expansion and contraction. They might be hardly perceptible movements of your body as you breathe. Letting your body breathe for you.
Because it knows what to do, it's been doing it for a while. Feeling your body move with each breath. Taking as much time as you'd like.
Just paying attention to them avations of your brain. And whenever you're ready. Very gently.
Open your eyes. And once again, Become aware Of your surroundings. Well then.
And of course, that meditation, the meditation of the breath, . Is, is The core meditation really of the mindfulness based stress reduction programme. And You don't have to spend 89 minutes.
You can just do the acknowledge, name, describe. Oh yeah. Breathe.
And we can do that in a moment, and we can do that whenever we notice that we are. Trying to lean into the future. Or find ourselves stuck in the past back into this present moment.
I hope people, enjoyed that. I really kind of got into that then. And it's different, isn't it?
I just, I don't know what's quite happening at the moment, but I'm really finding the meditation that I do, . Oh, yeah, just, just there's such a need for. And meditation and being conscious of coming back to each present moment.
And I'm finishing tonight with just something I thought people might be helped by. So, the Action for Happiness, calendar, and something I'm trying to do to, deepen and to bring some variety to my mindfulness practise is, and that's the URL there, the HTTPS bit there. And they're doing a calendar for each month, and April is.
The active coping calendar and what I'm doing is I'm adding mindfulness to this, so I'm looking at it each day and . Tomorrow, it's contact a neighbour or friend. And offer to help them with anything they might need and .
To my shame, I've got a lady who lives next door, with COPD and, I'm kind of aware as I looked at what tomorrow's was and thought, oh, you know, I probably should have. But see, I'm, I'm looking back this present moment, now tomorrow I will mindfully. Not that I can contact this neighbour and just offer to help them, you know?
And so I'm trying to use mindfulness to take us right into, this calendar. And of course, I can't leave tonight without my favourite book, one of my favourite books of all time, Victor Frankl's, Man Search for Meaning. Everything can be taken from us, but one thing.
The freedom to choose our attitude in any given set of circumstances. And I think Victor will be nodding his head sagely to hear me say, But to do that takes mindfulness. It really does.
So I hope people found this evening useful. We're doing this every Sunday. Certainly through the month of April and, you know, as long as we, we, we need to.
So thank you all so much for being with me tonight, I really, really got some from it tonight. When you're presenting sometimes, you don't always get the same. But, yeah, I had Sarah just come back saying, returning to work in and, and following some difficulties.
She's saying this is just what she needs. You know, never say people's . First names Louise just saying thanks there.
Linda coming back. Catriona says much needed grounding. Yeah, yeah, I think, I think we all need that, that grounding.
So, please, please, . Keep looking after yourselves and everyone around us. And the marvellous job you all do with, The animals.
Thanks. How can we overcome Yeah Yeah, COVID 019 by. Meditation, I think, to be honest, in exact just doing what we've just done then, is I don't think we can overcome.
And COVID at all. I think we have to accept that it's here and we have to be the best we can be, and I would just take you all the way back to Victor, you know, it's our attitude towards this and the freedom to choose our attitude will take us through this. And so with no more ado, thank you all so much.
I hope you found it useful tonight and Hopefully see a lot of you next Sunday. And bye-bye, Dawn, and have a lovely rest of your Sundays. Good night, everybody.