Key takeaways from training:
Resilience Mindset
How we think about occupational stress and trauma matters; cultivating a growth mindset is critical to our health, resilience and capacity to perform in every domain.
We will experience stress/trauma injury over the arch of our careers and lives. We can train for it, navigate it, and recover from it... with interventions that demand personal courage.
Interventions
Medical - sustained relationship with an integrated medicine team (medical doc, physicians assistant, nurse, acupuncturist, massage therapist, naturopath, etc.). Part of self-awareness is getting good data and good counsel from experts. Dive in and make that medical appointment!
Mental Health Coach - preventative maintenance is key. Having a licensed mental health clinician that we see on a regular basis (you decide what that means!) is helpful to normalize our disregulation around work and life and to provide trauma interventions. See below for some insight on finding a MH coach!
Tribal - nurturing authentic social relationships is a critical ingredient to our resilience. Reach out to a friend and connect!
Spiritual - intentional observation of the mystery of life through your faith practice or simply experiencing awe in a variety of ways fosters mind-body health. Beau Lotto’s TED talk gives us reason to enjoy the arts, science, sport and other things where mysteries emerge!
Being a warrior doesn't mean winning or even succeeding. It means risking and failing and risking again, as long as you live.
-Richard Strozzi-Heckler, Author of In Search of the Warrior Spirit
Let's Begin
1. Practice: Begin the 22 Day Challenge
weekly meditation practices - informal awareness - gratitude - intention setting
scroll down for details on the 22 day challenge
2. Listen: Life After Suicide
this interview of Dr. Jen Ashton is a must listen. we've all been impacted by suicide, let's learn more and have the courageous conversations with our tribes about suicide.
3. Grow: Continue learning with dedicated time to review resources available to us around health, resiliency, humanity and performance. We've talked about a lot of books, podcasts and other places at which to gain knowledge... most are referenced below (keep scrolling). Email me if you are looking for something that isn't listed.
4. Recommend mindfulness training: Refer other professionals to our website for more information about stress resilience and mindfulness skills training. The one-page strategic overview may be useful for command staff briefings.
22 Day Challenge
start this challenge now. return to it anytime.
Gratitude &Intention
5 times each week: Gratitude - Intention Setting - After Action Review
- Write down something you are grateful for in the morning
- Set your intention in the morning. How do you want to show up or what qualities of being do you wish to embody that day?
- Each evening reflect on the day. What went well? What might you do differently tomorrow?
Formal Meditation
5 days each week: 15 minute Awareness of Breath (AOB) Meditation
in addition to these meditations, scroll down for some recommended smart phone apps that will help bring structure to your weekly meditation practice.
Informal Awareness
Daily: Informal awareness practice
integrate micro awareness practices into the rhythms of your day. here are some examples, courtesy of Jan Chozen Bay.
When eating, Just eat. This week, identify a few times when you’re eating or drinking, and don’t do anything else. Open all your senses as you eat or drink. Notice colors, textures, smells, temperatures, tastes, sounds. Enjoy the experience of eating and drinking. See if you can spend 5 minutes of each meal doing this practice, and once daily with your favorite beverage.
Filler Words. Become aware of the use of “filler” words or phrases and make an attempt to eliminate them from your speech. Filler words are word that do not add meaning to what you’re saying such as “um,” “ah,” “so,” “well,” “like,” “you know,” and others. Notice why you might be using these words and explore that underlying observation.
Appreciate Your Hands. Several times a day, when your hands are busy…watch them as though they belonged to a stranger. Look at them also when they are still. Notice the sensations of they belonged to a stranger. Look at them also when they are still. Notice the sensations of they belonged to a stranger. Look at them also when they are still. Notice the sensations of your hands working, and in stillness. Marvel at the architecture of these structures and how helpful they are.
Just Three Breaths. As many times a day as you are able, give the mind a short rest. For the duration of three deep breaths, ask your inner narrative to slow to near silence. Then open all your senses and step into situational awareness- color, sound, touch and smell. Put a note on your locker or desk at work, on your bathroom mirror and refrigerator at home with the number 3 on it to remind you to practice.
The Great Earth Beneath You. As often as possible, become aware of the great earth beneath you. Bring your awareness to sight and touch; looking at the horizon while feeling your feet deeply connect with the earth below, grounding yourself in the weight of gravity and your connectivity with the earth, even if inside a building.
Life After Suicide
Yep, mentioning this topic again. It's that important.
Dr. Jennifer Ashton is the chief medical correspondent for ABC News. the link below to her interview with Dan Harris is absolutely worth your time to listen.
Work-Life Integration
if your interested in some additional practices around navigating the transitions from work to home and home to work... read on
Transitioning from Work to Home
Three days each week: Consider developing a transition practice that involves breath work and movement of your body. Make departing the physical workplace a transition practice.
In preparation for leaving your work day and heading home, turn off your phone. Take one minute for a 3-Centered Check In:
Breathe deeply and notice what's emerged in your body. Notice any tension in your muscle groups. Maybe rotate your shoulders a bit and gently stretch your neck.
Check in with your feeling states, bringing an open curiosity to what's there without analysis or judgement.
Now observe your thinking mind- the volume, speedi, and nature of your thinking. Take three deep breaths, choosing one breath in and holding for a few seconds and follow this with a forceful exhale through the mouth. Repeat. Allow your breathing to find a natural rhythm.
With your phone still turned off, walk to your car. Notice the physical sensations of your body as you move. Take in the information with your senses. Breath in the outside air.
Landing at your vehicle, you may turn on your phone if you wish. Safely drive home and step into this performance domain of family with an awareness of your intention to be present with them. As work interrupts, manage the necessary work and then return with an intention to be fully engaged.
Transitioning from Home to Work
Three days each week: Carve out 45 minutes each morning for intentional, dedicated time for your self, family or tribe of roommates. This might look like the following:
When you wake, take some time to move through your own personal routine without technology. Allow some time for you to awaken to the day. Breathing in, stretching gently and thinking about how you'd like to show up (qualities of being) this morning.
Shut off your work phone for 45 minutes and dedicate this time to being with your self, family or roommates with intention. Focus on listening and noticing what's around you. If you are with those you care about, make this an awareness practice of the relationships. What can you notice that you haven't seen yet? Engage with them in ways that are authentic for you.
When this dedicated time is finished. Turn on your work phone, notice what you've missed. Consider if any of this is more important than the time you just invested in awareness and relationship. Carry on with your day; the world needs you.
Choosing a Mental Health Coach
this is simply a launch point for your journey to a mental health practice with a mental health coach...this guide will evolve over time as we learn from all of you.
this article from the Mayo Clinic explains the different educational backgrounds and qualifications of psychotherapists.
the key to choosing a mental health coach: you are an advocate for your own mental health and you have choices. here are some steps to consider:
- decide what level of education & qualifications you might want. Often, a master’s level, licensed clinician is a sound choice for mental health coaching and trauma interventions.
- ask friends and colleagues for references.
- check psychology today for licensed therapists in your region (see link below).
- establish some general objectives for psychotherapy. What are you seeking in the short run and long run? Coaching around specific issues (habit change, regulating emotion, relationships) or trauma injury intervention (EMDR, ACT, MBCT, etc.) or both.
- build a few questions for the therapists that you can ask to determine who might be the right fit for you. It might be helpful to ask about areas of specialty, approaches to working with clients, experience working with trauma impacted populations, etc. Choose a coach whose background, qualifications and personality resonate with you.
- set up a phone interview or in-person consultation. ask your questions! a skilled therapist will have some questions for you as well.
Meditation Apps
There are many smart phone apps available for meditation practice. Here are some of our recommended ones:
Sam Harris is a neuroscientist who has a new app that is very well done. Combining both guided meditations and learning lessons around key mental performance issues, this app is a great place to begin or sustain a meditation practice.
Dan Harris, an ABC journalist, news anchor and author, is a smart, funny, gritty realists about meditation. His app includes a team of skilled teachers and is a great place to start and sustain a meditation practice.
Insight Timer is a helpful resource, yet it does have an overwhelming amount of content. Frankly, some of the content is not culturally relevant for high reliability occupations, so you’ll have to decide what is useful amidst the variety of offerings.
Resources
this general resource link has a reading list, research articles, web sites, pod casts and other information.
Resources from training. Other videos and resources are available at the link above.
Peer Coach Training
mindfulness based peer coach training is a 4 month training program designed to sustain mindfulness skills training within an organization. if you want to bring mindfulness to your organization and people, this is a great way to start.
Resilience Immersion Training - 3 Day Intensive
Continuing in 2020- 3 day, residential immersion that trains foundational skills of mindfulness and provides a deep dive into how awareness and compassion training can optimize our performance
Resilience Immersion Trainings will be coming to Oregon, Arizona and Southern California in 2020.
stay connected. feel free to email anytime with questions, comments and to share key points in your journey forward.
Credits:
Created with images by Wirestock - "Closeup shot of rock climbing gear with a blurred background" • Oleksii Klonkin - "Climbing equipment laid out on a blue rope. Ascender, climbing nuts (stoppers), belay/rappel device, climbing shoes, ice tools, nut tool, quickdraws, chalk bag. " • ponsulak - "Climbing gear,Detail of Rock climbing equipment "