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Campus Well-Being

Mental Health

An Interesting Read: Top Five Regrets of Dying

February 29, 2012

I am not sure if it is just the time of the year, but it seems to me that I am running from one task to another and I need to remind myself to slow down, take a deep breath, and be present.  Once in a while, I have the need to look at the bigger picture of my life and to remind myself what I value in life, who I am, what I stand for.

I came across an article in my DailyGood news I get in my mail box every morning that I wanted to share with you. I hope you find it interesting, inspiring, and it might assit you to look at your life from a different prespective.

Submitted by Margarita Natcheva Rowley, Diversity and Immigrant Student Support

Top Five Regrets of the Dying

–by Bronnie Ware, Original Story, Feb 23, 2012

 

For many years I worked in palliative care. My patients were those who had gone home to die. Some incredibly special times were shared. I was with them for the last three to twelve weeks of their lives.

People grow a lot when they are faced with their own mortality. I learnt never to underestimate someone’s capacity for growth. Some changes were phenomenal. Each experienced a variety of emotions, as expected, denial, fear, anger, remorse, more denial and eventually acceptance. Every single patient found their peace before they departed though, every one of them.

When questioned about any regrets they had or anything they would do differently, common themes surfaced again and again. Here are the most common five:

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

This was the most common regret of all. When people realise that their life is almost over and look back clearly on it, it is easy to see how many dreams have gone unfulfilled. Most people had not honoured even a half of their dreams and had to die knowing that it was due to choices they had made, or not made.

It is very important to try and honour at least some of your dreams along the way. From the moment that you lose your health, it is too late. Health brings a freedom very few realise, until they no longer have it.

2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.

This came from every male patient that I nursed. They missed their children’s youth and their partner’s companionship. Women also spoke of this regret. But as most were from an older generation, many of the female patients had not been breadwinners. All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives on the treadmill of a work existence.

By simplifying your lifestyle and making conscious choices along the way, it is possible to not need the income that you think you do. And by creating more space in your life, you become happier and more open to new opportunities, ones more suited to your new lifestyle.

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.

Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others. As a result, they settled for a mediocre existence and never became who they were truly capable of becoming. Many developed illnesses relating to the bitterness and resentment they carried as a result.

We cannot control the reactions of others. However, although people may initially react when you change the way you are by speaking honestly, in the end it raises the relationship to a whole new and healthier level. Either that or it releases the unhealthy relationship from your life. Either way, you win.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

Often they would not truly realise the full benefits of old friends until their dying weeks and it was not always possible to track them down. Many had become so caught up in their own lives that they had let golden friendships slip by over the years. There were many deep regrets about not giving friendships the time and effort that they deserved. Everyone misses their friends when they are dying.

It is common for anyone in a busy lifestyle to let friendships slip. But when you are faced with your approaching death, the physical details of life fall away. People do want to get their financial affairs in order if possible. But it is not money or status that holds the true importance for them. They want to get things in order more for the benefit of those they love. Usually though, they are too ill and weary to ever manage this task. It is all comes down to love and relationships in the end. That is all that remains in the final weeks, love and relationships.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

This is a surprisingly common one. Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called ‘comfort’ of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content. When deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again.

When you are on your deathbed, what others think of you is a long way from your mind. How wonderful to be able to let go and smile again, long before you are dying.

Life is a choice. It is YOUR life. Choose consciously, choose wisely, choose honestly. Choose happiness.

http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?sid=188

7 Habits of Mindful Eating

February 23, 2012

7 Habits of Mindful Eating

Our own life is the instrument with which we experiment with the truth.
– Thich Nhat Hanh –

I don’t know if you are like me, but I eat in front of the computer quickly and then I go to the gym during my regular lunch hours.  I am not sure that this is the best and healthiest way for me to be. Here’s an interesting article from Daily Good News that Inspire that I receive every day in my personal e-mail.  I find that reading the Daily Good News is a nice way to start my day on a positive or inspiring note.

Seven Habits of Mindful Eating

“The rhythm of life is becoming faster and faster, so we really don’t have the same awareness and the same ability to check into ourselves.” These words are from an unexpected source: a Harvard nutritionist. Dr. Lilian Cheung, with Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh, co-wrote ‘Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life.’ “That’s why mindful eating is becoming more important. We need to be coming back to ourselves and saying: ‘Does my body need this? Why am I eating this? Is it just because I’m so sad and stressed out?'” In this 3-minute video, Dr. Cheung explains how honoring and being mindful of the food we eat makes us healthier. She offers seven practices for mindful eating — simple steps that we can take to maintain a healthier weight and live a happier life. We are what we eat — and how we eat it.

You can find a short video here.

Submitted by Margarita Natcheva Rowley, Diversity and Immigrant Student Support

Deep Breathing Exercises

February 21, 2012

If you are one of those who has hard time slowing down and relaxing before going to sleep, you might want to give breathing exercises a chance. There are many benefits of deep breathing exercises, it can nourish your body and promote relaxation.  The article below by Andrew Weil outlines three deep breathing exercises to get you started:

Breathing: Three Exercises

three breathing exercises inside

Three Breathing Exercises

“Practicing regular, mindful breathing can be calming and energizing and can even help with stress-related health problems ranging from panic attacks to digestive disorders.” Andrew Weil, M.D.

Since breathing is something we can control and regulate, it is a useful tool for achieving a relaxed and clear state of mind. I recommend three breathing exercises to help relax and reduce stress: The Stimulating Breath, The 4-7-8 Breathing Exercise (also called the Relaxing Breath), and Breath Counting. Try each and see how they affect your stress and anxiety levels.

Exercise 1: The Stimulating Breath (also called the Bellows Breath) The Stimulating Breath is adapted from a yogic breathing technique. Its aim is to raise vital energy and increase alertness.

  • Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.
  • Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breathe normally after each cycle.
  • Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.

If done properly, you may feel invigorated, comparable to the heightened awareness you feel after a good workout. You should feel the effort at the back of the neck, the diaphragm, the chest and the abdomen. Try this breathing exercise the next time you need an energy boost and feel yourself reaching for a cup of coffee.

Exercise 2: The 4-7-8 (or Relaxing Breath) Exercise This exercise is utterly simple, takes almost no time, requires no equipment and can be done anywhere. Although you can do the exercise in any position, sit with your back straight while learning the exercise. Place the tip of your tongue against the ridge of tissue just behind your upper front teeth, and keep it there through the entire exercise. You will be exhaling through your mouth around your tongue; try pursing your lips slightly if this seems awkward.

  • Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound.
  • Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four.
  • Hold your breath for a count of seven.
  • Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound to a count of eight.
  • This is one breath. Now inhale again and repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.

Note that you always inhale quietly through your nose and exhale audibly through your mouth. The tip of your tongue stays in position the whole time. Exhalation takes twice as long as inhalation. The absolute time you spend on each phase is not important; the ratio of 4:7:8 is important. If you have trouble holding your breath, speed the exercise up but keep to the ratio of 4:7:8 for the three phases. With practice you can slow it all down and get used to inhaling and exhaling more and more deeply.

This exercise is a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system. Unlike tranquilizing drugs, which are often effective when you first take them but then lose their power over time, this exercise is subtle when you first try it but gains in power with repetition and practice. Do it at least twice a day. You cannot do it too frequently. Do not do more than four breaths at one time for the first month of practice. Later, if you wish, you can extend it to eight breaths. If you feel a little lightheaded when you first breathe this way, do not be concerned; it will pass.

Once you develop this technique by practicing it every day, it will be a very useful tool that you will always have with you. Use it whenever anything upsetting happens – before you react. Use it whenever you are aware of internal tension. Use it to help you fall asleep. This exercise cannot be recommended too highly. Everyone can benefit from it.

Exercise 3: Breath Counting If you want to get a feel for this challenging work, try your hand at breath counting, a deceptively simple technique much used in Zen practice.

Sit in a comfortable position with the spine straight and head inclined slightly forward. Gently close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Then let the breath come naturally without trying to influence it. Ideally it will be quiet and slow, but depth and rhythm may vary.

  • To begin the exercise, count “one” to yourself as you exhale.
  • The next time you exhale, count “two,” and so on up to “five.”
  • Then begin a new cycle, counting “one” on the next exhalation.

Never count higher than “five,” and count only when you exhale. You will know your attention has wandered when you find yourself up to “eight,” “12,” even “19.”

Try to do 10 minutes of this form of meditation.

Submitted by Margarita Natcheva Rowley, Diversity and Immigrant Student Support

Adopt better sleeping habits

January 27, 2012

We’ve all been told that getting eight hours of sleep is the key to being alert, productive, and healthy – but how many of us actually get it? Sleep is a supremely precious commodity which many people tend to sacrifice for work, school, and even our personal lives (after-hours work functions, kids, your favourite late night talk show?).

According to WebMD, sleep deprivation can hurt learning, cause accidents, lead to depression, forgetfulness, and even cause you to gain weight.

Thankfully, Health.com has a great series of web videos with information on what prevents us from getting a good night’s rest, and tips we can try to increase the amount of sleep we get per night, and even how to sleep better.

One suggestion was to try out “bedtime yoga”, which can help beat stress and insomnia:

Submitted by Hayley Brigg, Creative Communications student

Workshop series takes on tough parenting issues

January 19, 2012

The Wellness Committee will be hosting “Parenting for Prevention” – a series of lunch-hour workshops from Jan. 20 – Feb. 14 dedicated to discussing tough parenting topics like youth and teen gambling, and cyberbullying.

Youth Gambling Awareness for Parents
Presented by the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba, this seminar will focus on the three gambling prevention programs the organization offers for youth – www.luckyday.ca (for middle-schoolers), www.youthgamblingfacts.ca (high school students), and www.getgamblingfacts.ca (young adults aged 18-25). Each program is aimed at helping teens understand the facts and risks associated with gambling, and what resources youth and parents can seek out if there’s a problem.

Teens and Depression/Mood Disorders
This “Depression and How it Affects Us All” workshop will discuss depression in young people, where to get help, as well as the signs and symptoms parents can look for.

Youth/Teens and Bullying/Cyberbullying
Bullying can have a negative impact on teens, and in extremely serious cases – it can be fatal. The effects of bullying have led many young people to commit suicide, and it’s important that parents know how to recognize if their child is a victim or a bully themselves. This seminar will go over why teens bully others, what to do if your teen is involved, and where to seek help if your child is being harassed by others. And because bullying isn’t just limited to the playground anymore, the workshop will also look at what cyberbullying is and what you can do to protect your teen online.

Raising Kids of Good Character
Bullying, violence, racism, anti-semitism, drugs, and crime have all become serious problems for youth. Parents play a critical role in the development of their child’s character, and it’s important they make a commitment to raising caring, confident, and respectful teens to help prevent some of these serious problems. This session will discuss the key elements of raising children with good character.

Any staff members who are interested in participating in the workshops can register online here, where you can also get more information about what time each workshop starts, and location. Do you have questions or want more information about the seminars? Contact Lucille McLeod in Human Resources Services at (204) 632-2944.

 Submitted by Hayley Brigg, Creative Communications student

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