Mindfulness for rushing women

Mrs Jody Forbes, School Psychologist

The faculty of voluntarily bringing back a wandering attention, over and over again, is the very root of judgment, character, and will … An education which should improve this faculty would be the education par excellence. William James, 1890

According to Dr Libby Weaver, an Australian nutritional biochemist, many women suffer from this ‘Rushing Women’s Syndrome’ and feel ‘tired yet wired’ due to their urgent approach to life (Weaver, 2012). This condition involves sympathetic nervous system dominance, which can be experienced by women who run themselves ragged with a never-ending list of tasks. For those who frequently answer ‘stressed’ or ‘busy’ to friends’ questions about their welfare; when a trip to the dentist becomes the only opportunity to sit still and abstain from talking; when coffee becomes akin to religion; and when sleep is hard to come by, Rushing Women’s Syndrome may provide a means of understanding their experience.

Although not scientifically proven, the term ‘Rushing Women’s Syndrome’ resonates with many, particularly those fulfilling multiple roles, such as working full time and assuming primary responsibility for child rearing and housework. Multitasking is the new norm, and many parents are constantly juggling smart phones and children while undertaking routine jobs and even playing in the park. Dr Weaver cautions that significant physical and psychological consequences can occur due to such a lifestyle (Weaver, 2014).

One of the remedies suggested for Rushing Women’s Syndrome, or indeed life in the frenetic, technology-laden twenty-first century, is mindfulness. Triggering the parasympathetic nervous system, which assists the body to relax and restore, mindfulness has been espoused as the antidote to the modern world. While it is thousands of years old and originates from Buddhist philosophy, modern day mindfulness is non-secular. It is not a religion, but rather a form of mental training. Professor of Medicine, Jon Kabat-Zinn, the pioneer of modern day mindfulness defines it as ‘paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally’ (Kabat-Zinn, 1994, p. 4). Not limited to simple awareness, mindfulness involves acceptance of, and openness to, both pleasant and unpleasant internal and external experiences. By paying careful attention to thoughts, feelings and body sensations, mindfulness assists one to acknowledge and respond to experiences, rather than react hastily (Lowe, 2014). While it can include meditation, mindfulness can also be cultivated through informal practices such as paying attention to everyday activities like brushing your teeth, eating or watching a sunset.

Mindfulness has been shown to have many physical and psychological benefits. Numerous studies have shown a reduction in stress, anxiety, exhaustion and depression, as well as improvements in concentration, visuo-spatial memory and creativity. Physically, cortisol levels can be reduced, blood pressure lowered and immunity enhanced by engaging in mindfulness (Pickert, 2014). Functional brain imaging has allowed researchers to study the specific impacts of meditation on the brain, revealing changes in brain circuitry, helping people feel happier, calmer, more energised and more engaged (Weare, 2012; Williams & Penman, 2011). Furthermore, meditation has been shown to stimulate the insula, suggesting that mindfulness can enhance one’s empathy, compassion and sensitivity, enabling richer and more successful relationships with others (Williams & Penman, 2011).

Unsurprisingly, mindfulness is gaining popularity around the world and has been adopted by global companies like Google, as well as universities, schools, hospitals, banks and the US Marines. Medical students are being introduced to mindfulness as a way of preventing burnout, as are members of the UK Parliament, who were exposed to mindfulness training earlier this year. As a result the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) was established to consider ways in which mindfulness could be incorporated into UK public policy. In its recent parliamentary report, the APPG proposed that all doctors and teachers be trained in mindfulness as a way of reducing the burden on the National Health System (Berry, 2014). Perhaps part of the appeal is that mindfulness teaches professionals the idea that ‘slowing down is necessary, and that sometimes “not doing” can be just as productive as “doing”’ (Maskowirz, 2014).

Just as Rushing Women’s Syndrome may not be limited to females, adults are not the only ones experiencing such a lifestyle. Managing competing demands, hyper-connection and sleep deprivation, today’s adolescents can feel pressure like never before. Coping with stress has been rated as a main concern for many young people (Mission Australia Report, 2013). Moreover, the 2014 Youth Mental Health Report suggests that more than forty per cent of students completing Year 12 experience abnormal amounts of stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms. Predictably, researchers have recently directed their attention towards the benefits of mindfulness for adolescents and are finding that they can experience similar benefits to those of adults.

Mindfulness can assist students to manage exam stress and improve performance, be it in the classroom, on the sporting field or in the performing arts (Hennelly, 2011; Wearne, 2012). Meditation teacher, Ms Janet Etty-Leal, who has been providing mindfulness training to staff and students in over forty Victorian schools, believes that today’s children find it difficult to think deeply due to many distractions. As a result, their ‘neural pathways can be scrambled and less effective which disrupts learning’ (Etty-Leal, 2011). Executive functioning, which is required for both self-regulation and academic achievement, has been shown to improve following mindfulness activities (Chambers, Chuen Yee Lo & Allen, 2008).

As mindfulness offers students the opportunity to sustain attention and be still and silent, effective learning can therefore take place.

As a leader in the holistic education of adolescent girls, Girls Grammar has carefully examined the available mindfulness research and considered its applicability to our staff and students. We have begun introducing mindfulness education and activities into the classroom, which has been favourably received, and we continue to investigate international approaches to mindfulness education programs.

As Kabat-Zinn explains, mindfulness is not a passing fad, but instead a practice which requires embodied engagement to receive benefits (Williams & Penman, 2011). Given this, one of the first stages of incorporating mindfulness into our School is to prepare our staff by providing information and training about the topic. To this end, we were delighted to have invited a guest speaker to Staff Day at the end of Term III. Through simple breathing and posture exercises he demonstrated how observation and acceptance can cut through some of our most stressful thoughts and result in the release of tension and lowered cortisol levels. The presentation was not only well received by our staff, but the principles of mindfulness were thought to be potentially very useful for our students.

As the world does not appear to be slowing down, Girls Grammar must continue to consider a wide range of approaches to help our students thrive. Mindfulness, although promising, will not be the answer for everyone. However, the concept of pausing, noticing and accepting may just prove an essential life skill for those students inclined to develop from rushing girls into rushing women.

References

Berry, C. (2014, Sept 10). Wellbeing in four policy areas. Retrieved from http://www.neweconomics.org/publications/entry/wellbeing-in-four-policy-areas

Brisbane Mindfulness. http://brisbanemindfulness.com/

Chambers, R., Chuen Yee Lo, B., & Allen, N.B. (2008). The impact of intensive mindfulness training on attentional control, cognitive style, and affect. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 32, 303-­‐322. In Weare, K (2012). Evidence for the impact of mindfulness on children and young people. Retrieved from http://mindfulnessinschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/MiSP-Research-Summary-2012.pdf

Etty-Leal, J. (2011, March 17). Australian school children learn mindfulness. Retrieved from Dr Ellis-Jones http://ianellis-jones.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/australian-school-children-learn.htm

Hennelly, S. (2011). The immediate and sustained effects of the .b mindfulness programme on adolescents’ social and emotional well-being and academic functioning. Retrieved from http://mindfulnessinschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Immediate-and-sustained-effects-of-dot-b.pdf

Ivancic, L., Perrens, B., Fildes, J., Perry, Y. & Christensen, H. (2014). Youth Mental Health Report, June 2014, Mission Australia and Black Dog Institute.

James, W. 1890/1950. The Principles of Psychology. New York: Dover Publications. Retrieved from http://psychclassics.asu.edu/James/Principles/prin11.htm

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go, there you are: Mindfulness meditation in everyday

Life. New York: Hyperion Books.

Lowe, J. (2014, July 29). Stop, think, breathe…. vote: Mindfulness in parliament. Prospect Magazine. Retrieved from www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/science-and-technology/stop-think-breathe-vote-mindfulness-in-parliament

Maskowirz, A. (2014). In Machado, A. (2014). Should schools teach kids to meditate? The Atlantic. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/01/should-schools-teach-kids-to-meditate/283229/

Mission Australia Youth Survey. (2013). Retrieved from www.missionaustralia.com.au

Pickert, K. (2014). The mindful revolution. Time. Retrieved from http://time.com/1556/the-mindful-revolution/

Weare, K. (2012). Evidence for the impact of mindfulness on children and young people. Retrieved from http://mindfulnessinschools.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/MiSP-Research-Summary-2012.pdf

Weaver, L. (2014, August 17). Stressed? Tired? Craving sugar? It could be Rushing Woman’s Syndrome. Retrieved from http://www.theglow.com.au/wellbeing/what-is-rushing-womans-syndrome/

Weaver, L. (2012,March 19). Do you have rushing woman’s syndrome? Retrieved from https://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/health/wellbeing/article/-/13124068/do-you-have-rushing-womans-syndrome/

Williams, M., & D. Penman. (2011). Mindfulness: a practical guide to finding peace in a frantic world. London: Little, Brown Book Group