By Maggie Rohr

Are you feeling more stressed about school? Or do you read the latest news with a sense of dread?  A global pandemic can lead to feelings of stress and unease. However, the use of mindfulness techniques can reduce these emotions. 

If you are a student in the Upper School, you know of the familiar name Brian Justice (‘85). Justice, an Upper School religion and history teacher and coach, is adored by many students and faculty at Collegiate for his wisdom in the classroom and on the field. We are blessed to have someone as knowledgeable in areas such as religion, history, and mindfulness in our Upper School faculty. 

Throughout Justice’s classes in Upper School, he stresses the importance of practicing mindfulness and focussing on the present. Associate Director of Summer Quest and Upper School health and wellness teacher Jake McDonald (‘07) also teaches and shares mindfulness practice with students and student-athletes. According to McDonald, “Our brains are wired to problem-solve for survival and a byproduct is the negativity bias – on a ratio of 5:1, we tend to gravitate towards the negative over the positive.”  Especially during this difficult year, the negativity can outweigh all of the positive things in our lives, such as being back in school. 

In an interview, Justice shared insight on how to pull away from the negativity and refocus yourself. Justice says, “Try and have a rule of life. By that I mean not something complicated, but by having a word, or a prayer, or a mantra, a song lyric that always calls you back, that always brings you back. If you feel yourself getting stressed, if you feel negative emotions rising up… Your rule of life is to go to your word, or prayer,  or mantra, and just gently say it to yourself, and let the power of that positive word bring you back to your center.” 

Mindfulness is something that can be hard to grasp in a time of stress. According to McDonald, Jon Kabat-Zinn—the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, a foundation for mindfulness education in the US—defines mindfulness as the “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally.” This skill, when regularly practiced, allows greater access to present-moment awareness and therefore gives us an option to respond, as opposed to simply reacting to whatever situation is in front of us. Justice agrees that mindfulness is being fully present in a moment, but not only does it mean being fully present. It also means heartfulness. According to Justice, “whenever I’m trying to be present in the moment and focus with my mind, I’m also trying to have my full heart in the moment as well.” During this global pandemic, it is important to remain present and not worry about the future, and to also be heartful. If a loved one is going through a hard time, give them not only support, but the compassion that comes from your heart. 

When asked to share one piece of advice for the Collegiate community for this unprecedented year, Justice stated, “I would just say, embrace the moment as it comes, let it go as it goes, and enjoy.” Although this school year is nothing like anyone pictured, remaining mindful and hopeful is the best thing to do. This school year is going to be hectic, and the use of mindfulness is going to be essential for success. 

Key terms to remember when practicing mindfulness. Image credits: John Hain.

Normally, humans average 50-60,000 thoughts per day. With all of these thoughts going through our heads, it is easy to get lost in the moment and become unable to enjoy the positive things in life. McDonald shares a daily practice with students that is useful when getting lost and overwhelmed in your own thoughts.

“First, get into an open posture (seated, or lying down) and slowly inhale, with our focus being on expanding our belly fully, and then, like a second inhale, allowing our lungs and ribcage to expand fully. Then note a brief pause between inhale and exhale, and then bring your attention to drawing out a slower exhale. The mind will wander. That’s okay. Patiently bring your attention back to this cadence (full in, slow out). Do this practice for about 3-5 minutes.” According to McDonald, this practice can be very beneficial to those who constantly feel stressed out and want to be recentered. 

McDonald said, “A daily gratitude practice (three things you are grateful for and why) can help us shift our mindset from the negativity bias to a perspective that instead sees what is right with our lives.” Taking time in a day to think about the things you are grateful for can not only help you see what is right in life, but it can also be a positive way to improve your mood. Learning to live gratefully is so important. According to Justice, “If you think that COVID-19 or any type of event is like a storm, then you’re gonna’ stay soaking wet. The truth is, it’s never gonna’ stop raining, so you are going to need to learn to live in the rain. It’s always something. If it’s COVID-19, weather, this teacher, the economy, this job, that job, it’s always something, so you need to learn to live in it. It’s not that it storms, then sunshines, then storms, then sunshines. In a sense, it’s always raining, and it’s always sunny at the same time, and you need to learn to live in it.”

Featured image credit: Ingi Finnsson.