BE  WELL  to  Teach  Well:  Integra3ng  Mindfulness  into  Working  with  

Children,  Families  and  Professionals  

Kate  Gallagher,  PhD  Frank  Porter  Graham  Child  

Development  Ins:tute,  UNC  CH    

Karen  Bluth,  PhD  Program  on  Integra:ve  Medicine,  

UNC  CH    

FPG  Annual  Inclusion  Ins:tute  May  12,  2015  

Stress  Mindfulness  Prac:ces  Mindfulness  in  Everyday  Life    

Be  Well  Overview  

HOW  STRESS  WORKS  

Stress…  

•  Is  perceived  in  the  brain  and  experienced  in  the  body  

•  Can  impact  –  Quality  of  our  rela:onships  

–  Health  –  Enjoyment  of  life  – Working  with  children  and  families  can  be  stressful  

–  Can  lead  to  burnout    

Stress  is  Perceived  in  the  Brain  

   

The  Stress  Reponse:    Fight,  Flight  or  Freeze  

Stress  is  Experienced  in  the  Body  

No3cable  effects   Hidden  effects  •  Brain  gets  body  

ready  for  ac:on  •  Adrenaline  

produced  •  Liver  produces  

glucose  •  Blood  pressure  

rises  

•  Pupils  dilate  •  Mouth  dryness  •  Tension  in  neck  and  shoulders  

•  Rapid  heartbeat  •  Rapid,  shallow  breathing  

•  Swea:ng  

Early  Stress:  Childhood  Trauma    and  the  Adverse  Childhood  Experiences  Survey    (ACES)  

Early  trauma  can  affect  stress  and  health  throughout  the  lifespan  

RESEARCH  ON  STRESS  IN  THE  EARLY  CHILDHOOD  WORKFORCE  

PA  HS:  Resilience  to  the  Impacts  of  Stress  on  Health  and  Func:oning  

Stress  

Workplace  Stress  

Economic  Hardships  Adverse  Childhood  Experiences  

Health  

Physical        Health  

Emo:onal  Health  

Func3oning  

Rela:onship  Quality  

Children’s  Learning  

Mindfulness  

What  is  Mindfulness?  

•  An  awareness  resul:ng  from    

•  non-­‐judgmental    •  a\en:on  to  our  sensa:ons,  thoughts,  and  feelings    

•  in  the  present  moment  

 POTENTIAL  IMPLICATIONS  FOR  MINDFULNESS  PRACTICE?  

PA  HS:  Disposi:onal  Mindfulness  is  associated  with:  

•  Be\er  health  for  all  staff  •  Higher  quality  rela:onships  with  

students  for  teachers  •  Be\er  rela:onships  with  

parents  for  home  visitors  •  Be\er  self-­‐efficacy  for  managers  

RESEARCH  ON  MINDFULNESS  PRACTICE  

•  Anxiety  •  Depression  •  Nega:ve  mood  •  Perceived  stress    

•  Life  sa:sfac:on  •  Vitality  •  Sense  of  

autonomy  •  Competence    •  Op:mism    

Mindfulness  prac:ce  can:  (Greeson,  2009;  Khoury,  et  al.  2013)  

Teachers  who  received  a  mindfulness  interven:on    reported  …  

•  Increases  in  teacher  well-­‐being  

•  Efficacy  •  Burnout/:me  related  stress    

•  Daily  physical  symptoms    

                                                                               

(Jennings  et  al.,  2013)    

Mindful  teachers…  

•  Have  lower  burnout  •  Reduc:ons  in  

psychological  symptoms  •  Improvements  in  

classroom  organiza:on  •  Improvements  in  

performance  on  a  computerized  task  measuring  sustained  a\en:on  

•  Increases  in  self-­‐compassion  

                                             

 (Flook  et  al.,  2013)  

Why  mindfulness?  

Tool  that  changes  the  brain’s  percep:on  of  stress  the  body’s  experience  of  stress  

Can  improve  Health  Rela:onships  Enjoyment  of  life  

MINDFULNESS  PRACTICES  Building  resilience…  

BODY  SCAN  /  BODY  CHECK-­‐IN  

MINDFUL  BREATHING/    BREATHING  SPACE  

Mindful  Ea:ng  MINDFUL  EATING  

SELF-COMPASSION PRACTICE

Mindfulness  Common  humanity    Self-­‐kindness  

 

   

     

LOVINGKINDNESS  AND    SELF-­‐COMPASSION  BREAK  

Thank  you!  

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