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The Open-Focus Brain by Les Fehmi and Jim Robbins (Trumpeter Books); book feature and interview on page 318

WE ARE CREATURESof habit we love a goodroutine because doingthe same old same olddoesn't take much mentaleffort. But getting stuckin certain ways of thinking

can hinder our abllitytoboth enjoy and respondeffectivelyto newsituations. Llke a body.the mind needs retularstretchlng to stay aglleand resilient.

People, by nature,are more or less receptlveto new activities andideas. 'Open" types aretypically imaginative,creatlve, intellectuallycurious, and holdunconventional beliefscompared with 'tlosed"

types, who tend to resistchange. Although youdon't have to have an"open" personalityto bementally healthy, expertssay that anecdotally in

cases where closemindedpeople are forced tobecome moreflexiblein their approach to theworld-by a shatteringevent, for example-they report that life isricher and more fulfillingas a result. Fortunately,all it takes to keepyour mind limber is...

Insigfttwe each haveabook of rules in our headabout how we "should"behave-"|'ve 8ot to beperfect," "Never ask forhelp," "l always put othersahead of myself." Starttrying to pinpoint therules that drive you, andwritethem down (we're

not sayingthis is easy,but once you start lookin8.you may be surprisedatwhatyou discover).For each, ask: "Does itserve me and enhancemy life? or is it one l'mfollowint because l'mafraid not to?" lfthe rulebelongs to the lattercategory, question it. Fore)€mple, if you "neverask friends for help," whynot? Are you afraid thatthey might rejectyourrequest? or that you'llend up feeling beholden tothem? You could be ri8ht,so test the rule by askinta good friend for a smallfavor. You mayfind thatyour request is cheerfully

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granted, and that youlfriendship deepensrather than becomes tenseas a result.

Bolt0viotl tta night outusually means dinner anda movie, buy tickets fora flamenco performanceinstead. Drive the slow.scenic road to work versusthe hithway. Take a classin a subject that interestsyou but has nothingto dowith your job. when youfollow a routine, your braincan operate in low-energymode, via relativelyprimitive structures knownas the basal tantlia, saysJeffrey Schwartz, MD,coauthor of fhe Mind andthe Brain: Neuroplastlcityandthe PowerofMentalForce. ln contrast,new activities engate theprefrontal cortex, anevolutionarily youngerarea that needs moreenergy to function. That'swhy breakinga routinemay feel hard-but ifyou push past that effort,Schwartz says, newexperiences can helpstimulate fresh statesof mind that leave youfeeling both morefocused and energized.

Emotion:rne nexttime you have a bad day,resist the urge to retreatto the TV or an extraglass of wine. hstead, letyourself sense any anger,disappointment, sadness,whatever is going onin you. write the feelin$down, talk about themto a fr3end, or simply sitwith closed eyes andallowthem to be (for ameditation exercise,see "5 ways to Breaka Downward spiral,"page 317). According topersonality researchers,the willingness toexperience both positive

and netative feelintsis another factor thatdlstlnguishes extremelyopen people from closedones; itl also associatedwith Increased longevityafter heart problems,accordingto a recentstudy at Duke University.on the flip side, denylngemotions is a well-knowndriver of addictions.

Focusrhewaywepay attention to theworld can make a hugedlfference In the waywe experience it. "Manyadults in our cultureare addicted to a verynarrowlyfocusedattentlonal style In whichwe beam-in sequentiallyon the tasks of work,shopplng, paylng ourbllls, and so on," says LesFchml, PhD, coauthord The open-Focus Bnln:Harnmslngthe Powerof Attfintlon to Heal MindandBody. Thlsgrlppingform ofattentlon.whlch can be ldentlfledby a characteristicbraln wave pattern on anelectroencephalogram(EEG), ls the mode wetyplcally use when porlngover a wrltten report orstarlng Into a computermonitor at the office. ltltiring to sustain (doingso often requlres periodicinfusions of caffeine andsutar), and is Gorrelatedwith physiologicalreactlons such as muscletension, stress hormonesecretion, and increasedblood pressure, allof whlch take a toll onour health. This kindofattentlon can alsowreak havoc on ourrelationships-whatromantlc partner wantsto be scrutinized withthe same intensitythat we direct towardan important work

assitnment? Yet becausewe're called on to usethe narrowfocus so much,it's hard to let go of.

Only on vacatlon domany of us broaden ourawareness to lncludethe smell of plne trees,the crunch of pebblesunderfoot, the way acolor mutes in the rain-a mode of taklng in theworld that Fehmi callsopen-focus attention.This mode is correlatedwith more synchronousEEG patterns (the famousalpha activity) andphyslological relaxatlon.You can get a smallsense of it by trying thisexercise: close your eyesand letyour mind respondto the following series ofquestions, allowing about15 seconds for each.There are no correctanswers. slmply noticewhatever sensationsor feelings arise.can you imagine...o the space between

your eyes?. the space inside your

nose as you inhaleand exhale naturally?

. the space occupledbyyour jaw?

. the space inside yourthroat, expandinguntil your entite neckis filled with space?

. the space insideyour throat and neckexpandingto fillthe entire redon ofyour shoulders?

o the space that yourwhole body occupiesexpandlng out intothe room?

Prelimlnary clinlcalresearch sutgeststhat practicing exerciseslike this can reducemuscular tension,anxiety, and depression,and improve intellectualperformance. -G,1.

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YOU 'VEJUSTWOKEN UP, AND YOU 'RE ON THE VRONG S IDE OF

the bed. Is there anvwav to switch to the other side? Absolutelv

As soon as thg alarm fifi$Sl spena your first r5 secondsawake planning something nice to do for yourself today "Thiscan really set you up in a good mood- even if it's just going bythe farmers' market and getting fresh strawberries," sayn Alice

Domar, PhD, whose next book-Ba llappy \Vitbout Being Perfea: Howto Breah Freefron tbe Perfexion Deception-wll be out in March.

Get Up.fn" longeryou lie there, the more you ruminate,the darkeryour outlook is likely to become, says ChristinePadesky, PhD, coafi.hor of Mind Oaer Mood. So get verticdand make a cup of coffee, take a shower, feed the cat...

. , ,and dfiflk--"t . that two glasses of water upon awak-ening, the time when our bodies are dehydrated, says SusanM. Kleiner, PhD, author of Tbe GoodMoodDiet. Dehydrationcauses fatigue, which affects your mood.

MOVe it. You already know the number one way of chas-ing away a bad mood: exercise. Aworkout at the grm surehelps. But even just a few minutes of movement-a fastwalk, for example-raises energy and reduces terrfoia, says

mood expert Robert Thayer, PhD, professor of psycholqgr atCalifornia State University6 Long Beach, and author of Calm Energt.

Invgstigate.'when you're dogged by anxiety or the dreadyou woke up with, try to pinpoint what's causing it. Didsomeone say anything the day before? Do you have a meet-ing today you wish you didn't? Was it the dream you v/ere

having when the alarm went ofP "If you can figure out why you'reupset, that's halfiray to feeling better," says Domat

Be kind and thankful. thir irtt't exactly news, but gen-erosity and gratitude are both big contributors to happi-ness, according to Todd B. Kashdan, PhD, who directs theLaboratory for the Study of Social Anxiety, Character

Strengths, and Related Phenomena at George Mason University inFairfax,Virginia. Do something nice for a stranger or friend and see ifyou dont feel better about yourself Also jot down three things thatyou're gratefirl for. It seems so simple, but countingyour blessings justhas a way of making you remember the sun is shining.

LaUgh at yOurSelf The best comedians point out themundane aspects of life-relationship strife, aboring job, acloset full of too-tight clothes; they exaggerate those cir-cumstances, and give us a perspective we can laugh about,

says Mark Ridley owner of the Comedy Castle in Royal Oak, Michigan.Look at your own life and try to appreciate the absurdity of whatdoesn't go exactly according to plan (the diets, the men, the buzz cut).Acknowledging how little control we actually have overwhat happensis sometimes a most freeing gift to yourself. -xathryn matthews I

For furtber resources, see page j78 .