By: Tracy L. Skaer, PharmD, Professor of Pharmacotherapy
While there is often much joy surrounding family gatherings during the holiday season, some may experience increased tension. Practice these mindful techniques to help you increase empathy, reduce stress, improve relationship satisfaction, and better enjoy your holiday moments.
By: Tracy L. Skaer, Pharm.D., Professor of Pharmacotherapy
College of Pharmacy, Washington State University
Jon-Kabat-Zinn describes mindfulness as, “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, nonjudgmentally to the unfolding experience moment by moment.” Mindfulness has been found to reduce stress as well as gradually building inner strength to ensure that future stressful situations have less impact on our physical and emotional well-being.
Mindfulness reduces stress by: » More …
Stop eating mindlessly – placing food in your mouth unconsciously, barely chewing, and not tasting it. Take some time with each bite paying particular attention to the sensations (smell, sight, sound, and taste), thoughts, and feelings. Here’s how to eat mindfully and fully enjoy all of the tasty offerings. » More …
By Tracy L. Skaer, PharmD, Professor of Pharmacotherapy
Holiday family gatherings should be joyful and stress-free but this may not be the case for some. While family dynamics can be complicated, the best solution may not be to skip the holidays entirely.
By Tracy L. Skaer, PharmD, Professor of Pharmacotherapy
I would like to share the following email message that I received from one of my mentors, Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn today in the wake of the latest tragedies in Nice, France.
“It strikes me at this particular moment on the planet that the well-being of the world itself depends on our willingness—each and every one of us—to tap into our capacity for embodied wisdom. That is precisely what the cultivation of mindfulness offers. It is a way to, in Derek Walcott’s words, “give back your heart to yourself,” and in doing so, to live and love and work in ways that are inwardly and outwardly healing and transformative. » More …
By Tracy Skaer, WSU College of Pharmacy
There are two categories of stress: eustress and distress. Eustress is the beneficial type that helps motivate our lives and keep us happy, connected, active, challenged, motivated and productive. However, when stress becomes intolerable and/or manageable then detrimental distress becomes apparent. Distress leads to several negative outcomes including poor decision making, anxiety, insomnia, irritability, increases in blood pressure, indigestion, hyperventilation, reduced or increased appetite, substance abuse, and poor coping skills.
Dr. Tracy L. Skaer, Professor of Pharmacotherapy
Are you stressed, in pain, sad, anxious, or angry? If so, learn how to practice mindfulness to help calm these negative emotional storms.
2015 is an exciting year for the WSU Spokane Health Sciences campus with the re-launch of the Wellness Collaborative. Our mission is to foster a thriving culture of wellness for the campus community that will provide ongoing access to resources, workshops, articles, classes, and much more to help you excel in all realms of your health.
Emotional wellness refers to your ability to handle emotions in a constructive way to maintain a positive emotional state. It inspires self-care, relaxation, stress reduction, and the development of inner strength.
It is important to be aware of both positive and negative feelings and be able to understand how to handle these emotions. Stress can be a major factor in your emotional wellness, and each person deals with it differently. Emotional wellness begins with your ability to listen to yourself and accept your feelings in a positive way, thereby enabling yourself to form supportive and interdependent relationships with others.
“Enjoy the present moment without judgment to reduce your stress, improve sleep, concentration and mood.” – Dr. Skaer