Rachel Fleischman

“Slow Down and Be Here Now”
by Rachel Fleischman, MSW, LCSW
Body-Oriented Psychotherapist and Founder of Dancing Your Bliss

Yesterday isrnhistory. Tomorrow is a mystery. And today
Today is a gift. That's why we call it the present. ~Babatunder Olatunji

Studies have shown that Americans are more miserable now than ever. With the challenges that we face economically, it can feel as though we are just hanging on by arnthread. This is not so. We all underestimate our need to slow down. If we are not careful, we live as if our schedules are our lives. At the end of the day, we haven’t necessarily been present to our own experience. Mary Pipher, psychologist says: Irnhave never seen people as rushed and distracted as we are now. We have become arnnation of multitaskers.”

I am incredibly fortunate to work with my counseling clients. Seeing such a rich and intimate side ofrnpeople has helped me identify what elements are essential to slowing down and being here now. I feel incredibly privileged to have such a profound connection with people. However the occasions when we genuinely need to rush are really a lot less frequent than we convince ourselves. The simple truth is that rushing has become a habit for many of us. And it has arnnegative effect on our mental, spiritual and physical health.

Scientists have studied emotions and their effect on cognition and brain function. When wernare in good spirits, our cognitive repertoire is broadened. That means we are more able to problem solve, complete tasks and fulfill goals. (Seligman M. E. P. (1991). Learned Optimism. Newr York: Alfred Knopf. Happiness has even been proven tornincrease pain tolerance. Negative emotion narrows our thought-action repertoire; tasks not only seem more arduous, they actually are.

When you are rushing the body literally is in panic mode. The physical systems feel as if they are constantly being stressed to meet imaginary deadlines. Anrnoccasional shot of adrenaline might be good for you but a continuous stream ofrnit will wear down the body and its immune system. You will tend to get sick more often, feel more fatigued, enervated and listless.

When you are rushing mentally, your mind is always ‘on’. Thoughts of things you need tornget done and things you have not yet gotten done keep streaming through your mind making you feel out of sorts and unaccomplished. You may even feel panicked and have trouble sleeping and relaxing. Instead of turning to chemical sleep aides, why not change your habit of rushing around?

First you need to become aware of your daily habits and thoughts. Most of the time when we are rushing, we do not even realize it because it is such an automatic response. For example, I walk fast naturally –excessively so. I walk as fast as I can no matter if I am talking a Sunday evening stroll or walking to work. We all could use slowing down a bit.

Byrnslowing down, and sticking to one experience at a time, we are able tornexperience more joy. We need to learn torndo one thing at a time. Mary Pipher, psychologist, and author of bestselling Revivingr Ophelia, says “one of the reasons pets are so popular is that when we are with the, we share their pleasure in being here now. Pets do not live in clock time, and they allow us to rest from chronological time. We join them in older, animal rhythms.” (Seeking Peace, by arrangement with Riverhead books, 2009)

I have dished up a list of some things you can do today to easily slow down, enjoy one activity at a time, and live with more joy. Get ready to Be Here, Now.

1) Plant something; nourishing, feeding, harvesting, a plant can lower blood pressure, strengthen the heart and increase the production of serotonin, the happy chemical. And flowers are beautiful

2) Have Faith; studies have shown that spirituality affects health. In a study of 1,700 older adults, those attending church were half as likely to have elevated levels of IL-6 (hormones associated with increased incidence of disease)

3) Initiate a Slowing-Down Contest– find a friend and email each other some joyful things that you do each day. Your entry can include the simplest of joys; baking, watching a sunset, reading to a child)

4) Read The Artist’s Way (or any good book) (Julia Cameron; 1992, 2002) Many folks have found this ground-breaking book very helpful in goal setting and connecting with their creative genius. I believe that we all our geniuses. We just need the time and space to let our amazing selves shine.

5) Keep a gratitude jou al. This is my absolute favorite new pastime. I love it especially when I am sulking in a moment of gloom and doom. Irngo to my gratitude jou al and put in all the things that happened that I amrngrateful for, like having a seat on the bus, or getting a card in the mail, orrnenjoying a lovely meal. (nothing is too small). Start your gratitude jou alrntoday, and you will notice that you will attract more good things into your world.

6) Check out these smell-the-roses sites, and take it slow…

http://slowdownnow.org/

http://www.43things.com/

http://www.mindfuleating.org/

http://www.slowfood.com/

7) 9. End the day slowly: Having an evening ritual is a balm to the nervous system. Before you go to sleep make sure that there is nothing stressful going on. Dimming the lights sever hours before bedtime relaxes the mind, and intensifies the output of tryptophan, the sleep-inducing hormone. It’s very hard to enjoy a good-night’s sleep after watching the news. Find a slowness ritual that works for you; reading a book, talking to your partner or a friend, drawing, jou aling.

8) Play in nature: This is a lovely way to help you slow down. To enjoy nature you have to bernpatient, Go to the beach, look at the sea and listen to the waves. Visit the county side, look at the greenery and listen to the birds chirping on the trees. Admire the blooming flowers in your garden and study the snail crawling on the ground. These are some of the delightful things that you can do to take it easy. And here in SF, there is nature all around us.

9) Slow Your Attention: Slowing down helps give our full-attention to what we are doing. Like full-attentio Zen, slowing down can put us in the zone, or what Mihalyr Csikszentmihalyi calls flow (“Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience”). Try walking more slowly. Pause before responding to questions. Speak more slowly. Does this feel awkward? Why?

10) Practicer Meditating: The first years of the twenty-first century have brought about new and surprising findings about how Buddhist contemplative training can affect the brain. The findings include unprecedented levels of brain activation in certain regions of the brain during meditation, evidence that meditation affects brain areas associated with to positive emotions, as well as strong evidence the brain can be changed through prolonged and disciplined mental training. (J. Davidson, et al., Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation, Psychosomatic medicine 65.4 (2003): 564-70.)

Men, for the sake ofrngetting a living, forget to live. ~ Margaret Fuller.

Rachelr Fleischman, MSW, LCSW is a highly-skilled psychotherapist and dynamic workshop leader, based in San Francisco. Throughout her career, Rachel has pioneered the combination of traditional psychotherapy with movement, body awareness and spirituality.

Embodying 20 years of expertise, Rachel's body of work synthesizes a vast repertoire ofrnmovement and healing arts. Bringing her unique specialty of Body-Mindr Psychotherapy, she unlocks issues held inside the body: like fear, anger, depression and creative blocks. She unlocks these issues through her proprietary work merging talk therapy with expressive arts (sometimes with breath, & movement techniques) so that these issues don't become diseases in our bodies.

Rachel's fascination with spirituality, soul, mood disorders, and movement, has led her to develop a movement system called Dance Your Bliss™, a playful, powerful and highly original movement form which she leads across the globe.www.dancingyourbliss.com