Happy, Healthy Docs

Congress Gets Serious About Stress and Mindfulness

Listen to this inspiring YOUTUBE video I found regarding mindfulness. In a Congressional hearing, Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) asks Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius about stress reduction via mindfulness, and how it can help our nation.  What's this about?

Stress management requires being mindful, or self aware in a given moment.  For example, if I'm feeling strong anger, rather than reacting and yelling, I might ask, "What am I feeling right now?  What's going on in my body?"  I might answer, "I'm really feeling hurt under the anger, and my heart is pounding."  So to slow the pounding and feel the hurt rather than yell, I breathe deeply for 10 minutes.  Being mindful helped me create a workable stress management strategy.  Now I'm calmer, I feel better physically, and I prevented an argument.   

Mindfulness meditation is an excellent tool to learn self-awareness - and to manage stress.  It helps with anger management, reducing violence, ameliorating pain, curbing compulsive/addictive behaviors, and more - areas now getting national attention.  So next time I'm upset and want to soothe myself with a donut, I might instead become aware that I'm really feeling disappointed and take a walk instead.

To do it:  Sit quietly.  Close your eyes.  Take deep breaths.  Become aware of your breath, your emotions, your body, by asking, "How am I experiencing myself?" For example, ask, "What emotion am I feeling right now?"  Or, "Where is there tension in my body?"  Then sit with that awareness.  Ask again:  "What emotion am I feeling now?"  A new one may rise up into your awareness.  Do this for 5-10 minutes. 

With practice you'll really get to know yourself well.  Becoming aware of your emotions is important, especially if this is difficult for you.  Why is it important?  Until you know how you truly feel about something, you won't change it.  Emotion is a much better motivator than denial. 

Disruptive Behavior - Owning Your Anger

 

"Disruptive Behavior" is the 2009 buzz word by The Joint Commission with their new Leadership Standard LD.03.01.01 mandating hospitals to address this issue head on.  A major hallmark of a disruptive individual is an angry outburst, often at the most inopportune times - in front of colleagues, patients, and their family members.  The "classic" profile of disruptive physicians are male surgeons who yell in the operating room, but they are by no means the only doctors who may engage in this behavior.  In fact nurses and other health professionals also project their anger outwardly.  Often such individuals have difficulty taking responsibility for their behavior.  Instead they blame their anger on others, such as laboratory personnel who produce late test results.  While it's true that poorly functioning departments or hospital systems can be very frustrating, screaming at those who work in them is not the answer. 

If you are quick to respond with anger in frustrating situations, especially if it happens more than you - or others - would like, the problem may also lie within you.  When I first saw the above cartoon, I  thought Lucy's response to "Why are you always yelling at me?" might be, "Because you're an idiot!"  To my surprise, she took responsibility for her yelling.  That is the start of the healing process for those who can't control their anger.  Chronically angry people may blame others for everything and see themselves as right.  They can't see how their outbursts exacerbate their problems.  They don't do this on purpose.  They really believe they're not at fault. 

This topic can take up many blog posts.  As a first step, ask yourself:  "How well do I handle my anger?  Does it handle me?  Do I feel powerless to control it?  Does it get in my way at work?  Is it affecting my relationships?"  If you answer yes, consider that you could possibly use some help.  The first step is owning the fact that this area of your life isn't working and is causing you pain.  Give it some thought, and stay tuned for more on this.