Roman
Office Wellbeing
What we practice grows stronger
Most of us spend almost half of our lives at work, which is often associated with stress, making it crucial to understand how our ability to manage stress affects our overall wellbeing.
Challenging situations at work, such as conflicts with colleagues, increased workload, uncertainty, lack of support from management, and tight deadlines, can significantly impact our emotional and psychological balance, becoming a source of stress.
Emotional resilience plays a crucial role in how we respond to such situations. One key skill in coping with stressful situations is emotion regulation—our ability to manage emotions and overcome reactive behavior in stressful moments.
Emotion Management
We all have a Thinking (or Rational) Brain that involves the prefrontal cortex: a part of the brain responsible for decision-making, planning, social behavior, and problem-solving. And we have an Emotional Brain that involves the limbic system, which handles things like the fight, flight, or freeze response and emotional reactions to situations.
Our Thinking brain is able to step in and take control over our emotions. In the event of a stressful situation, it's important to pause, wait for the emotions to settle, then analyze the situation, and only after that make any decisions and act.
How can we develop our abilities to overcome emotional reactions?
Mindfulness and mind concentration
We need to practice self-awareness. By acknowledging your emotional state, you can begin to regain control over your thoughts and actions. "What you practice grows stronger" is not just motivational speak but a scientifically backed fact. Research shows that regular practice of meditation and other mindfulness exercises can lead to a phenomenon known as "cortical thickening" - the growth and strengthening of neurons in the brain as a direct response to regular practice. It's similar to training our muscles; consistency in practice is required to see results in the gym.
Practices of attention focus through meditation activate certain areas of the brain (including the prefrontal cortex), responsible for attention, interoception, and sensory processing, developing and strengthening them*. As a result, we develop our cognitive abilities and emotional resilience.
Concentration practices
I would suggest considering meditation as a concentration technique, not necessarily as a spiritual practice. You can easily perform concentration exercises right at your desk.
Simply close your laptop and switch off the notifications on your phone for 5 minutes during the day. Close your eyes and try to pay attention to your breath, following your inhales and exhales. Of course, you will be distracted by your thoughts, and that’s normal. Don’t fight them. Notice when you are distracted by a thought and then return your focus to your breathing. This simple technique will initiate the transformational processes of developing self-awareness.
Remember, every little step counts, and you add another brick to building your Emotional Resilience. Strong Resilience will improve your emotional reactions and your ability to effectively manage stressful situations at your workplace.
*Sara W. Lazar at al. Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness. Neuroreport. 2005 Nov 28;16(17)
Emotional resilience plays a crucial role in how we respond to such situations. One key skill in coping with stressful situations is emotion regulation—our ability to manage emotions and overcome reactive behavior in stressful moments.
Emotion Management
We all have a Thinking (or Rational) Brain that involves the prefrontal cortex: a part of the brain responsible for decision-making, planning, social behavior, and problem-solving. And we have an Emotional Brain that involves the limbic system, which handles things like the fight, flight, or freeze response and emotional reactions to situations.
Our Thinking brain is able to step in and take control over our emotions. In the event of a stressful situation, it's important to pause, wait for the emotions to settle, then analyze the situation, and only after that make any decisions and act.
How can we develop our abilities to overcome emotional reactions?
Mindfulness and mind concentration
We need to practice self-awareness. By acknowledging your emotional state, you can begin to regain control over your thoughts and actions. "What you practice grows stronger" is not just motivational speak but a scientifically backed fact. Research shows that regular practice of meditation and other mindfulness exercises can lead to a phenomenon known as "cortical thickening" - the growth and strengthening of neurons in the brain as a direct response to regular practice. It's similar to training our muscles; consistency in practice is required to see results in the gym.
Practices of attention focus through meditation activate certain areas of the brain (including the prefrontal cortex), responsible for attention, interoception, and sensory processing, developing and strengthening them*. As a result, we develop our cognitive abilities and emotional resilience.
Concentration practices
I would suggest considering meditation as a concentration technique, not necessarily as a spiritual practice. You can easily perform concentration exercises right at your desk.
Simply close your laptop and switch off the notifications on your phone for 5 minutes during the day. Close your eyes and try to pay attention to your breath, following your inhales and exhales. Of course, you will be distracted by your thoughts, and that’s normal. Don’t fight them. Notice when you are distracted by a thought and then return your focus to your breathing. This simple technique will initiate the transformational processes of developing self-awareness.
Remember, every little step counts, and you add another brick to building your Emotional Resilience. Strong Resilience will improve your emotional reactions and your ability to effectively manage stressful situations at your workplace.
*Sara W. Lazar at al. Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness. Neuroreport. 2005 Nov 28;16(17)
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