Geeky wellbeing favourites: December 2023
Saying goodbye to 2023, negativity bias, plus the usual science highlights
As humans, we have what is called a ‘negativity bias’ – the tendency to focus and remember the negative over the positive. Through evolution, it served us well and helped us survive by remembering the dangers and other bad things that happened to us so that we could avoid them.
In today’s terms, however, what it means is this: if you ask me how 2023 went, all the negative things come to mind. Like the war, family dramas, illness, work stress and all its associated problems; 2023 seems like another difficult year. Maybe not as bad as 2021, but still pretty bad. Which increases my stress levels and all the consequences that come with that (including immune health).
And yet there was so much more to 2023 than that. Only in the past few weeks I’ve been reminded of the power of community and connection through the work and actions of some of my great yoga teachers (who are probably reading this right now – thank you!). There were wonderful memories and holidays, and a fluffy little monster sleeping next to me right now.
Savouring the positives is one the tools we have to help us stop falling into the negativity wormhole, supporting both our mental and physical health. Not being “good vibes only”-kind of people (toxic positivity is, well, toxic too). But trying to bring attention back to the good stuff so that we can balance out our view of the world and our lives.
And before you admire my mindfulness, let me tell you that I’m not very good at this (in fact, I’m pretty bad). But I’m working on it.
Are you in London? I’m running a yin and yoga nidra workshop on January 13th! Join me for 2 hours of winter rest, I’d love to see you there.
5 interesting things to check out this month
Here’s another thing that could help – carving out time for a few moments of mindful breathing (no, I’m not very good at this either but I’m working on it). I’ve just discovered the Science vs podcast, and I binge-listened to it while doing some holiday gift-making. Of particular interest is this episode on breathwork (check out this earlier newsletter for more on cyclical sighing).
It’s the month of over-indulging; if this causes you anxiety, then you might enjoy the latest episode of the Happiness Lab, which explored our complicated relationship with eating and makes some helpful suggestions (mindful eating being one of them).
You know what else has helped my mental health? Being off social media and out of the negativity that lives within it. I found this article about how technology might be ‘stealing our time’ (by making us feel that we can’t just sit and do nothing, we always have to be doing something) quite interesting.
Feeling overwhelmed in this pre-holiday season? (yes, me too) It might seem obvious, but doing less is a far better option, as detailed in this article. The focus here is on parenting, but you can see how it could apply to other situations.
Yoga nidra always helps, no matter what the challenge.
Mind–body science highlights
Yoga for depression
Interested in what practices experts recommend for mild to moderate depression? This study spoke to 32 people who have experience using yoga in a therapeutic way and have a medical background. The practices include some gentle stretching, breathing and yoga nidra. It will be interesting to see what happens when the protocol is properly evaluated with a controlled trial.
Breathing for stress among those living with cancer
In this small on-site intervention (at a cancer treatment facility), participants were invited to join a short breathing session once a week; exercises includes humming, alternate nostril breathing and simple mindful breathing. Both patients and caregivers reported improvements in stress. The key thing I think here is that a short intervention (just 20 minutes) was found acceptable and effective among participants.
Children practicing yoga
This is a little random, but if you teach children’s yoga and ever need some stats for your website or social media copy, here’s the latest survey from the USA.
From the blog
Is yoga community good for our immunity? Thank you yoga community for helping support my immune system! This is one for my list to look at updating, but worth a read if you haven’t already.
Can behavioural science help me hack self-care? Tips and tricks that might help support in establishing a new self-care behaviour, like a short breathing session every day.
Mindfulness is not just for stress. Because stress is also bad for your immune system.
Happy 2024!