But this is the wrong approach, says psychiatrist and researcher Helen Riess, author of the new book The Empathy Effect. The ability to connect empathically with others—to feel with them, to care about their well-being, and to act with compassion—is critical to our lives, helping us to get along, work more effectively, and thrive as a society. Most of Riess’s research on empathy has focused on health care. Since doctors are confronted with suffering day in and day out, their situation is fitting for observing how empathy affects well-being....

But, still… Like many Americans, I sometimes find myself working right through lunch. I get lost in my work, or I think, Hey, if I just finish this project, it will be out of my hair and then I can relax. But a newly published study suggests this is the wrong approach. It turns out that taking a deliberate break from work with a short walk in the park or a bit of mindful relaxation can have powerful effects on our end-of-day concentration, stress, and fatigue....

At some point during childhood, a well-meaning adult asks, “So, what do you want to be when you grow up?” What I like about this question is that it embraces the idea that work is an expression of who you are as well as who you want to be. Yet that question takes an odd turn when you become an adult. “What do you do for a living?” is what we typically ask each other....

Data from my well-being survey recently revealed that positive self-views (or feeling good about oneself, a general belief that we are good, worthwhile human beings) were the best predictor of happiness—even more so than 19 other emotional processes including gratitude and strong personal relationships. Positive self-views emerge from self-esteem, self-acceptance, and self-worth, among other things. Why are positive self-views so essential to well-being? Because these views not only affect how we feel; they also affect our thoughts and behaviors....

Kim Haines-Eitzen • Princeton University Press Most of us likely think of deserts as barren with no redeeming value. Not so for Kim Haines-Eitzen, who finds a rich soundscape there that promotes solitude. That gift of solitude, she says, explains why some of the earliest contemplative practitioners, the Desert Fathers, sought refuge there. Haines-Eitzen grew up in the Middle East and, from an early age, was taken with the power of the desert, both the simplicity of its landscape and the “sound of desert silence....

Nedra Glover Tawwab • TarcherPerigee “‘Boundaries’ can be such a broad and intimidating term,” therapist, author, and relationship expert Nedra Glover Tawwab writes in the first few pages of Set Boundaries, Find Peace. And it is true. Moving through the world while setting and respecting boundaries is no easy feat. Similar in sentiment to the title of Chapter 1, you may even be wondering: What the Heck Are Boundaries? Through a series of relatable stories and scenarios, Glover Tawwab shows us how different types of boundaries and boundary violations can show up in real life....

Mindfulness Practice: Keep the Lines Open 1) Begin by sitting silently together for 10-20 minutes, as time allows. 2) Next, take turns telling each other what you’re grateful for, what’s enlivening your heart at present. “This is called gladdening the heart and serves as a good way to open the channel of communication,” Tara says. 3) Next, take turns naming any particular challenges you’re dealing with that are currently causing you stress....

A Guided Meditation for Expanding Our Hearts This practice is excerpted from Shelly Tygielski’s Mindful video course Radical Self-Care: Reclaiming Your Practice and Learning How to Use it in Real Life. Sign up for Mindful’s video course with Shelly at mindful.org/selfcare read more Shelly Tygielski June 17, 2022 Shelly Tygielski January 3, 2023 Mindful Staff December 18, 2020

And then the first breath practice I ever learned was a gift from my father. One day, when I was probably about six or seven years old, we were floating on a rubber raft in a pond, gazing up at the blue summer sky. Far above us we watched as massive white cumulus clouds slowly morphed into new forms and then gradually un-formed. My dad looked over at me and said, “Hey, want to see a magic trick?...

Feel your forehead relax, along with your eyes, your jaw, your whole face. Feel the relaxation and release of your neck, your shoulders, and your belly. Imagine a radiant sun beaming from within your heart. Picture yourself at the center of this warm and welcoming light. Send these intentions to yourself, pausing before each repetition to just rest in the space: May I be free from suffering. May I find peace and joy....

Ammi’s Adventures: Wind Hi! I’m Ammi. My name means “the whole world is inside of me,” and I think it’s true: I carry the whole world in my mind and heart and body. I know you do, too! I like to play games, explore, and discover what makes me, me. I’m so glad we’re together on this journey! Have you ever thought about the wind? It is amazing. It can bring a sudden gust of cold and make us shiver with goosebumps popping on our skin....

MoMA Art Lab Leave it to New York’s Museum of Modern Art to craft an app that teaches children (and anyone else who’s interested) the fundamentals of modern art. Art Lab goes beyond the virtual tours offered by most museum-generated apps. It guides users to create collages and collaborative drawings, make sound compositions, and practice line and shape. The goal: teach aspiring artists how to make the kind of work that’s actually on display at MoMA....

“He never opens the car door for me anymore,” Desiree gripes. “Yah?” Scott huffs. “Well she says I can’t get a motorbike, and then yells because I don’t feel like some big anniversary party.” She shoots back, “I don’t even know who you are anymore.” And so it begins. I have the privilege of meeting couple after couple with very different stories. Some are dealing with boredom and emotional disconnect, some with the aftermath of an affair....

As a clinician, I’ve been trained to spot and address the unhealthy mental habit of repetitive and negatively-toned inner chatter that broils in our minds and bodies from the inside. Rumination (or repetitive and passive thinking about negative emotions) has been shown to predict the chronic nature of depressive disorders as well as anxiety symptoms. Another study suggested that people with a ruminative style of reacting to their low moods were more likely to later show higher levels of depression symptoms....

This simple exercise in a New Haven, CT elementary school was the first time I saw a lesson in emotional literacy. Naming emotions accurately helps children be clearer about what is going on inside—essential both to making clearheaded decisions and to managing emotions throughout life. Self-awareness—turning our attention to our inner world of thoughts and feelings—allows us to manage ourselves well. An inner focus lets us understand and handle our inner world, even when rocked by disturbing feelings....

Anyone who struggles with anxiety can reap benefits from mindfulness and the practices offered here, regardless of diagnosis. If you struggle with anxious thoughts, worry, fearful anticipation of the future, or a sense of dread, mindfulness will be useful for you. Fear is, of course, a component of anxiety. When experienced in the moment, perhaps in response to a sudden scare, fear resolves fairly quickly. However, if you then become worried that the fearful experience will happen again, this taps into the future, fuelling anxiety....

In this video from BigThink, psychologist and author Susan David says our obsession with happiness hinders our ability to do the hard work of living: being able to recover from setbacks when we inevitably make mistakes, or lose a job—you know, when that picture-perfect veneer we were working away at starts to erode. Appreciating All Your Emotions While keeping a positive outlook is good in theory, it’s also important to acknowledge that sometimes, negative things will happen to us....