1 00:00:15,436 --> 00:00:20,836 Speaker 1: Pushkin. If you've listened to other episodes or the Happiness Lab, 2 00:00:21,076 --> 00:00:24,716 Speaker 1: you've probably learned that becoming happier often involves changing your behavior, 3 00:00:25,396 --> 00:00:27,756 Speaker 1: things like trying to be more social, getting in a 4 00:00:27,756 --> 00:00:31,636 Speaker 1: bit of cardio, taking time to experience gratitude. The research 5 00:00:31,676 --> 00:00:33,956 Speaker 1: shows that all of these things will improve your well 6 00:00:33,956 --> 00:00:37,676 Speaker 1: being if you do them. The problem is we actually 7 00:00:37,676 --> 00:00:39,956 Speaker 1: have to do these things, and if you're like me, 8 00:00:40,276 --> 00:00:41,836 Speaker 1: there are a lot of times when you know what 9 00:00:41,836 --> 00:00:44,556 Speaker 1: you're supposed to do, but you really would rather do 10 00:00:44,636 --> 00:00:47,156 Speaker 1: something else. You may know it's a good idea to 11 00:00:47,196 --> 00:00:48,756 Speaker 1: head out of the house and see a friend if 12 00:00:48,796 --> 00:00:51,636 Speaker 1: you're feeling down, but if it's raining and you're already 13 00:00:51,636 --> 00:00:54,556 Speaker 1: on the couch, being social feels like a chore. You 14 00:00:54,596 --> 00:00:56,756 Speaker 1: may swear you're going to get up early to practice 15 00:00:56,796 --> 00:00:59,156 Speaker 1: guitar or hit the gym in the morning, but when 16 00:00:59,156 --> 00:01:02,116 Speaker 1: that alarm clock goes off, there are definitely some days 17 00:01:02,116 --> 00:01:05,396 Speaker 1: you'd rather stay in bed. These kinds of moments, these 18 00:01:05,436 --> 00:01:08,716 Speaker 1: feelings of desiring something you know isn't consistent with your 19 00:01:08,716 --> 00:01:11,876 Speaker 1: bigger goals, they come up whenever we're trying to change 20 00:01:11,876 --> 00:01:15,396 Speaker 1: our behavior for the better. Building happier habits often means 21 00:01:15,516 --> 00:01:17,836 Speaker 1: not getting what we want in the moment, and that 22 00:01:17,876 --> 00:01:20,636 Speaker 1: can feel pretty yucky. It's the reason many of us 23 00:01:20,716 --> 00:01:23,956 Speaker 1: give up working on the goals we desire most. But 24 00:01:24,076 --> 00:01:25,516 Speaker 1: what if I told you there was a way to 25 00:01:25,516 --> 00:01:28,996 Speaker 1: outsmart those little moments of discomfort and simply sail through them. 26 00:01:29,276 --> 00:01:31,836 Speaker 1: What if there was a strategy, a strategy that's both 27 00:01:31,876 --> 00:01:35,156 Speaker 1: ancient and backed up by modern science, that allows you 28 00:01:35,196 --> 00:01:38,756 Speaker 1: to push through positive behaviors when you really want to backslide. 29 00:01:39,036 --> 00:01:41,596 Speaker 1: And what if using this technique also had a host 30 00:01:41,676 --> 00:01:46,516 Speaker 1: of other health benefits like reducing inflammation, decreasing stress levels, 31 00:01:46,676 --> 00:01:50,836 Speaker 1: improving concentration, and even making you happier and less anxious. 32 00:01:51,476 --> 00:01:54,676 Speaker 1: It's also totally free and only involves a couple minutes 33 00:01:54,676 --> 00:01:57,476 Speaker 1: a day to learn what the strategy is and how 34 00:01:57,516 --> 00:02:00,076 Speaker 1: it works. We're going to talk with an expert, my 35 00:02:00,156 --> 00:02:03,596 Speaker 1: friend and colleague here at Yale, the neuroscientist, doctor Hetty Cooper. 36 00:02:03,956 --> 00:02:05,916 Speaker 1: And to make it even more fun, we'll do all 37 00:02:05,956 --> 00:02:07,916 Speaker 1: of that in front of a live studio audience here 38 00:02:07,956 --> 00:02:11,116 Speaker 1: on campus. So welcome to the next installment of the 39 00:02:11,156 --> 00:02:23,196 Speaker 1: Happiness Lab twenty twenty. So we're gonna start off with 40 00:02:23,196 --> 00:02:25,556 Speaker 1: a question for the audience a little bit of a quiz. 41 00:02:25,836 --> 00:02:29,916 Speaker 1: I want you to answer whether, in the last two 42 00:02:29,916 --> 00:02:33,156 Speaker 1: months or so, how many of you have experienced no 43 00:02:33,236 --> 00:02:36,276 Speaker 1: stress at all, no frustrations, nothing. On the count of three, 44 00:02:36,316 --> 00:02:41,676 Speaker 1: we're gonna clap. Ready, one, two three, not not really 45 00:02:41,676 --> 00:02:43,796 Speaker 1: here anything? Okay, all right, So here's a second question. 46 00:02:43,996 --> 00:02:45,436 Speaker 1: On the count of three, I'm going to ask you 47 00:02:45,516 --> 00:02:49,196 Speaker 1: to clap if you've experienced a little bit of stress, 48 00:02:49,276 --> 00:02:52,636 Speaker 1: maybe a few frustrations, but nothing more than that. Ready, one, 49 00:02:52,676 --> 00:02:57,476 Speaker 1: two three, Okay. Now I'm going to ask if there's 50 00:02:57,516 --> 00:02:59,716 Speaker 1: you to clap if in the last two months you've 51 00:02:59,716 --> 00:03:02,636 Speaker 1: experienced a lot of stress to the point that it 52 00:03:02,756 --> 00:03:07,916 Speaker 1: sometimes made it kind of hard to function. One two three, 53 00:03:09,476 --> 00:03:11,476 Speaker 1: all right. So I'm here in hetty. Most people are 54 00:03:11,476 --> 00:03:14,116 Speaker 1: going with they kind of experience a lot of stress. 55 00:03:14,156 --> 00:03:16,316 Speaker 1: I know you use this question a lot in your talks. 56 00:03:16,436 --> 00:03:17,956 Speaker 1: Is this kind of a common answer that you get? 57 00:03:18,116 --> 00:03:20,556 Speaker 1: Very very common answers. So I would say that nine 58 00:03:20,596 --> 00:03:22,796 Speaker 1: times out of ten, the most clapping that I get 59 00:03:23,076 --> 00:03:25,756 Speaker 1: or the most hands are raised for have you experienced 60 00:03:25,796 --> 00:03:27,516 Speaker 1: a lot of stress? This is a very very common 61 00:03:27,756 --> 00:03:29,996 Speaker 1: thing to report, And so talk about why this is 62 00:03:29,996 --> 00:03:32,076 Speaker 1: such a bad thing, because I mean again and feeling 63 00:03:32,076 --> 00:03:33,756 Speaker 1: a lot of stress means you're anxious and so on. 64 00:03:33,796 --> 00:03:37,716 Speaker 1: But stress really has an incredible impact on our bodies, right, Yeah, 65 00:03:37,756 --> 00:03:40,676 Speaker 1: so stress is actually known to have a toxic effect 66 00:03:40,756 --> 00:03:43,556 Speaker 1: on most of our bodily systems. So stress was designed 67 00:03:43,596 --> 00:03:46,236 Speaker 1: as a physiological response to a real threat in the environment. 68 00:03:46,316 --> 00:03:49,556 Speaker 1: And since we are actually somewhat ancient species, we were 69 00:03:49,556 --> 00:03:51,756 Speaker 1: in the savannah, maybe running away from a predator who 70 00:03:51,836 --> 00:03:54,316 Speaker 1: might eat us. Right, So the stress response in our 71 00:03:54,356 --> 00:03:57,796 Speaker 1: body was really made to mobilize various physiological systems to 72 00:03:57,836 --> 00:03:59,876 Speaker 1: allow us to run, to allow us to fight. It 73 00:03:59,996 --> 00:04:03,396 Speaker 1: wasn't really designed to let us prepare for exams or 74 00:04:03,556 --> 00:04:07,676 Speaker 1: deal with bad teaching reviews. And so when we experience 75 00:04:07,756 --> 00:04:09,836 Speaker 1: the same kind of physiological response in the context of 76 00:04:09,876 --> 00:04:12,556 Speaker 1: these everyday experiences that we now have in our modern 77 00:04:12,676 --> 00:04:15,076 Speaker 1: day and time, and especially when we have them for many, 78 00:04:15,116 --> 00:04:18,036 Speaker 1: many days in a row, that physiological response is actually 79 00:04:18,076 --> 00:04:20,876 Speaker 1: toxic to multiple physiological systems. And it's also really bad 80 00:04:20,956 --> 00:04:22,956 Speaker 1: for us achieving our goals. Right, you know, when you 81 00:04:22,956 --> 00:04:25,796 Speaker 1: think about we're here around the new year, we want 82 00:04:25,836 --> 00:04:28,396 Speaker 1: to be achieving our Newar's resolutions. We want to be 83 00:04:28,396 --> 00:04:31,876 Speaker 1: behaving better. But as things get more stressful, that's even harder, right, 84 00:04:31,916 --> 00:04:34,156 Speaker 1: It's so much harder, And it's so much harder because 85 00:04:34,196 --> 00:04:35,956 Speaker 1: in the moment, even if we haven't been stressed for 86 00:04:36,036 --> 00:04:38,436 Speaker 1: months and we're just stressed in this moment, stress interferes 87 00:04:38,436 --> 00:04:40,076 Speaker 1: with our ability to think. So we know that people 88 00:04:40,076 --> 00:04:43,396 Speaker 1: when they're really really stressed, their cognitive performance is actually impaired. 89 00:04:43,636 --> 00:04:46,036 Speaker 1: It interferes with our ability to control our urges and 90 00:04:46,076 --> 00:04:48,756 Speaker 1: control our behaviors, and it sometimes even interferes with our 91 00:04:48,796 --> 00:04:51,396 Speaker 1: bodies functioning in the way that they're supposed to, because again, 92 00:04:51,436 --> 00:04:53,116 Speaker 1: all of the blood is going out of your brain 93 00:04:53,236 --> 00:04:55,716 Speaker 1: and out of your gut and into your thigh muscle, 94 00:04:55,756 --> 00:04:57,916 Speaker 1: so you can run away, and that's really not effective. 95 00:04:57,916 --> 00:04:59,836 Speaker 1: In what we're trying to do is let's say study 96 00:04:59,836 --> 00:05:03,596 Speaker 1: for an exam, and so everyone here is feeling really stressed. 97 00:05:03,716 --> 00:05:06,196 Speaker 1: Are we doing or are we just gonna be stuck 98 00:05:06,196 --> 00:05:08,556 Speaker 1: feeling stressed all the time? Or is there another path? Yeah? 99 00:05:08,556 --> 00:05:09,996 Speaker 1: So I think that the great news is are there 100 00:05:09,996 --> 00:05:11,876 Speaker 1: are things that we could all do to reduce our stress. 101 00:05:11,876 --> 00:05:13,476 Speaker 1: And I think that today we might focus on one 102 00:05:13,516 --> 00:05:15,596 Speaker 1: of them, in particular that I study, which is mindfulness. 103 00:05:15,956 --> 00:05:17,596 Speaker 1: I mean, if you're mindful, does that just mean you 104 00:05:17,636 --> 00:05:20,156 Speaker 1: don't have any stress anymo So mindfulness. We often think 105 00:05:20,156 --> 00:05:22,636 Speaker 1: about it in I say, we me, some of my colleagues, 106 00:05:22,676 --> 00:05:24,196 Speaker 1: people in my lab. We often think about it as 107 00:05:24,236 --> 00:05:26,476 Speaker 1: a two component process, which is a component of attention, 108 00:05:26,676 --> 00:05:29,356 Speaker 1: where attention is really oriented to what is happening right now. 109 00:05:29,436 --> 00:05:31,156 Speaker 1: So in this moment, it might be the sound of 110 00:05:31,196 --> 00:05:33,116 Speaker 1: my voice if you're here in this room. It might 111 00:05:33,156 --> 00:05:34,796 Speaker 1: be looking at me and Laurie sitting here in the 112 00:05:34,796 --> 00:05:37,036 Speaker 1: front of the room. Might be the sensation of your 113 00:05:37,076 --> 00:05:39,236 Speaker 1: butt on the chair, or your back, or maybe your 114 00:05:39,236 --> 00:05:41,596 Speaker 1: hands touching each other, everything that might be happening in 115 00:05:41,636 --> 00:05:44,236 Speaker 1: this moment, and your attention is oriented to it instead 116 00:05:44,236 --> 00:05:46,036 Speaker 1: of thinking about something that happened to you earlier or 117 00:05:46,076 --> 00:05:48,676 Speaker 1: something that might happen later. You're really right here. And 118 00:05:48,756 --> 00:05:51,876 Speaker 1: the important second component is really a component of attitude, 119 00:05:52,036 --> 00:05:54,116 Speaker 1: and that's a particular kind of attitude. It's an attitude 120 00:05:54,156 --> 00:05:57,276 Speaker 1: that's really open, it's curious, and it's accepting this moment 121 00:05:57,276 --> 00:06:00,636 Speaker 1: exactly as it is. And when we think about doing 122 00:06:00,676 --> 00:06:04,676 Speaker 1: that moment by moment, we might consider that accepting this 123 00:06:04,756 --> 00:06:07,516 Speaker 1: moment as it is noticing it right fully acknowledging everything 124 00:06:07,596 --> 00:06:09,836 Speaker 1: that might be happening, including maybe the fact that you 125 00:06:09,836 --> 00:06:11,916 Speaker 1: have deadlines and you're stressed about getting into a class, 126 00:06:11,996 --> 00:06:13,556 Speaker 1: or you have some kind of problem at work. If 127 00:06:13,596 --> 00:06:16,196 Speaker 1: you have a job, and you're letting everything that's already 128 00:06:16,196 --> 00:06:18,836 Speaker 1: happened be exactly as it is. You're not fighting with it, 129 00:06:18,876 --> 00:06:20,916 Speaker 1: you're not arguing with it, you're not wishing for it 130 00:06:20,956 --> 00:06:23,476 Speaker 1: to be different. You're just letting it be. And the 131 00:06:23,516 --> 00:06:25,796 Speaker 1: remarkable thing that happens when you can really be in 132 00:06:25,796 --> 00:06:28,676 Speaker 1: that state is that it really opens you up to 133 00:06:28,756 --> 00:06:31,836 Speaker 1: make better decisions about the next moment. And in doing so, 134 00:06:32,316 --> 00:06:35,596 Speaker 1: we see that people actually experience less stress and also 135 00:06:35,636 --> 00:06:37,836 Speaker 1: that they make better decisions. And so this is an 136 00:06:37,836 --> 00:06:40,196 Speaker 1: idea that's been around for a long time. You're not 137 00:06:40,236 --> 00:06:42,196 Speaker 1: the first person who's come up. I am far from 138 00:06:42,196 --> 00:06:44,996 Speaker 1: the first person who've come up with this. So mindfuls 139 00:06:45,036 --> 00:06:47,196 Speaker 1: is really rooted in a very ancient Buddhist tradition, so 140 00:06:47,316 --> 00:06:50,156 Speaker 1: thousands of years ago, as the story goes, the Buddha 141 00:06:50,276 --> 00:06:53,956 Speaker 1: sat under a tree and became enlightened when he considered 142 00:06:54,036 --> 00:06:57,716 Speaker 1: all of the human condition and one of the solutions 143 00:06:57,716 --> 00:07:00,236 Speaker 1: that he came up with for how we might exit 144 00:07:00,276 --> 00:07:02,836 Speaker 1: this human condition that is full of suffering is that 145 00:07:02,876 --> 00:07:05,396 Speaker 1: we might practice mindfulness. And mindfuls is really a part 146 00:07:05,436 --> 00:07:07,476 Speaker 1: of a set of practices within the Buddhist tradition. It's 147 00:07:07,516 --> 00:07:11,396 Speaker 1: not the only one, but really entails practicing interacting with 148 00:07:11,436 --> 00:07:13,756 Speaker 1: our lives in this way that doesn't argue with what 149 00:07:13,956 --> 00:07:17,236 Speaker 1: is already here. My understanding is that mindfulness comes through 150 00:07:17,276 --> 00:07:19,516 Speaker 1: a certain set of behaviors, Right, you kind of have 151 00:07:19,596 --> 00:07:23,196 Speaker 1: to practice it. Yeah, So you can bring mindfulness into 152 00:07:23,236 --> 00:07:26,196 Speaker 1: any particular moment, and being able to do that with 153 00:07:26,276 --> 00:07:28,836 Speaker 1: more ease, being able to do that almost more automatically 154 00:07:28,836 --> 00:07:31,436 Speaker 1: does require practice. Mindfuls. Practice is a little bit like 155 00:07:31,476 --> 00:07:33,516 Speaker 1: going to the gym. So at this moment, even if 156 00:07:33,516 --> 00:07:35,156 Speaker 1: you've never gone to the gym before, you can probably 157 00:07:35,196 --> 00:07:37,276 Speaker 1: lift some weight. Right, there's some amount of weight that 158 00:07:37,276 --> 00:07:39,956 Speaker 1: you could already lift, But if you practice lifting weights, 159 00:07:39,996 --> 00:07:43,556 Speaker 1: you can suddenly start overtime lifting heavier and heavier weights. 160 00:07:43,716 --> 00:07:46,356 Speaker 1: I think about mindfulness in a very much the same way. 161 00:07:46,676 --> 00:07:49,076 Speaker 1: So you can be mindful in this moment, it just 162 00:07:49,156 --> 00:07:51,356 Speaker 1: might not be as easy to sustain it over time. 163 00:07:51,516 --> 00:07:53,036 Speaker 1: And if you want to make it easier for you 164 00:07:53,076 --> 00:07:57,556 Speaker 1: to bring mindfulness into many moments, especially difficult moments, stressful moments. 165 00:07:57,716 --> 00:08:00,276 Speaker 1: You would benefit from practicing it over time, and that 166 00:08:00,316 --> 00:08:03,996 Speaker 1: form of practice is often considered meditation, this kind of 167 00:08:04,156 --> 00:08:07,516 Speaker 1: formal practice where you're really trying to be mindful accepted 168 00:08:07,556 --> 00:08:11,676 Speaker 1: present moments. Yeah, so I think one can practice mindfulness 169 00:08:11,676 --> 00:08:14,036 Speaker 1: across many moments in the day in a way to 170 00:08:14,116 --> 00:08:16,036 Speaker 1: really practice, kind of like you can. You know, I'm 171 00:08:16,076 --> 00:08:18,036 Speaker 1: practicing lifting something right now. To those of you who 172 00:08:18,076 --> 00:08:19,956 Speaker 1: can't see me, I'm lifting a bottle of water. And 173 00:08:19,956 --> 00:08:22,356 Speaker 1: so I just practice lifting something much as you would 174 00:08:22,436 --> 00:08:24,876 Speaker 1: at the gym. And so you can do it moment 175 00:08:24,916 --> 00:08:27,516 Speaker 1: by moment across the day. And when you're washing the dishes, 176 00:08:27,596 --> 00:08:29,796 Speaker 1: just wash the dishes. Notice how it feels like set 177 00:08:29,796 --> 00:08:31,636 Speaker 1: the sensation of water in your hands. And even if 178 00:08:31,676 --> 00:08:33,796 Speaker 1: you might notice some thoughts about how you don't like 179 00:08:33,876 --> 00:08:35,796 Speaker 1: washing the dishes, you can notice that as well and 180 00:08:35,876 --> 00:08:39,116 Speaker 1: continue doing it anyway. And if you actually want to 181 00:08:39,116 --> 00:08:41,636 Speaker 1: practice really seriously, you go to the gym. You don't 182 00:08:41,676 --> 00:08:44,396 Speaker 1: just lift the occasional bottle of water. You set some 183 00:08:44,476 --> 00:08:46,996 Speaker 1: time and you go and you dedicate that time to exercising, 184 00:08:46,996 --> 00:08:48,396 Speaker 1: and you do it with the most intention that you 185 00:08:48,436 --> 00:08:50,956 Speaker 1: can bring forth. And it's the same with mindfulness practice. 186 00:08:51,156 --> 00:08:52,916 Speaker 1: So you set a time, and you decide how long 187 00:08:52,916 --> 00:08:54,956 Speaker 1: you're going to do it for, and you during that 188 00:08:55,036 --> 00:08:58,156 Speaker 1: time set your intention to practice it with the most 189 00:08:58,396 --> 00:09:02,196 Speaker 1: focus that you can bring. And so sometimes when people 190 00:09:02,196 --> 00:09:06,156 Speaker 1: hear these terms kind of mindfulness or meditation, it conjures 191 00:09:06,236 --> 00:09:09,676 Speaker 1: up a kind of hippie top vibe, you know, dude 192 00:09:09,676 --> 00:09:12,556 Speaker 1: with long hair and robes and kind of you know, like, 193 00:09:12,956 --> 00:09:16,676 Speaker 1: maybe you're not like a dude with long hair, look 194 00:09:16,716 --> 00:09:19,596 Speaker 1: like a reasonable scientist, right, and so, so talk about 195 00:09:19,636 --> 00:09:22,236 Speaker 1: how sometimes these concepts get a bit of a bad 196 00:09:22,316 --> 00:09:24,476 Speaker 1: rap from people. Yeah, first of all, one of the 197 00:09:24,476 --> 00:09:25,916 Speaker 1: things that are really interesting is that I think that 198 00:09:25,996 --> 00:09:29,156 Speaker 1: mindfless gets a bad rap partly because it's often being 199 00:09:29,196 --> 00:09:32,756 Speaker 1: explained in contexts that are not necessarily here at Yale 200 00:09:32,756 --> 00:09:35,036 Speaker 1: by scientists. It's often talked about by people who might 201 00:09:35,036 --> 00:09:38,316 Speaker 1: actually resemble hippie dippy dudes with long hair and robes. 202 00:09:38,596 --> 00:09:40,396 Speaker 1: I think that what me and many other people in 203 00:09:40,476 --> 00:09:42,876 Speaker 1: my fields are trying to do is to actually bring 204 00:09:43,276 --> 00:09:47,316 Speaker 1: some serious inquiry, serious teaching, and serious science to bear 205 00:09:47,436 --> 00:09:51,596 Speaker 1: on this ancient Eastern tradition. And what I hope that 206 00:09:51,636 --> 00:09:54,636 Speaker 1: achieves is the idea that even though something might have 207 00:09:54,716 --> 00:09:57,036 Speaker 1: been understood first by people who are a little bit 208 00:09:57,076 --> 00:09:59,756 Speaker 1: hippie dippy, they might actually be more serious than you 209 00:09:59,796 --> 00:10:02,156 Speaker 1: might imagine and might benefit you, even though it might 210 00:10:02,196 --> 00:10:05,076 Speaker 1: not be your natural orientation to engage. So maybe the 211 00:10:05,116 --> 00:10:07,996 Speaker 1: best way to show people what this experience of mindfulness 212 00:10:08,116 --> 00:10:10,676 Speaker 1: is like is to try it out. Audience, are you 213 00:10:10,716 --> 00:10:17,956 Speaker 1: ready to try out a little quick meditation? All right, hetty? 214 00:10:18,356 --> 00:10:20,236 Speaker 1: Why don't you walk us through one? All right? So, 215 00:10:20,316 --> 00:10:22,116 Speaker 1: to those of you who are here, I'm going to 216 00:10:22,156 --> 00:10:24,276 Speaker 1: recommend that you first get comfortable in your chair and 217 00:10:24,356 --> 00:10:26,676 Speaker 1: close your eyes. If you are listening to this podcast 218 00:10:26,996 --> 00:10:29,116 Speaker 1: not here, you might even be driving on your commute. 219 00:10:29,156 --> 00:10:32,836 Speaker 1: Please don't close your eyes. It's very important, though, to 220 00:10:33,116 --> 00:10:35,716 Speaker 1: really try to bring a sense of attention to this moment. 221 00:10:35,796 --> 00:10:38,196 Speaker 1: And again, you can get maybe comfortable in your chair. 222 00:10:38,316 --> 00:10:41,476 Speaker 1: If you've closed your eyes. You can also notice maybe 223 00:10:41,476 --> 00:10:44,396 Speaker 1: your facial muscles relax a bit. We often talk in 224 00:10:44,476 --> 00:10:47,836 Speaker 1: sitting meditation about kind of carrying a dignified position, having 225 00:10:47,876 --> 00:10:50,436 Speaker 1: your head higher than your shoulders. Your back should be 226 00:10:50,756 --> 00:10:54,316 Speaker 1: somewhat erect, maybe almost noticing as if there's a string, 227 00:10:54,356 --> 00:10:58,196 Speaker 1: pulling your head up to the ceiling. And as you 228 00:10:58,316 --> 00:11:01,156 Speaker 1: are doing this, maybe take one deep breath to prepare, 229 00:11:04,716 --> 00:11:08,316 Speaker 1: and now move your attention to the physical sensation of 230 00:11:08,316 --> 00:11:11,196 Speaker 1: the breath wherever you feel it most strongly in the body. 231 00:11:11,556 --> 00:11:13,596 Speaker 1: And again, those of you who are listening, if you 232 00:11:13,636 --> 00:11:15,636 Speaker 1: are not able to notice your breath because there's so 233 00:11:15,716 --> 00:11:19,796 Speaker 1: much going on, you can actually use your visual field 234 00:11:19,916 --> 00:11:22,476 Speaker 1: as your object of meditation. The idea is to just 235 00:11:22,556 --> 00:11:25,996 Speaker 1: pick some physical element in your experience and just set 236 00:11:25,996 --> 00:11:28,236 Speaker 1: your intention to focus on that for the next few minutes. 237 00:11:29,916 --> 00:11:32,516 Speaker 1: And as you do that, and especially if you're noticing 238 00:11:32,516 --> 00:11:34,596 Speaker 1: the breath, you can just notice the spontaneous movement of 239 00:11:34,636 --> 00:11:37,836 Speaker 1: the breath. Everything inside us and outside us is moving 240 00:11:37,876 --> 00:11:42,476 Speaker 1: all the time. Experience is constantly shifting, moment is moving 241 00:11:42,476 --> 00:11:46,676 Speaker 1: into moment, and we're just using the breath or anything 242 00:11:46,716 --> 00:11:49,836 Speaker 1: else that we might choose as an anchor as a 243 00:11:50,076 --> 00:11:53,036 Speaker 1: sample element of our experience to focus on for the 244 00:11:53,036 --> 00:11:57,036 Speaker 1: next few minutes. Remember, we're just practicing. And if you're 245 00:11:57,076 --> 00:11:59,556 Speaker 1: noticing the movement of the breath, don't try to change 246 00:11:59,556 --> 00:12:03,276 Speaker 1: it in any way. Just pay attention to it. And 247 00:12:03,396 --> 00:12:05,796 Speaker 1: here is a key part. If you notice that your 248 00:12:05,836 --> 00:12:09,196 Speaker 1: mind is wandering, just notice it, even see if if 249 00:12:09,196 --> 00:12:13,596 Speaker 1: you can accept it. Ah, my mind wandered, And then 250 00:12:13,676 --> 00:12:18,076 Speaker 1: firmly but gently bringing your attention back to the physical 251 00:12:18,116 --> 00:12:36,396 Speaker 1: sensation of the breath. And again, if you notice that 252 00:12:36,436 --> 00:12:41,236 Speaker 1: your mind is wandering, just note it, mind wandering. Can 253 00:12:41,276 --> 00:12:42,876 Speaker 1: you even ask yourself? Can I be okay with this 254 00:12:42,996 --> 00:12:45,516 Speaker 1: moment where I noticed that my mind did something that 255 00:12:45,716 --> 00:12:49,516 Speaker 1: was not in my intention. And then again gently and 256 00:12:49,596 --> 00:13:07,036 Speaker 1: firmly bring your attention back to your anchor. And when 257 00:13:07,076 --> 00:13:13,436 Speaker 1: you're ready, you can open your eyes, come back. Welcome. 258 00:13:17,116 --> 00:13:20,716 Speaker 1: So snap your fingers. If your mind wandered at least 259 00:13:20,716 --> 00:13:25,236 Speaker 1: once during this exercise, I'm seeing everybody here snap their fingers. 260 00:13:25,596 --> 00:13:28,316 Speaker 1: That is really typical. Mind wandering is what minds do. 261 00:13:28,556 --> 00:13:32,116 Speaker 1: It's the normal state actually of our existence. And the 262 00:13:32,196 --> 00:13:34,556 Speaker 1: practice what we did here is that I asked you 263 00:13:34,596 --> 00:13:37,756 Speaker 1: to set the intention to notice something else, right, to 264 00:13:37,836 --> 00:13:40,196 Speaker 1: pay attention to something else. And if you notice that 265 00:13:40,236 --> 00:13:42,396 Speaker 1: your mind was wandering, then your mind was doing not 266 00:13:42,556 --> 00:13:44,476 Speaker 1: what you intended for it to do, right. It was 267 00:13:44,556 --> 00:13:47,796 Speaker 1: kind of going off script. And the practice is to 268 00:13:47,876 --> 00:13:50,436 Speaker 1: notice that it happens and let that be and let 269 00:13:50,476 --> 00:13:53,076 Speaker 1: that go right. It's already done. It's in the past. 270 00:13:53,516 --> 00:13:56,156 Speaker 1: We can't change that your mind wandered. I can't change 271 00:13:56,156 --> 00:13:58,396 Speaker 1: that my mind wanders, and I can notice it when 272 00:13:58,436 --> 00:14:00,956 Speaker 1: it happens, and in that moment, practice noticing right that 273 00:14:00,956 --> 00:14:03,156 Speaker 1: moment is actually the moment we learned from the most. 274 00:14:03,196 --> 00:14:04,796 Speaker 1: What we would like to do over and over in 275 00:14:04,876 --> 00:14:06,916 Speaker 1: life is to wake up for mind wandering and pay 276 00:14:06,916 --> 00:14:10,276 Speaker 1: attention to where we are and to accept the fact 277 00:14:10,316 --> 00:14:12,476 Speaker 1: that it has wandered, and to develop this faculty of 278 00:14:12,476 --> 00:14:15,916 Speaker 1: attention and the faculty of acceptance, the skill to let 279 00:14:15,956 --> 00:14:18,276 Speaker 1: things that have already happened be as they were, to 280 00:14:18,356 --> 00:14:20,676 Speaker 1: let this moment be as it is, and move on 281 00:14:20,716 --> 00:14:22,636 Speaker 1: to the next. And the idea is that as you 282 00:14:22,676 --> 00:14:25,156 Speaker 1: develop these skills, you also learn a whole lot of 283 00:14:25,156 --> 00:14:27,756 Speaker 1: things about yourself. And we might also learn that we're 284 00:14:27,796 --> 00:14:30,716 Speaker 1: not our thoughts, that our thoughts kind of do their 285 00:14:30,716 --> 00:14:32,756 Speaker 1: own thing, that we don't really control where they go, 286 00:14:32,956 --> 00:14:35,676 Speaker 1: and that that happens, and in that we might learn 287 00:14:35,756 --> 00:14:37,556 Speaker 1: a new way of being, a way in which when 288 00:14:37,716 --> 00:14:40,396 Speaker 1: things go out of our control, we can just let 289 00:14:40,436 --> 00:14:42,876 Speaker 1: that be and then focus on what to do in 290 00:14:42,876 --> 00:14:44,956 Speaker 1: the next moment, and then come back to doing what 291 00:14:44,996 --> 00:14:47,356 Speaker 1: was in our intention to begin with, whether it's to 292 00:14:47,396 --> 00:14:49,636 Speaker 1: study when our mind is wandering about something else that 293 00:14:49,676 --> 00:14:53,196 Speaker 1: we're upset about, whether we're faced with some news that 294 00:14:53,236 --> 00:14:54,916 Speaker 1: we didn't expect and we need to figure out what 295 00:14:54,916 --> 00:14:57,396 Speaker 1: to do next to make our lives go back in 296 00:14:57,436 --> 00:15:00,276 Speaker 1: the direction that we intended. And so you're talking about 297 00:15:00,316 --> 00:15:03,196 Speaker 1: all these benefits in some ways kind of clitically, But 298 00:15:03,276 --> 00:15:05,516 Speaker 1: these are the kind of benefits that you've seen personally, right. 299 00:15:05,676 --> 00:15:09,116 Speaker 1: I first meditated many many years ago, even before college, 300 00:15:09,156 --> 00:15:10,836 Speaker 1: just a few times, because I was invited to do 301 00:15:10,836 --> 00:15:13,476 Speaker 1: it in a context of a yoga class, and I 302 00:15:13,516 --> 00:15:15,316 Speaker 1: did it faithfully while I went to that yoga class. 303 00:15:15,316 --> 00:15:17,116 Speaker 1: And then I moved to go to college at Columbia, 304 00:15:17,156 --> 00:15:19,636 Speaker 1: and I abandoned the practice completely because it was hard 305 00:15:19,676 --> 00:15:23,236 Speaker 1: and annoying and I found it too difficult and overwhelming. 306 00:15:23,556 --> 00:15:25,836 Speaker 1: And then I was reintroduced to it a few years later. 307 00:15:26,116 --> 00:15:29,076 Speaker 1: And what happened then is that I really learned to 308 00:15:29,116 --> 00:15:32,156 Speaker 1: engage with it in a way that almost immediately I 309 00:15:32,236 --> 00:15:34,556 Speaker 1: noticed made me better, made my life better, made my 310 00:15:34,596 --> 00:15:37,276 Speaker 1: experience easier. I was going through a lot of stress 311 00:15:37,276 --> 00:15:40,236 Speaker 1: at the times, really really difficult period, and I noticed 312 00:15:40,276 --> 00:15:42,716 Speaker 1: that when I walked out of my mindfuls practice. I 313 00:15:42,756 --> 00:15:45,116 Speaker 1: felt calmer and that my day went better if I 314 00:15:45,156 --> 00:15:47,556 Speaker 1: did it in the morning, and that over time my 315 00:15:47,636 --> 00:15:50,156 Speaker 1: focus got better, and that my ability to deal with 316 00:15:50,236 --> 00:15:53,276 Speaker 1: things happening outside of my control was really much improved. 317 00:15:53,316 --> 00:15:55,036 Speaker 1: And a lot of the motivation that I had then, 318 00:15:55,156 --> 00:15:58,796 Speaker 1: especially in the absence of any evidence or research on mindfulness, 319 00:15:59,036 --> 00:16:00,876 Speaker 1: I was really motivated by kind of my own first 320 00:16:00,876 --> 00:16:02,716 Speaker 1: person science. It worked for me, and so I kept 321 00:16:02,796 --> 00:16:05,356 Speaker 1: doing it. So you have seen personally the benefits of mindfuls, 322 00:16:05,356 --> 00:16:08,116 Speaker 1: but we're also learning that this isn't just you. Science 323 00:16:08,196 --> 00:16:11,116 Speaker 1: is really showing us mindfulness is doing incredible things for 324 00:16:11,156 --> 00:16:14,356 Speaker 1: our brains and for our bodies. But we actually have 325 00:16:14,356 --> 00:16:15,756 Speaker 1: to take a break, so we're going to hear about 326 00:16:15,796 --> 00:16:18,196 Speaker 1: the science when we come back. The Happiness Lab will 327 00:16:18,236 --> 00:16:38,276 Speaker 1: be back in a moment. All right, welcome back. We've 328 00:16:38,276 --> 00:16:40,796 Speaker 1: heard a little bit about the history of mindfulness and 329 00:16:40,836 --> 00:16:44,076 Speaker 1: meditation in some of the personal benefits hetty that you've seen, 330 00:16:44,156 --> 00:16:45,596 Speaker 1: But now I want you to take me into the 331 00:16:45,636 --> 00:16:48,796 Speaker 1: empirical work. What has the science really shown us about 332 00:16:48,796 --> 00:16:51,556 Speaker 1: how meditation changes the brain and the body. So there's 333 00:16:51,556 --> 00:16:54,316 Speaker 1: now not only studies but meta analyses, which are studies 334 00:16:54,356 --> 00:16:57,516 Speaker 1: other studies showing that mindfuls is effective for depression, for anxiety, 335 00:16:57,556 --> 00:17:00,676 Speaker 1: for substance use disorders, and for some other disorders as well, 336 00:17:00,996 --> 00:17:03,476 Speaker 1: reducing the suffering of people who on a day to 337 00:17:03,556 --> 00:17:05,876 Speaker 1: day basis really have a life that is full of 338 00:17:05,916 --> 00:17:08,916 Speaker 1: struggle and beyond that. And actually some of the first 339 00:17:09,156 --> 00:17:11,796 Speaker 1: such on mindfulness was on people who didn't have any 340 00:17:11,796 --> 00:17:14,796 Speaker 1: form of psychopology, but we're just stressed. People with chronic pain, 341 00:17:14,876 --> 00:17:18,796 Speaker 1: people who have normal everyday life stressors experienced tremendous improvements 342 00:17:18,836 --> 00:17:20,916 Speaker 1: with the practice of mindfulness. And I'm not saying that 343 00:17:20,956 --> 00:17:23,636 Speaker 1: mindfulness for everyone or for every single condition out there. 344 00:17:23,836 --> 00:17:26,596 Speaker 1: And the data are actually quite strong that if you 345 00:17:27,036 --> 00:17:29,396 Speaker 1: take a mindfuls course or learn how to meditate, that 346 00:17:29,476 --> 00:17:32,596 Speaker 1: you might experience less stress, more happiness, better well being, 347 00:17:32,836 --> 00:17:35,476 Speaker 1: and a reduction and symptoms like depression and anxiety. And 348 00:17:35,516 --> 00:17:37,796 Speaker 1: so you've shown that one of the reasons mindfulness and 349 00:17:37,876 --> 00:17:40,356 Speaker 1: meditation in particular can be so powerful is that it's 350 00:17:40,356 --> 00:17:44,076 Speaker 1: really changing the way our brain functions on autopilot. Right 351 00:17:44,116 --> 00:17:46,676 Speaker 1: when we have people sit in a brain scanner, typically 352 00:17:46,716 --> 00:17:50,396 Speaker 1: a functional magnetic resince imaging skinner fMRI, and don't ask 353 00:17:50,436 --> 00:17:53,076 Speaker 1: them to do anything in particular. In those moments, two 354 00:17:53,116 --> 00:17:55,556 Speaker 1: things happen. The first thing that happens is that people's 355 00:17:55,556 --> 00:17:57,556 Speaker 1: mind wander. We know that we talked about that. And 356 00:17:57,596 --> 00:17:59,076 Speaker 1: the second thing that we can see in the brain 357 00:17:59,116 --> 00:18:01,116 Speaker 1: scan themselves is that there's a network of regions that 358 00:18:01,116 --> 00:18:03,676 Speaker 1: get recruited in those moments of mind wandering, and we 359 00:18:03,716 --> 00:18:05,996 Speaker 1: actually have come to call those the default mode network. 360 00:18:06,196 --> 00:18:08,596 Speaker 1: And that network of regions is really reflective of the 361 00:18:08,636 --> 00:18:10,996 Speaker 1: default state of the mind, which is to wander and 362 00:18:10,996 --> 00:18:13,916 Speaker 1: to kind of got in the background, right. We all 363 00:18:13,916 --> 00:18:15,476 Speaker 1: know that there is it's almost like a crazy suck 364 00:18:15,476 --> 00:18:18,476 Speaker 1: buppet sitting on our shoulder, constantly commenting on everything that's 365 00:18:18,516 --> 00:18:21,276 Speaker 1: going on, where we can not only experience that as humans, 366 00:18:21,276 --> 00:18:23,596 Speaker 1: but there's also a network or a pattern of brain 367 00:18:23,596 --> 00:18:26,636 Speaker 1: activity that is associated with that kind of default mode 368 00:18:26,636 --> 00:18:29,636 Speaker 1: of the brain. And that default mode network is significantly 369 00:18:29,636 --> 00:18:32,156 Speaker 1: affected by the practice of meditation. So in one study 370 00:18:32,156 --> 00:18:35,836 Speaker 1: in my lab, we recruited individuals who were experienced meditators, 371 00:18:35,836 --> 00:18:38,476 Speaker 1: people who've meditated for many, many years. We asked them 372 00:18:38,476 --> 00:18:40,436 Speaker 1: in the scanner to both meditate some of the time 373 00:18:40,596 --> 00:18:43,316 Speaker 1: and also to just lie there and do nothing in particular. 374 00:18:43,516 --> 00:18:46,116 Speaker 1: And we also recruited a very well matched group of 375 00:18:46,156 --> 00:18:48,956 Speaker 1: control participants who've never meditated before, and we asked them 376 00:18:48,956 --> 00:18:51,076 Speaker 1: to do the exact same thing, and when we compared 377 00:18:51,076 --> 00:18:53,316 Speaker 1: brain activity between the two groups, So what we found 378 00:18:53,596 --> 00:18:56,916 Speaker 1: is that those individuals who meditated showed significant reductions and 379 00:18:56,916 --> 00:18:59,876 Speaker 1: brain activity in that default mode network and also altered 380 00:18:59,916 --> 00:19:03,756 Speaker 1: connectivity within that network, and that was significantly different from 381 00:19:03,756 --> 00:19:06,836 Speaker 1: those very well matched controls who've never meditated. They also 382 00:19:06,916 --> 00:19:10,476 Speaker 1: importantly reported less mind wandering. And the thing that's really 383 00:19:10,476 --> 00:19:13,556 Speaker 1: cool is that those individuals they've meditated for many, many years, 384 00:19:13,556 --> 00:19:16,316 Speaker 1: and the average number of hours that they meditated is 385 00:19:16,356 --> 00:19:19,556 Speaker 1: ten thousand hours. That's a lot of meditation. What's really 386 00:19:19,596 --> 00:19:22,516 Speaker 1: cool is that other labs have now recruited individuals who've 387 00:19:22,516 --> 00:19:25,756 Speaker 1: meditated much less. In some cases, people were randomized to 388 00:19:25,796 --> 00:19:28,956 Speaker 1: meditate for just three days, and again their brain activity 389 00:19:29,036 --> 00:19:31,396 Speaker 1: was measured, and what they reported is that the group 390 00:19:31,436 --> 00:19:34,276 Speaker 1: of individuals who've just meditated for three days, we're starting 391 00:19:34,316 --> 00:19:38,636 Speaker 1: to show the same changes in network connectivity within the 392 00:19:38,676 --> 00:19:41,636 Speaker 1: default mode network that we were seeing in the experienced meditators, 393 00:19:41,796 --> 00:19:43,796 Speaker 1: suggesting that the same pattern that we see in people 394 00:19:43,796 --> 00:19:47,036 Speaker 1: who've meditated a lot actually starts changing after much, much 395 00:19:47,116 --> 00:19:49,996 Speaker 1: less practice, which is pretty cool because it means within 396 00:19:50,036 --> 00:19:52,316 Speaker 1: a couple days of meditation, you're really changing them out 397 00:19:52,316 --> 00:19:56,316 Speaker 1: of concentration that your brain can do kind of naturally. Right. Yeah, 398 00:19:56,316 --> 00:19:58,956 Speaker 1: So I'm really interested in what happens to people right 399 00:19:59,036 --> 00:20:01,156 Speaker 1: when they start meditating, because I realize that while it's 400 00:20:01,156 --> 00:20:03,676 Speaker 1: really interesting for everybody to know about these expert meditators, 401 00:20:03,796 --> 00:20:06,876 Speaker 1: that's a little bit like talking about Olympic athletes, right, 402 00:20:06,916 --> 00:20:09,396 Speaker 1: who've really practiced this for a really long time. Most 403 00:20:09,396 --> 00:20:11,516 Speaker 1: people really want to know if I start meditating tomorrow, 404 00:20:11,676 --> 00:20:13,676 Speaker 1: am I get to see benefits? And the good news 405 00:20:13,716 --> 00:20:16,196 Speaker 1: is the answer is absolutely yes. We started looking at 406 00:20:16,276 --> 00:20:18,356 Speaker 1: what we call like minimal dose right the first time 407 00:20:18,356 --> 00:20:21,556 Speaker 1: that anybody's ever meditated. After just ten minutes of meditating 408 00:20:21,596 --> 00:20:24,516 Speaker 1: for the very very first time, their cognitive performance got 409 00:20:24,556 --> 00:20:26,596 Speaker 1: just a little bit better and better than the control 410 00:20:26,636 --> 00:20:29,316 Speaker 1: group who did another activity during those ten minutes. A 411 00:20:29,396 --> 00:20:32,276 Speaker 1: caveat to these data is that, again, across these multiple studies, 412 00:20:32,436 --> 00:20:34,676 Speaker 1: we also show that people who are the very very 413 00:20:34,676 --> 00:20:38,076 Speaker 1: extreme end of neuroticism self reported neuroticism, which is kind 414 00:20:38,116 --> 00:20:40,556 Speaker 1: of the tendency to have a negative emotion and judge 415 00:20:40,636 --> 00:20:43,356 Speaker 1: or experience a lot. Those people actually don't benefit from 416 00:20:43,356 --> 00:20:45,556 Speaker 1: the first ten minutes of mindfulness. And this is important 417 00:20:45,596 --> 00:20:48,116 Speaker 1: because one, it just showed us that there's individual differences 418 00:20:48,116 --> 00:20:50,076 Speaker 1: and not everybody benefits to the same degree, and not 419 00:20:50,116 --> 00:20:53,196 Speaker 1: everybody benefits immediately. But it also gives us another avenue 420 00:20:53,196 --> 00:20:55,316 Speaker 1: of research, which we're working on now to try to 421 00:20:55,356 --> 00:20:57,716 Speaker 1: understand what is the minimal dose for these people who 422 00:20:57,756 --> 00:21:00,036 Speaker 1: don't benefit from just ten minutes. Do they need to 423 00:21:00,036 --> 00:21:02,796 Speaker 1: meditate twice? Do they start benefiting after three times. We're 424 00:21:02,796 --> 00:21:05,516 Speaker 1: still working on figuring that out. But the surprising thing 425 00:21:05,516 --> 00:21:07,836 Speaker 1: about the benefits, I mean, you're talking about these benefits 426 00:21:07,836 --> 00:21:10,396 Speaker 1: in terms of concentration, they're more attentive and so on. 427 00:21:10,596 --> 00:21:13,916 Speaker 1: There's also emotional benefits as well. Right, we get a 428 00:21:13,916 --> 00:21:17,196 Speaker 1: happiness boost from this kind of mindfulness practice. Yeah, So 429 00:21:17,236 --> 00:21:19,636 Speaker 1: there's a few different ways to think about the happiness boost. 430 00:21:19,876 --> 00:21:21,596 Speaker 1: One way to think about the happiness boost is that 431 00:21:21,636 --> 00:21:23,676 Speaker 1: it actually is directly related to the degree to which 432 00:21:23,716 --> 00:21:27,076 Speaker 1: mindfulness practice reduces mind wandering. So there's research that was 433 00:21:27,116 --> 00:21:29,396 Speaker 1: done by Matt Killingworth and Dan Gilbert are Harvard some 434 00:21:29,476 --> 00:21:31,836 Speaker 1: years ago where they asked people to use their smartphone 435 00:21:31,836 --> 00:21:33,436 Speaker 1: and they cued them a few times a day and 436 00:21:33,476 --> 00:21:35,996 Speaker 1: ask them to report, amongst other things, what are you doing, 437 00:21:36,116 --> 00:21:38,676 Speaker 1: what activity are you engaged on? And was your mind 438 00:21:38,716 --> 00:21:41,636 Speaker 1: wandering when the que went off? And what they discovered 439 00:21:41,716 --> 00:21:45,116 Speaker 1: is that people's minds wander a lot. In fact, people's 440 00:21:45,156 --> 00:21:47,356 Speaker 1: mind were wandering almost fifty percent of the time that 441 00:21:47,396 --> 00:21:50,756 Speaker 1: they were being cued, and during almost every single activity, 442 00:21:50,796 --> 00:21:53,916 Speaker 1: even during sex, which is pretty remarkable, I think. And 443 00:21:54,516 --> 00:21:56,676 Speaker 1: what was worse is that they discovered that to the 444 00:21:56,716 --> 00:21:59,716 Speaker 1: degree that people's mind wandered, that was related to being unhappy. 445 00:21:59,956 --> 00:22:02,196 Speaker 1: And that suggests that if we can reduce mind wandering, 446 00:22:02,276 --> 00:22:04,836 Speaker 1: mindfulness might not only make you more mindful, but it 447 00:22:04,916 --> 00:22:07,236 Speaker 1: might also make you happier because your mind is wandering less. 448 00:22:07,276 --> 00:22:09,516 Speaker 1: Another way is by reducing stress. Stress is not a 449 00:22:09,516 --> 00:22:11,516 Speaker 1: happy experience. In fact, for most people' stress as a 450 00:22:11,596 --> 00:22:13,876 Speaker 1: very aversive experience. And so if over time we can 451 00:22:13,916 --> 00:22:16,036 Speaker 1: reduce our stress levels, that is another way of saying 452 00:22:16,076 --> 00:22:18,756 Speaker 1: they're becoming happier, they're becoming less stressed. Another way to 453 00:22:18,756 --> 00:22:20,716 Speaker 1: think about it that we think about sometimes is that 454 00:22:20,796 --> 00:22:23,196 Speaker 1: in the moment, we've found that when people are mindful 455 00:22:23,236 --> 00:22:25,316 Speaker 1: of a negative experience. Just in the moment when they 456 00:22:25,356 --> 00:22:27,996 Speaker 1: come into the lab, we might induce a negative experience. 457 00:22:27,996 --> 00:22:31,556 Speaker 1: We've done this with either very gory images that often 458 00:22:31,596 --> 00:22:33,996 Speaker 1: make people feel quite negatively, and we've also done this 459 00:22:33,996 --> 00:22:36,716 Speaker 1: with physical pain. And specifically, what we see in the 460 00:22:36,756 --> 00:22:39,596 Speaker 1: context of pains is that we see reductions in activity 461 00:22:39,596 --> 00:22:42,076 Speaker 1: and brain regions that are typically associated with pain and 462 00:22:42,116 --> 00:22:45,316 Speaker 1: that are sensitive to rising temperatures. And that suggests it's 463 00:22:45,316 --> 00:22:47,436 Speaker 1: not that they're just telling us that they're feeling less 464 00:22:47,476 --> 00:22:49,716 Speaker 1: negatively or that they're feeling less pain, but we actually 465 00:22:49,756 --> 00:22:52,236 Speaker 1: see a reduction even in the neural pain signature in 466 00:22:52,316 --> 00:22:54,396 Speaker 1: terms of their brain activity, and so that really is 467 00:22:54,436 --> 00:22:56,956 Speaker 1: consistent with the idea that they're actually experiencing less pain. 468 00:22:57,316 --> 00:23:00,476 Speaker 1: I think this benefit of meditation so important because when 469 00:23:00,516 --> 00:23:02,876 Speaker 1: we think about trying to achieve happiness, when we're thinking 470 00:23:02,876 --> 00:23:05,476 Speaker 1: about trying to achieve our goal becoming better people, often 471 00:23:05,476 --> 00:23:07,596 Speaker 1: in the act of doing that involves doing something that 472 00:23:07,676 --> 00:23:09,956 Speaker 1: makes us feel a little uncomfortable or kind of painful. 473 00:23:10,076 --> 00:23:12,196 Speaker 1: You know, we're in our New Year's resolution season, so 474 00:23:12,236 --> 00:23:14,716 Speaker 1: everybody's exercising, you know, they getting out of bed in 475 00:23:14,756 --> 00:23:16,796 Speaker 1: the morning, when the bed is all cozy and stuff 476 00:23:16,836 --> 00:23:19,476 Speaker 1: that's kind of uncomfortable. And the claim is that through 477 00:23:19,516 --> 00:23:22,196 Speaker 1: this practice of being mindful of that discomfort, you can 478 00:23:22,356 --> 00:23:24,636 Speaker 1: kind of magically overcome it, or at least kind of 479 00:23:24,676 --> 00:23:26,876 Speaker 1: be with it. Yeah. I love that you're saying magically, 480 00:23:26,876 --> 00:23:29,076 Speaker 1: because even to me, sometimes the benefits of the fact 481 00:23:29,076 --> 00:23:31,596 Speaker 1: is feel like magic, and I think it's actually not 482 00:23:31,676 --> 00:23:34,396 Speaker 1: magic at all, in the sense that if you can 483 00:23:34,556 --> 00:23:38,236 Speaker 1: learn to tolerate the fact that your mind does sometimes 484 00:23:38,276 --> 00:23:41,796 Speaker 1: things that are unexpected and often aversive, over and over, 485 00:23:41,996 --> 00:23:43,716 Speaker 1: and you learn to accept it, and you learn to 486 00:23:43,796 --> 00:23:46,116 Speaker 1: let it go and move on. And that action of 487 00:23:46,236 --> 00:23:48,476 Speaker 1: letting go of something that happened that's unpleasant and moving 488 00:23:48,476 --> 00:23:50,956 Speaker 1: on is exactly what we need to do what you're describing, right, 489 00:23:50,956 --> 00:23:53,636 Speaker 1: to tolerate the fact that it's really not fun to 490 00:23:53,676 --> 00:23:56,236 Speaker 1: wake up under hour earlier to go running, or it's 491 00:23:56,276 --> 00:23:58,796 Speaker 1: really not fun to go to the gym and lift 492 00:23:58,836 --> 00:24:01,316 Speaker 1: these really heavy weights, or any kind of practice right, 493 00:24:01,516 --> 00:24:04,956 Speaker 1: not smoking anymore, feeling withdrawal symptoms. All of these things 494 00:24:04,956 --> 00:24:07,036 Speaker 1: that we might do in our New Year's resolution, they 495 00:24:07,116 --> 00:24:09,956 Speaker 1: require us to tolerate some discomfort around on these new behaviors. 496 00:24:09,956 --> 00:24:12,196 Speaker 1: That we're trying to acquire. And if we learn by 497 00:24:12,276 --> 00:24:15,356 Speaker 1: practicing mindfulness to tolerate our discomfort, we can then apply 498 00:24:15,396 --> 00:24:17,356 Speaker 1: it to all of these other elements in life that 499 00:24:17,356 --> 00:24:19,436 Speaker 1: we might want to improve. And this is a practice 500 00:24:19,436 --> 00:24:21,716 Speaker 1: that you and others have called urge surfing. I love 501 00:24:21,796 --> 00:24:24,276 Speaker 1: this term. So what is urge surfing? So Urge surfing 502 00:24:24,436 --> 00:24:26,636 Speaker 1: is a phrase that's often used in the context of 503 00:24:26,676 --> 00:24:30,196 Speaker 1: substances disorders to describe using the mindful skill in the 504 00:24:30,196 --> 00:24:33,316 Speaker 1: presence of urges or craving, and craving is an incredibly 505 00:24:33,316 --> 00:24:36,436 Speaker 1: common experience, right, So if you've ever experienced craving for 506 00:24:36,436 --> 00:24:42,196 Speaker 1: any thing, please clap your hands. I mean, we won't 507 00:24:42,236 --> 00:24:43,916 Speaker 1: ask you what you're craving because that could get us 508 00:24:43,916 --> 00:24:46,916 Speaker 1: in trouble. So everybody here was clapping their hands. And 509 00:24:46,916 --> 00:24:49,796 Speaker 1: this is consistent with very large scale epidemological studies that 510 00:24:49,796 --> 00:24:52,156 Speaker 1: show that pretty much ninety nine percent of individuals report 511 00:24:52,196 --> 00:24:55,676 Speaker 1: that they crave something sometimes. Craving is an incredibly common experience. 512 00:24:55,676 --> 00:24:57,596 Speaker 1: We all know what it feels like. And the idea 513 00:24:57,596 --> 00:25:00,116 Speaker 1: of the urge surfing exercise is that you just sit 514 00:25:00,156 --> 00:25:03,516 Speaker 1: there and notice the craving. And actually what you might 515 00:25:03,596 --> 00:25:06,756 Speaker 1: notice is that craving has an arc like most emotions, 516 00:25:06,796 --> 00:25:09,196 Speaker 1: where it will rise, it will reach a peak, and 517 00:25:09,236 --> 00:25:11,476 Speaker 1: at some point it will actually start coming down by itself. 518 00:25:11,756 --> 00:25:14,716 Speaker 1: And that in noticing and accepting the craving as it is, 519 00:25:15,036 --> 00:25:17,436 Speaker 1: we might notice it over time, the craving itself actually 520 00:25:17,436 --> 00:25:19,996 Speaker 1: comes down, and even in the moment we might notice 521 00:25:19,996 --> 00:25:22,156 Speaker 1: it, it it comes down. And in my lab, we've done 522 00:25:22,196 --> 00:25:24,716 Speaker 1: these kinds of studies, especially with cigarette smokers and with food, 523 00:25:24,756 --> 00:25:28,316 Speaker 1: where we ask people we actually induce craving. So you 524 00:25:28,356 --> 00:25:31,276 Speaker 1: guys all know how people might induce craving for food, right, 525 00:25:31,276 --> 00:25:33,436 Speaker 1: So this is what food ads are all about. We 526 00:25:33,516 --> 00:25:35,636 Speaker 1: show you a picture of a yummy burger and immediately 527 00:25:35,716 --> 00:25:38,596 Speaker 1: go na, looks yummy. I want to have that, And 528 00:25:38,636 --> 00:25:41,076 Speaker 1: then you might actually go and get the burger. And 529 00:25:41,156 --> 00:25:43,236 Speaker 1: so we do something like that in my lab, where 530 00:25:43,236 --> 00:25:45,396 Speaker 1: we show people pictures of food, or we show if 531 00:25:45,396 --> 00:25:48,316 Speaker 1: their cigarette smokers, we show them pictures of other people smoking. 532 00:25:48,556 --> 00:25:51,156 Speaker 1: And we know that this increases people's craving. And then 533 00:25:51,156 --> 00:25:53,236 Speaker 1: we might ask them to use one of a variety 534 00:25:53,236 --> 00:25:55,556 Speaker 1: of strategies. One of them might be mindfulness. So we 535 00:25:55,636 --> 00:25:58,796 Speaker 1: might ask them to notice and accept their experience exactly 536 00:25:58,836 --> 00:26:00,756 Speaker 1: as it is, And what we see when we do 537 00:26:00,796 --> 00:26:02,956 Speaker 1: this is that people report less craving when they're just 538 00:26:03,036 --> 00:26:05,676 Speaker 1: noticing and accepting the sensation as it is, and we 539 00:26:05,716 --> 00:26:07,716 Speaker 1: see a reduction in brain activity and regions that are 540 00:26:07,716 --> 00:26:11,236 Speaker 1: associated with craving, suggesting that even by bringing mindfulness and 541 00:26:11,276 --> 00:26:14,556 Speaker 1: acceptance to the moment of craving, we might already experience 542 00:26:14,596 --> 00:26:17,636 Speaker 1: some improvement. I love this this phase of like, can 543 00:26:17,716 --> 00:26:20,756 Speaker 1: we just notice the experience exactly the way is and 544 00:26:20,796 --> 00:26:22,156 Speaker 1: just get through it? I mean, I think that's so 545 00:26:22,236 --> 00:26:25,076 Speaker 1: useful for everything from the discomfort that you feel when 546 00:26:25,076 --> 00:26:27,436 Speaker 1: you're trying to do you know, your new goal, or 547 00:26:27,756 --> 00:26:30,196 Speaker 1: what you experience when you're anxious about a minus or 548 00:26:30,236 --> 00:26:32,756 Speaker 1: anxious about getting into classes, which for listeners at home, 549 00:26:32,796 --> 00:26:34,236 Speaker 1: this is what my Yale students are going through right now. 550 00:26:34,276 --> 00:26:35,836 Speaker 1: They're trying to get into classes. They're trying to get 551 00:26:35,836 --> 00:26:37,356 Speaker 1: into Hetty's class, and they're not able to get in. 552 00:26:37,396 --> 00:26:39,676 Speaker 1: So it's very sad. But the idea is just can 553 00:26:39,716 --> 00:26:43,316 Speaker 1: I sit with this? Can I just be okay with 554 00:26:43,316 --> 00:26:45,436 Speaker 1: this feeling? We often encourage our participants who are not 555 00:26:45,476 --> 00:26:47,676 Speaker 1: trained in mindfulness when they come into these studies to 556 00:26:47,756 --> 00:26:49,956 Speaker 1: really just ask themselves, can I just be okay with 557 00:26:49,996 --> 00:26:51,956 Speaker 1: this moment? Can I just be okay with this feeling 558 00:26:52,196 --> 00:26:54,556 Speaker 1: exactly as it is? And the idea is that by 559 00:26:54,676 --> 00:26:56,836 Speaker 1: actually asking yourself if you can be okay with it, 560 00:26:57,076 --> 00:26:59,796 Speaker 1: you actually open yourself up to doing something more useful 561 00:26:59,796 --> 00:27:02,316 Speaker 1: in the next moment. So for our listeners and for 562 00:27:02,356 --> 00:27:04,596 Speaker 1: the folks in the audience here who want to get 563 00:27:04,636 --> 00:27:06,876 Speaker 1: going with this, you know what recommendations do you have 564 00:27:06,916 --> 00:27:09,116 Speaker 1: for folks who want to get started? Try it right now, 565 00:27:09,356 --> 00:27:11,756 Speaker 1: Take a moment right now and see whether you can 566 00:27:11,756 --> 00:27:13,796 Speaker 1: practice a little bit of this. And if you want 567 00:27:13,836 --> 00:27:15,916 Speaker 1: to kick up the intensity of this practice, you might 568 00:27:15,916 --> 00:27:18,156 Speaker 1: think about something that's currently really upsetting you, or some 569 00:27:18,236 --> 00:27:20,196 Speaker 1: stress so that you have in your life, and see 570 00:27:20,236 --> 00:27:22,116 Speaker 1: if you can just notice the experience of stress and 571 00:27:22,156 --> 00:27:24,236 Speaker 1: just let that be. We're not saying that you're going 572 00:27:24,236 --> 00:27:26,116 Speaker 1: to let the situation be exactly as it is. We're 573 00:27:26,116 --> 00:27:28,396 Speaker 1: just asking about the feelings that you already have. Can 574 00:27:28,436 --> 00:27:31,356 Speaker 1: you just let this feeling be here? And over time 575 00:27:31,516 --> 00:27:34,156 Speaker 1: is especially as you get more practice, you might notice 576 00:27:34,276 --> 00:27:36,476 Speaker 1: as you do this, your sensation of stress about this 577 00:27:36,556 --> 00:27:39,196 Speaker 1: experience is coming down just a little bit. And overtime 578 00:27:39,196 --> 00:27:41,476 Speaker 1: it might start coming down quite a bit. The second 579 00:27:41,476 --> 00:27:43,916 Speaker 1: invitation is to really start making this a daily practice, 580 00:27:44,036 --> 00:27:46,236 Speaker 1: or at least a frequent practice, something that you might 581 00:27:46,436 --> 00:27:48,556 Speaker 1: allow yourself to do for five minutes or ten minutes 582 00:27:48,596 --> 00:27:51,276 Speaker 1: a day for a period, and then if you start 583 00:27:51,316 --> 00:27:54,076 Speaker 1: noticing changes, maybe, or if you are just really motivated, 584 00:27:54,116 --> 00:27:56,596 Speaker 1: start doing it for longer. I think that over time, 585 00:27:56,676 --> 00:27:58,476 Speaker 1: the idea is not that you're necessarily going to meditate 586 00:27:58,516 --> 00:28:00,236 Speaker 1: an hour a day for the rest of your life, 587 00:28:00,436 --> 00:28:02,756 Speaker 1: but that you will do it until you start noticing 588 00:28:03,036 --> 00:28:06,436 Speaker 1: the benefits that you yourself might be experiencing, and then 589 00:28:06,516 --> 00:28:10,196 Speaker 1: you will actually feel spontaneously motivated or easically motivated to 590 00:28:10,236 --> 00:28:11,796 Speaker 1: do it more and more. And I think I've now 591 00:28:11,836 --> 00:28:14,436 Speaker 1: seen it with students and friends and other people in 592 00:28:14,476 --> 00:28:16,956 Speaker 1: my life who've tried the practice, maybe found it a 593 00:28:16,956 --> 00:28:19,196 Speaker 1: little bit annoying at first, and then after a while 594 00:28:19,316 --> 00:28:21,636 Speaker 1: notice that it's actually been really transformative. It's such a 595 00:28:21,676 --> 00:28:25,116 Speaker 1: wonderful way to kind of do some like gymnastics with 596 00:28:25,156 --> 00:28:27,756 Speaker 1: your mind, or like bring your mind to the gym. 597 00:28:27,756 --> 00:28:29,036 Speaker 1: I wanted to end with the sort of more of 598 00:28:29,036 --> 00:28:31,516 Speaker 1: a philosophical question. I feel like as a society we're 599 00:28:31,556 --> 00:28:33,876 Speaker 1: more distracted than ever, and in some ways we're more 600 00:28:33,956 --> 00:28:35,916 Speaker 1: kind of cravy than ever for all kinds of things. 601 00:28:36,236 --> 00:28:38,236 Speaker 1: Do you think understanding the science of this stuff is 602 00:28:38,276 --> 00:28:40,676 Speaker 1: going to make us happier, like we can claim back 603 00:28:40,716 --> 00:28:43,356 Speaker 1: the present moment and stop all this craving. I guess 604 00:28:43,396 --> 00:28:46,156 Speaker 1: my hope is that everybody who might have even a 605 00:28:46,156 --> 00:28:48,596 Speaker 1: little bit of curiosity will try it at least once, 606 00:28:48,676 --> 00:28:51,756 Speaker 1: and maybe even twice, with the hope that even if 607 00:28:51,756 --> 00:28:54,036 Speaker 1: it will bestow just a little bit of benefit to you, 608 00:28:54,116 --> 00:28:56,236 Speaker 1: that you would have an opportunity to try it. And 609 00:28:56,276 --> 00:28:58,276 Speaker 1: of course my hope is that we all will together 610 00:28:58,316 --> 00:29:00,076 Speaker 1: and make a world that is just a little kinder 611 00:29:00,116 --> 00:29:02,276 Speaker 1: and a little bit more mindful. Everyone, can you please 612 00:29:02,356 --> 00:29:05,036 Speaker 1: join me in thanking doctor Hetty Cooper for a fa 613 00:29:10,396 --> 00:29:28,796 Speaker 1: Thank you boys for coming and really appreciate it. The 614 00:29:28,836 --> 00:29:31,396 Speaker 1: Happiness Lab is co written and produced by Ryan Dilley. 615 00:29:31,796 --> 00:29:34,716 Speaker 1: The show was mastered by Evan Fiola and our original 616 00:29:34,796 --> 00:29:39,076 Speaker 1: music was composed by Zachary Silver. Special thanks to Ben Davis, 617 00:29:39,276 --> 00:29:43,676 Speaker 1: Mia Lavelle, Julia Barton, Carle mcgliori, Heather Fain, Maggie Taylor, 618 00:29:44,036 --> 00:29:47,436 Speaker 1: Maya Kanig, and Jacob Weisberg. The Happiness Lab is brought 619 00:29:47,476 --> 00:29:51,756 Speaker 1: to you by Pushkin Industries.