Mindfulness practices - Shropshire trauma support
RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion - Tara Brach
RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion - Tara Brach
RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion - Tara Brach
https://www.tarabrach.com/rain/
RAIN is a 4-step tool for practising mindfulness and compassion in difficult times.
- Recognize what is happening;
- Allow the experience to be there, just as it is;
- Investigate with interest and care;
- Nurture with self-compassion.
Noticing
RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion - Tara Brach
RAIN: A Practice of Radical Compassion - Tara Brach
This is a quick mindfulness practice presented in An Introduction to Coping with Post-Traumatic Stress by Ann Wetmore, 2ndedn, London: Robinson, 2019
Use your five senses to focus your attention in the present moment.
- What do you see in front of you?
- What do you hear beside you?
- What does the air you are breathing in smell like?
- What is the taste lingering on your lips?
- How does it feel when you place your hand over your heart with a gentle touch?
The Guesthouse - by Rumi
The Count to Calm Breathing Method
The Count to Calm Breathing Method
Translated by Coleman Barks
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
The Count to Calm Breathing Method
The Count to Calm Breathing Method
The Count to Calm Breathing Method
Traumatic Stress by Ann Wetmore, 2nd edn, London: Robinson, 2019)
- EXHALE FIRST. Purse your lips and blow out through your mouth, like you’re blowing through a wide drinking straw. Push out as much air as possible.
- INHALE through your nose to the count of four: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4.
- HOLD that breath to the count of five: 1– 2 – 3 – 4 – 5.
- BREATHE OUT through your mouth, exhaling fully, to the count of six, releasing that last bit of air out at the end: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6.
- BREATHE IN through your nose again, letting your body automatically take this breath in more deeply to the count of four: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4. HOLD to the count of five, then BREATHE OUT through your mouth to the count of six.
- CONTINUE until you have finished THREE COMPLETE BREATHS.
With each complete breath, you will notice that the air is reaching more deeply into your lungs, and feels like it is going further down into your belly. Your breathing rate by the end is probably slower, and your heart rate has likely stopped racing.
Use the Count to Calm Breathing Method whenever you notice that you are getting tense or anxious, or struggling to manage your feelings in different situations. Just three complete breaths with this method are enough to help you clear your head and gain a bit more control over your reactions in the moment.
(This is a self-management technique, not an avoidance strategy. It does not mean that your issues are resolved, or that you don’t have to face what is upsetting you, just that you can be less overwhelmed by anxious thoughts and able to think more clearly.)