Session 3Taking Stock Of How We Use Our Time

A Mindful Way To Reduce Stress And Develop Resilience

Session Themes ▪ Session 1: Cultivating Self-Awareness ▪ Session 2: Understanding your stress response and taking care of your nervous system ▪ Session 3: Taking stock of how you spend your time: Nourishing and Depleting Activities ▪ Session 4: Taking stock of your connections: Connecting to self, others and community

Session 3: Taking Stock Of How We Spend Our Time Nourishing and Depleting Activities

How we spend our time plays a fundamental role in our wellbeing  Meaning & Purpose  Spending time on activities aligned with values and goals = greater fulfillment and purpose  Relationships  Time invested in meaningful social connections strongly correlates with happiness and longevity  Balance  Wellbeing emerges from balancing life domains – work, rest, play, relationships, personal growth  Attention and Presence  HOW we spend time matters = being fully present  Autonomy  Having agency over how we spend our time increases satisfaction  Rest & Recovery  Sufficient time for sleep, relaxation and mental downtime is essential 4

Exhaustion Funnel (From: Professor Marie Asberg, Karolinska Institute in Stockholm) 5

Research on time use and wellbeing  Time affluence matters more than money affluence  The quality vs. quantity distinction  Social time yields high returns  Flow states optimize wellbeing  Time scarcity affects decision-making  Savoring and mindfulness enhance time experience  Discretionary time follows a curvilinear pattern  Digital time use shows mixed effects 6

Nourishing Activities  Flow-inducing activities – activities where challenge and skill are balanced significantly boost wellbeing.  Nature exposure – Even brief nature exposure (20-30 minutes) reduces stress hormones, improves mood and enhances cognitive function.  Deep social connection – Moments of genuine connection with others triggers neurochemical responses that build resilience. High- quality interactions appear more important than total number of contacts.  Meaningful contribution – prosocial activities activate pathways in the brain and enhance meaning.  Physical activity – Beyond physical health benefits, exercise has been shown to reduce anxiety, depression rise and improve cognitive function. 7

Depleting Activities  Passive consumption – passive media consumption, especially social media scrolling, often leads to negative mood states and comparison effects diminish wellbeing. Passive nature appears more problematic than the technology itself.  Task-switching and fragmented attention – frequent task switching depletes cognitive resources and increases stress.  Rumination and worry – repetitive negative thinking deplete mental resources while providing no problem-solving benefits.  Value-incongruent activities – misaligned activities create cognitive dissonance – a depleting psychological state.  Unstructured excessive leisure – unstructured time beyond 5 hours daily can paradoxically increase feelings of purposelessness and reduce wellbeing 8

Taking stock of your day: Nourishing and Depleting Activities  List out what you do in a typical day (aim for 10-15)  Of the things you’ve written – what nourishes you? Lifts your mood, energizes you, makes you feel calm, centered? Sense of being alive?  Of the things you’ve written – what depletes you? Pulls you down, drains away your energy, makes you feel tense and fragmented  Are there activities that are nourishing at times, depleting at others? What makes this so? 9 Activities I do in a typical day N – nourishing; D – depleting N/D – it depends

Rebalancing your day  Reflect on how you can rebalance, or increase nourishing activities.  At times, life circumstances can’t change. If this is the case:  How can you increase time and gentle effort you devote to nourishing activities?  Would approaching a depleting activity differently make a difference?  Practice: Bring to mind a depleting activity. Really see the situation – what, with who, when, AND how your direct experience: body sensations, thoughts, mood or emotion  Hold these questions in awareness:  Can I let this go?  Can I let this be?  Can I approach it differently – change in attitude, time performed, break it down, etc?  Does it need attention or action and if so, what might help? 10

Make a list – bring back the joy  Pleasurable activities  When we’re exhausted, stressed or experiencing low mood, the things that we used to enjoy can now leave us cold. Research suggests this may be because ‘reward centers’ of the brain become insensitive to things that used to activate them.  Mindfully approaching activities helps to reactivate these – fully present in the moment and savoring  What do you enjoy….for the pure enjoyment of the activity?  Identify 3-5 things that you do, or used to do that you enjoy. 11

Make a list – Enhancing feelings of mastery and control  Exhaustion, stress, unhappiness, and anxiety all reduce a sense of control over our life. Can lead to feeling helpless, “there’s nothing I can do”, “I just don’t have the energy”.  What tiny actions or activities can you do to help regain a sense of mastery and control.  Cleaning out a closet….or just shelf; paying a bill; taking a short walk…even just to the mailbox; making your bed  Remember to pause and congratulate yourself for doing something  Action begets action  We don’t always have the luxury of waiting until we feel ‘ready’ to do something  It’s the doing that increases energy and motivation  Identify 3-5 things that give you a sense of mastery or control. 12

Appreciating the Good  Be on the look out for pleasant experiences!  Often very small, easy to ignore or over look  10 Finger Gratitude Practice  Broadening perspective – what is good here, what do I appreciate in this situation?  Keep a gratitude journal 13