New resources on Mindfulness

 
These  and other similar resources are available for loan to members of AANSW - if you would like to reserve them please email the Library on nsw.library@alzheimers.org.au


Mindfulness for carers :  how to manage the demands of caregiving while finding a place for yourself

This book shows how simple mindfulness techniques can help caregivers to manage the stress, anxiety, depression and burnout that too often accompanies the care of people with physical, psychological or emotional needs. The enjoyable mindfulness exercises will help caregivers to regain control and maintain a positive outlook.

 
Mindfulness
Ellen J. Langer, Harvard professor of psychology, determines that the mindless following of routine and other automatic behaviors lead to much error, pain and a predetermined course of life. In this thought-provoking book, her research has been "translated" for the lay reader. With anecdotes and metaphors, Langer explains how the mindless--as opposed to the mindful--develop mindsets of categories, associations, habits of thought born of repetition in childhood and throughout schooling. To be mindful, she notes, stressing process over outcome, allows free rein to intuition and creativity, and opens us to new information and perspectives.Langer discusses the negative impact of mindsets on business and social relations, showing special concern for the elderly, who often suffer from learned helplessness and lack of options. Encouraging the application of mindfulness to health, the author affirms that placebos and alternative, mind-based therapies can help patients and addicts move from unhealthy to healthy contexts.

Mindfulness-based elder care : a CAM model for frail elders and their caregivers
Mindfulness practices focus on abilities, rather than disabilities, in order to provide paths to the inner strengths and resources that we all possess. This book conveys the benefits of mindfulness through meditation, gentle yoga, massage, aromatherapy, humour, and other creative therapies to this special population. She provides clear, concise instructions for her program, as well as a wealth of anecdotal and experiential exercises, to help readers at all levels of experience. Hers is the first book to fully explore the value of mindfulness models for frail elders and their caregivers. This innovative book is suitable for use with a variety of people with physical and cognitive challenges.

Coming to our senses

As stress continues to exact a toll on everyday life, people are increasingly turning to meditative methods, tested by science, to relieve its ill effects and become more focused, healthy, and proactive. Kabat-Zinn is a leader of the mind/body revolution in medicine and health care, demystifying it and bringing it into the mainstream. This book offers insight into how to use the five senses -- touch, hearing, sight, taste, and smell, plus awareness itself -- as a path to a healthier, saner, and more meaningful life. 


Mindfulness- Based interventions for older adults
Review :
'We are living longer, but how might we live better? Martins explores this question in her thoughtful and multifaceted study of an MBSR group for well elders. Not surprisingly, both qualitative and quantitative data support improvements for group members in well-being, physical health, spirituality and cognition. Weaving theories on aging, Buddhist philosophy and physical and cognitive sciences, Martins provides texture and context for her research and offers an important prototype for working with the growing population of older adults and their unique experience.'
- Lucia McBee, Author, Mindfulness Based Elder Care