A Teacher’s Perspective: Mind-Body Techniques to Enhance Emotional Awareness and Self-Care
By Caitlyn Pereira
I am currently working in an elementary school on Long Island, New York, and in my school, teaching mindfulness is a valuable concept. Mindfulness is a valuable concept because the district values teaching students both to be present in the moment, and to understand their own feelings.
During one of our mindfulness meetings within my third grade classroom, I implemented tuning forks and played a game with the students, so that they can focus on the sounds. I used this as a version of meditation. Through taking a training course from the Sivananda Yoga Retreat in the Bahamas on Sound Healing, I learned how to incorporate tuning forks into the classroom. The students were so excited about the tuning forks and the sounds that the forks made. The students were very attentive because they were all trying to be the last student to hear the sound coming from the tuning forks.
To continue my learning, this past January I signed up for a New Year, New Beginnings Mind Body Skills Group offered by Dr. Jessica Singh in collaboration with the Sivananda Yoga Retreat in the Bahamas. When opening my email on my phone, I saw the title of the course and was automatically interested. I was intrigued by the topics that would be discussed throughout the eight weeks. Through reading the mind-body skills group description, the line that got me interested was this:
“During this mind-body skills group, participants will learn strategies of self-care, which is the heart of healthcare, and techniques to enhance well-being and resilience.”
This specific line stood out to me because I have been trying to find the best self-care techniques that work for me, and I was willing to take the opportunity and learn. I ultimately wanted to take these tools and teach them to other people.
One of my passions as a teacher is to spread the importance of mental health. I wanted to take this course, take it into my own hands and then bring it into my classroom to spread my knowledge.
Mental health affects how one feels, acts and thinks. Mental health is important at every stage in life and begins at a young age. As a teacher in an elementary school, it is important to check in on our students, especially in these times where there are so many expectations and uncertainties.
Many people forget about mental health because you can’t physically see it.
As an educator, it is important to keep an eye out on your students and how they are reacting to situations and expressing themselves. It is important to build relationships where students feel comfortable and safe to come to you if they need someone to talk to.
With all the expectations and hecticness of teaching, it is also important to check in on yourself as a teacher and make sure you are doing what you need for your self-care.
Mental health is just as important as your physical health. You don’t need to always feel 100% okay all the time, but it is important to recognize when you are not feeling the best version of yourself.
My Personal Experience with this Program
Dr. Jessica Singh’s Mind-Body Skills Group, based on the model developed by Dr. James Gordon and the Center of Mind Body Medicine, was very powerful and influential. This course allowed me and a few others to create a supportive and impactful bond with each other, as we learned new techniques and skills to better help our mind and body. Throughout this group, I learned different techniques to use and how they connect to mind-body medicine. This focuses on what mind-body medicine is - our ability to use the mind to better help ourselves. Within each week there were different themes and skills we could use to help us in our daily lives, such as meditation, imagery, dialogue, nutrition and mindful eating, spirituality, and ceremony and ritual.
One tool that really stuck with me throughout this course was a drawing technique from my first session. The drawing technique consisted of 3 drawings with three different prompts. Dr. Gordon describes this technique in his book, The Transformation: Discovering Wholeness and Healing After Trauma.
Prompt #1: Draw how you are currently in this moment
Prompt #2: Draw your problem
Prompt #3: Draw a resolution to your problem
The drawings have stuck with me throughout my time in taking this course and I still refer back to the drawings. This activity was new for me because I had never before been asked to draw how I am currently doing and share it with people that I had just met for the first time. It was surprising how emotional this activity was for me because I had to look at a huge problem in my life at the moment and share it.
Drawing #1: How You are Currently in this Moment
I drew myself with some things I love in my heart and some things that were currently on my mind at the time. I drew a sun and rainbow because I always try to stay positive and look on the brighter side of things. I drew a butterfly for all my growth in my life, and that I continue to grow and fly. I drew some dark clouds in the back because my life isn’t perfect. There are a lot of hard times and challenging moments, but I try not to focus on those.
Drawing #2: Draw Your Problem
When drawing my second picture, I thought to myself, “I don’t have a problem right now.” Then the emotions hit me when I had to think of what was upsetting me and draw it on paper to share. The problem I focused on was a broken friendship with someone I was very close with.
Drawing #3: A Resolution to Your Problem
During this time, I was not sure what to do to help myself with this problem. After being asked to draw a solution, it clicked to me that I needed to stop and remove myself from this situation so that I would not be affected by it so much.
For the past few years, I have become very passionate about self-care and prioritizing it in my own life. I am currently an elementary school teacher and through my time in the classrooms, I have seen the need to create an environment in the classroom where students feel safe and can have time for mindfulness. I am very grateful to have inquired about this course because I have learned so many important techniques that I can use within my classroom, as well as in my everyday life.
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