Freaking out? You may not be alone. We’re all living in a moment of uncertainty and anxiety. One of the things we have done to help ourselves these past several weeks is to reach out to our friends in a continuing series of episodes we are calling Dispatches from our Bunkers.
We’re being told what to do, and so a lack of control is there. For me, I’m trying to take simple things in life, simple opportunities to continue to take a yoga class in the morning. For me, that’s what I love to do.
Kara Klemm
This week Kara Klemm with Yoga Keowee joins us to help calm us down. As people become more anxious as they self-quarantine at home, we discuss mindful meditation, a practice that has been proven to alleviate stress, depression, and insomnia, as a way to cope. People often feel discouraged when they first give meditation a try, but then again they have never tried to meditate to the sounds of an influent pump station. After our discussion, Kara leads us in three-minute meditation to the sounds of a working wastewater treatment plant. This may be a world’s first.
Thank You
A big thank you to Kara Klemm with Yoga Keowee. If you are nearby, please join her. You may even bump into David, Amy or I. Kara has led over 1500 hours of yoga teaching registered with the Yoga Alliance. She has instructed teacher trainings and given several specialized workshops to yoga teachers and students on the art of language, anatomy and physiology, Yoga 101, yoga nidra and meditation. She also holds a B.S. in Human Biology and Health from Cornell University has worked in medical sales, training and recruitment for the past 15 years.
Recorded April 2, 2020
Transcript
David Ladner:
Afterward, I was like, “Hey, my back feels a lot better.” So I started doing a lot of those moves, and, yeah, it really helps my back.
Amy Anderson:
There might be something to it.
David Ladner:
I think so.
Kara:
Could be.
Amy Anderson:
We are very, very happy to have you with us today, Kara. Kara has Yoga Keowee, and it is one of my favorite things about Seneca. It is a wonderful spot with wonderful people, and I highly recommend it to absolutely everyone. We would love to hear from you in this very uncertain time, what all of us can do to be calm, to reduce our anxiety. On one hand, everyone has different situations that they’re dealing with, and this pandemic affects people in different ways. But, on the one hand, it is also a great equalizer. Every single one of us is feeling uncertainty and anxiety, and just the disruption to our everyday lives.
Amy Anderson:
And a lot of things that we are used to that we miss, being able to get together with people in person, being able to go to the yoga studio every Saturday morning and have coffee afterward, we don’t have. And we are very appreciative to have you in our community and our friend group. We are very happy that you decided to sit down with us. We just wanted to reach out and see if you could talk with us and talk with the people who listen to The Outfall and just share with them what you do in times like this, and what we can all do to help make the most of the situation.
Kara:
Well, first off, I’m so happy to be here with you guys. The reality of the situation is there are a lot of real things that are going on in this world with people that I care about. Then there’s a lot of imagined, as well, which I’m sure it’s for so many people. Because we hear so many things, and then our mind takes us to sometimes an extreme of what potentially could happen. Really trying to keep it in the here and now is a very difficult thing to do, at times, because of fear. We’re being told to distance ourselves from the people we care about. There’s a true loss to life right now, loss to patterns, habits, people we love, and then also to simple things like being able, as you said, Amy, to go to the yoga studio and have coffee.
Kara:
We’re being told what to do, and so a lack of control is there. For me, I’m trying to take simple things in life, simple opportunities to continue to take a yoga class in the morning. For me, that’s what I love to do. Then going for walks with people that I care about, having conversations. There’s been a lot of activity online where I’m connecting with people on FaceTime. But at the end of the day, there are little simple things that we all can do. And it really comes down to the breadth of bringing ourselves back into the moment. And so I know we had talked about a bit of meditation, things like that, but I’m not sure. I really want to hear what you guys are doing to keep things normal for you.
Robert Osborne:
I’m burying myself in work, Kara. I hate to say that. It’s probably more like what you are doing too, David. I’m lucky. I’m fortunate. It’s a lot of conference calls. But you’re absolutely right. There is this distancing. Even doing the virtual conference calls, it’s not the same. Is it?
Amy Anderson:
Yeah. I’m very thankful that I can work, and I have work to do, and it keeps me busy. Because otherwise, you’d just be sitting there trying to pass the time. And, of course, your mind wanders, and you think about the gravity of the situation. But we were reading an article who is the astronaut in space and just came back, and he was talking about his tips from living in space, and how there are some things that he did while he was there that now he’s having to do again now that people are in isolation. And he said keeping a schedule and reaching out, and just little things that you could do to try to keep your day normal and keep it structured, and get outside, and exercise, and have connections in the ways that you can.
Kara:
I really want to know how he got outside and exercised in space.
Amy Anderson:
He was talking about how it would be burning hot on one side where the sun was, and then icy cold and the other side. But I think his exercise recommendation was for us now here on Earth.
Kara:
Just wondering.
Amy Anderson:
I don’t think he was doing a yoga on the moon.
Kara:
You never know. You never know.
David Ladner:
Let me run to the other side of the space station.
Kara:
That’s right. Let’s do back flips on the way over.
Robert Osborne:
You mentioned meditation, Kara. You’re reading more and more about it. Right?
Kara:
Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Robert Osborne:
Athletes, everyone’s doing it. I mean, what do you think?
Kara:
So the reality is there’s a lot of data out there that what yoga meditation breathing techniques do is it actually can help with the calming effect that the parasympathetic nervous system does. It really encourages that relaxation response and allows for the body to back into balance. If we’re talking about the nervous system itself, like the autonomic nervous system, the parasympathetic nervous system is what calms the body down. The sympathetic nervous system is that fight or flight. And so right now, even in this time of stress, there’s an ongoing battle, I would imagine, for people with a fear coming up to have that sympathetic nervous system be overplaying.
Kara:
But the reality is if we can add in a little bit of meditation or even deep breathing, you’re actually allowing the body to calm itself or infusing that. So I think that personally, it is something that I do and try to do morning and evening and have really grabbed onto that even more so in these times. And, for me, it truly is a stress relief. And I don’t know. Have you tried it at all? Have you guys tried it? I know we do it a little bit in class here and there, but…
Amy Anderson:
I have. I’m not very good at it though, I think, that’s what everyone says. But from what I understand, you just have to keep practicing and calm your mind and your thoughts and focus on using your breath to physically, not force your body, but create an environment which your body can relax. And you’re working with your body instead of against it.
Kara:
Yeah. So a lot of people, when they start meditation, they talk about, I can’t keep my attention, my mind wanders. Well, it shouldn’t. You’re mind is supposed to wander. We’re humans. That’s what it does. So really the goal of doing a meditation is not trying to overcome being a human, but actually being able to notice when the mind wanders and bringing it back to the breath. And so don’t be too hard on yourself when you say you’re not good at it. The mindfulness of acknowledging the train of thought moving away from the breath is really where you want to be. Applaud yourself because then you can bring yourself back. And so that’s it.
David Ladner:
So I have two questions and maybe you can choose which one you want to answer first. The first or maybe the first is kind of a comment is like, I guess, I’m surprised when you first introduced meditation, you’re sort of talking mostly about the physical effects. And I guess certainly the two would be tied, mental and physical, but is the goal mental and physical or both, or? And then a second question is how does it differ from just lying in bed, and, you know, I’ll wake up in the morning and I’m just awake and I’m really not doing anything. I’m just sitting there thinking. Is it different than that? Or at night trying to sleep and your mind wanders? I don’t know. Any thoughts along those lines?
Kara:
First off you had mentioned the first question I believe had to do about the physical aspects.
David Ladner:
Right.
Kara:
And then you’re talking about psychological aspects, as well. So the reality is when you… In the body, the central nervous system, when it’s working, the parasympathetic has affects on all aspects of… When you think about fight or flight, for example, the sympathetic nervous system, you have the adrenals working. You have the endocrine system going. You get the eyes are dilating. And so you’re getting ready for that fight or flight, but then there’s the… Also what’s going on within the brain is that there’s the amygdala within the brain is basically being told that fear is here. So it’s activating everything. So the reality is when this is happening within the body, it’s both physical, but also psychological. To clarify, as I’m talking through this, is your perception that meditation would be for a psychological benefit just alone? Or is that what you’ve thought, or read, or not?
David Ladner:
No. Well, I really haven’t read or thought much about it. I’ve just heard about it and I guess, yeah. But, I guess, I did think meditation is more to clear your mind. And so I guess I was surprised and maybe pleasantly surprised to hear about all the good effects on your body, as well. I don’t know.
Kara:
Yeah. Yeah. And it definitely does. So it’s interesting. I guess when you clear your mind, the calm, the reduction in stress itself, we all, I don’t know. There’s so much data out there right now that would talk about the reduction of stress. Can influence, I think, it’s 75 different diseases. And the reality is if we are clearing our mind of stress, and if we’re doing that through meditation, or if it’s running, or you were talking about taking just a few minutes of time, as you wake up in the morning where you have a calm mind? Could that be hurting you?
Kara:
I wouldn’t think so, but the reality is anything that’s going to reduce your stress level will help. And one easy way is to come to the breath. One simple way, one tool that we always have with us is our breath. And so no matter where you are to be able to grab a couple minutes during the day to pause and actually influx a period of time of calm would… How could that hurt? And so the recommendation is to do it multiple times throughout the day. And even if it’s just two or three minutes. And so to be able to bring a bit of calm into the body, a bit of balance back into the body, especially when we’re being bombarded with stressful demands, it’s just an easy way to influence it. So I hope that answers it a little bit.
David Ladner:
I like that a lot. I like knowing that I have a tool with me all the time and it’s something as simple as my breath. That’s satisfying.
Robert Osborne:
That doesn’t cost a lot of money.
Kara:
Does not.
Robert Osborne:
Well, all right. So, Kara, I have tried off and on, I guess, the last three or four years. I am one that gravitates to easy app, meditation app, I think I’ve tried them all. I’ll do it for a while. Right? And 10 minutes is about my limit and then my brain just goes haywire. But then it’s so funny when life gets really busy and probably the time I need it is when it drops off my radar. But there is something, and I’ve been hard on myself because it really hasn’t become a habit yet. Right?
Kara:
Oh gosh.
Robert Osborne:
How long did it for you?
Kara:
For me, I was like you in the beginning where it was touch and go, but the reality is I always knew there was the benefit. When I was doing it, I knew it was beneficial and it was not for years for me to actually get into a habit of say the morning and evening, or trying to do the morning and evening. And so for a long… You have to do what works for you. So even if it’s a habit of, as David has even suggested, if he did the deep breathing that we will talk about in a little bit in the morning, instead of thinking about what you’re going to do during the day, maybe just giving you that gap of time or gap space to not think about anything and just allow your body just to ready itself for the day.
Kara:
Everybody’s different though, Robert. Everybody’s different. If you just keep trying to infuse it, give yourself a challenge, maybe you do it this week. I mean, you have the time.
Robert Osborne:
I know. I know.
Kara:
Why not? We got a little bit of time here and in between your conference calls, maybe try to do the belly breathing in between there. Who knows? Even the process of pulling it in through the nose, drawing it low to the lower belly, allowing the belly to be relaxed and then exhaling slowly. And just following that in and out, noticing what’s happening within the body as you breathe in through the nose, the belly expands and then letting it go and just seeing what happens with the body. If you can trace that in and trace it out, all of a sudden those other thoughts go in the background, kind of what you’re talking about. They’re getting muted in front of you or behind you, I guess. And the breath is really all your staying with.
Amy Anderson:
Well, is there anything else we want to discuss or do we want to start our meditation?
Robert Osborne:
We’re actually all excited here, Kara.
Kara:
Oh boy.
Robert Osborne:
So we’re going to do this recorded meditation with you.
Kara:
Oh gosh.
Robert Osborne:
We’ve thought about this for a while. And so what we’re… I don’t know. Amy, David, I think what we’re going to say is this is probably going to be the world’s first wastewater influenced meditation.
Amy Anderson:
Oh influenced. I thought this was effluent.
Robert Osborne:
Effluent. Yes. Well, I could be.
David Ladner:
It’s both. Right?
Robert Osborne:
Right.
David Ladner:
Breathe in. Effluent out.
Amy Anderson:
Oh.
Robert Osborne:
Took audio from a real live wastewater treatment plant.
Kara:
I do know that. Yeah. I’m really proud to be part of that. Because, hey, let’s think about it. Let’s just get rid of all the waste out of ourselves. Right?
Amy Anderson:
Oh.
Kara:
It’s all good. It’s all good.
David Ladner:
Excellent.
Kara:
Really the reality is we’re going to start into a belly breathing. This is the easiest simplest form of meditation and something that I think people can really grab on to, as I was saying, in between conference calls, a simple first morning thing. So just take a moment and take an easy seat. It’s a comfortable seat. Whether you’re sitting in your chair, sitting on the bed, sitting on the floor, and just go ahead just for a moment and just feel yourself, just resting into your body. Notice your feet on the ground. On an inhale, just draw the breath in through the nose and direct it right to the belly. Let the belly be soft. Hold it down deep. And then on the exhale, just smoothly let it go. Push all the air out. And then, again, connect to the breath. Breathe in. Inhale through the nose. Allow the belly to be soft, and exhale through the mouth. And maybe just add in on an inhale, let. And on the exhale, go. Just a simple inhale, let. And on the exhale, go.
Kara:
Notice as you trace in the air, how your body and your mind just begins to soften and relax. Notice the belly soft on the inhale and focus on the breath on the exhale. We’ll do that for a minute. Just mindfully paying attention to the sound of the breath, drawing it low. And what you’re doing here is helping the whole body. You’re slowing the heart rate, decreasing your blood pressure, relaxing the big muscles in the body. You’re even allowing yourself to digest your food easier. Within the mind, the action at the amygdala is quieted. The fear and anger reduce. And there’s an increased action all along your cerebral cortex. So you can have more compassion for yourself, for others. Help with your decision making, your thought process, breathe in fully and exhale completely. Breathe in and let go. How do you feel?
Robert Osborne:
Wow. I feel relaxed.
David Ladner:
Really good.
Kara:
Good.
Amy Anderson:
Very calm.
Kara:
Good. And that was just three minutes.
Robert Osborne:
You know, when you put it like that, three minutes, it doesn’t sound bad. Right? Who doesn’t have three minutes. Right? But why is it so hard?
Kara:
There’s a lot to do. We all have a lot to do.
Robert Osborne:
I know.
Kara:
Schedule it. You’ll feel better.
Robert Osborne:
Put it on Outlook.
Kara:
That’s right. That’s right. That’s right. That’s right. Invite people to it.
Robert Osborne:
Oh.
Amy Anderson:
Oh.
Kara:
Invite each other. Invite Amy to it. Put it in your Outlook. That’d be good.
Robert Osborne:
Just one last… Have you had success converting folks to use meditation as a tool that you had never thought would ever and tried this?
Kara:
Oh my gosh. I’m talking to you, Robert. I wouldn’t say converting, but I think that there’s so much science. There’s so much data out there right now that I think even as David had said earlier, you know, I’ve read about it. I’ve I’ve heard a few things about it. So there’s a lot of rumble out there right now about what potentially meditation can do for people. And so I think people are keeping an ear open, so it’s kind of helping themselves, but also allowing me to speak a little bit more about it without getting like… People are a little more open to it. We’ll just say that.
Amy Anderson:
Yeah. Thank you so much.
Kara:
Stay well.
Amy Anderson:
Yes. Stay well.
