Lawyer Monthly - January 2022 Edition

18 WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM | JAN 2022 COMBATTING STRESS IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION: ADJUSTING TO THE ‘NEW NORMAL’ • Feeling easily irritated; • Having difficulty staying focused; • Pulling away from colleagues, friends and family; • Putting off things that need to be done, or conversely feeling as though everything must be done now; • Developing unhealthy eating habits; • Avoiding doing things which we know are good for us (e.g. running, working out, yoga, meditation etc); • Increasing our use of alcohol; • Turning towards addictive relaxants, e.g. cigarettes, benzodiazepines. The question to ask yourself, therefore, is this: ‘What physiological and emotional responses do high levels of stress generate in me personally?’ Mindfulness matters The key is to learn to tune into our own mind and body. A great tool for this is mindfulness, which is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what is going on around us. Mindfulness also provides us with an increased awareness of how we are feeling, which we might otherwise not have spotted. If we can recognise our own personal ‘normal’, then we can learn to identify when we feel unbalanced and overly stressed before we spiral out of control. Equally, if we do feel overwhelmed, being mindful of our own ‘normal’ can help us take a step back and understand why. Mindfulness allows us the opportunity to do whatever is needed to help us feel well, whether by going for a walk, playing with our dog, practising yoga, taking a hot bath or giving ourselves some time to simply rest. For us lawyers, simply ‘being’ (rather than always being on the go and ‘doing’ things) can prove to be a real challenge! By understanding our ‘stress signature’ and tuning into our mind and body using mindfulness, we can learn to take care of our wellbeing in a preventative and progressive manner and, ultimately, thrive in the face of whatever life throws in our path. Ways to practice mindfulness Practising mindfulness can take many forms, including meditation, deep breathing and guided imagery. The key is to realise that although the methodology behind mindfulness is simple, our active minds will seek many ways to resist and reject change. To overcome these obstacles, it helps when we grant ourselves the kind of patience and openness we show to a good friend. Practising mindfulness little and often, even five minutes a day, is enough to reap the benefits. Example exercise Why not try the exercise below? This can be used on a daily basis and acts as a great de-stressor as well as providing the groundwork for learning to tune into ourselves and identify our own ‘stress signature’. 1. Take a deep breath through your nose to the count of four, allowing your stomach to expand. Pause for two seconds. Exhale slowly through your mouth to the count of eight. Repeat eight times. 2. If you notice tension in your body, try non-judgmentally to notice this but not get caught up in it. Gently return your concentration to the breathing exercise. 3. Then ask yourself: what thoughts, feelings, emotions and bodily sensations are in your present-moment experience right now? 4. Allow a couple of minutes simply to sit with this question. 5. Allow whatever arises in response. Do not try to push it away or grasp onto it; just let it be. 6. When you feel ready, open your eyes. 7. Youmay wish to note down any particular insight you gained into the thoughts, feelings, emotions and bodily sensations noticed. First and foremost, we need to acknowledge that stress is not all bad. It is our natural and normal reaction to a physical or emotional challenge