Dr. Jenny Taitz, a clinical psychologist and assistant clinical professor, discusses her new book 'Stress Resets' and the distinction between acute and chronic stress. They explore the effects of stress on the body, cultivating agency in dealing with stress, and the role of acceptance. Jenny also shares tools for creating an anti-depressant lifestyle and dives into the concept of emotions coming in waves. The podcast concludes with a guided mindfulness practice.
Building resilience and developing agency can help manage stress and promote growth.
Practicing coherent breathing and mindful techniques can soothe the body and mind during intense stress and prevent it in quieter times.
Deep dives
The Power of Teaching Meditation
Teaching meditation can have numerous benefits, both for the teacher and the students. It helps improve mental and emotional well-being, reduces stress, improves focus, increases self-awareness and self-regulation, and deepens one's own practice and understanding. By joining specific meditation teacher training programs, individuals can become certified to teach meditation and guide group practice sessions, as well as work with individual students.
Understanding Stress and Building Resilience
In a conversation between Dr. Jenny Tait and Sharon Salzberg, the podcast explores how stress affects the body and the brain. They discuss the difference between acute stress and chronic stress, as well as the relationship between trauma and stress. Dr. Tait emphasizes the importance of building resilience and developing agency in the face of stress. She offers practical techniques to soothe the body and mind, emphasizing the need to accept and embrace stress as an opportunity for growth.
The Role of Mindfulness in Stress Management
Mindfulness plays a crucial role in managing stress. Dr. Tait discusses the benefits of practices such as coherent breathing, which involves inhaling and exhaling for the same amount of time to induce a calm alertness. She also highlights the importance of practicing loving-kindness meditation as a means of changing thought patterns and shifting focus from anxious or negative thoughts to more positive and compassionate ones. Mindfulness allows individuals to observe their thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations without judgment and cultivate a greater sense of control and acceptance.
Stress Resets and Stress Buffers
Dr. Tait introduces the concepts of stress resets and stress buffers as strategies for managing stress in acute and quieter times, respectively. Stress resets involve implementing techniques to triage and quickly alleviate stress during intense moments, including appreciating that emotions come in waves and using coherent breathing. Stress buffers, on the other hand, focus on preventive measures such as improving sleep hygiene, practicing behavioral activation, and establishing routines that align with one's sense of purpose and values to better prepare for and cope with stress.
For episode 233, Dr. Jenny Taitz returns to the Metta Hour. Jenny is a clinical psychologist and an assistant clinical professor in psychiatry at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Jenny completed her fellowship in psychology at Yale University School of Medicine and achieved board certifications in cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy. In addition to treating clients in her private therapy practice, LA CBT DBT, she is the author of How to Be Single and Happy and End Emotional Eating. Her new book, Stress Resets: How to Soothe Your Body and Mind in Minutes, is now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.
In this episode, Sharon and Jenny discuss:
Jenny’s new book, Stress Resets
Acute versus chronic stress
Learning how to put stress down
The distinction between stress and trauma
How stress affects the body
Preventing a stress snowball
Cultivating agency in dealing with stress
The role of acceptance in stress
Working with causes and conditions
Stress resets versus stress buffers
Emotions come in waves
Coherent breathing
Creating an anti-depressant lifestyle
Jenny closes the conversation with a guided mindfulness practice.
You can learn more about Jenny’s work and get a copy of her new book, Stress Resets, on her website.