Page 37 - RFP

PROSPECTUS
In people who are naturally mindful, these areas are large and active during daily activ- ities; in everyone, during mindfulness training these areas come on line; and with time, even those who are not naturally mindful during daily life, become so!
Mindfulness training of course requires one to pay attention to the training. This is easily accomplished at a class or by watching a video. The first step is usually bringing attention to the breath. This naturally brings attention to interoception in the present moment. In addition, attention to the breath lessens the “fight or flight” stress reactivity of the autonomic nervous system and calms the mind. Further instruction helps instill an overall mindful attitude. However, maintaining this state outside of the practice is a challenge; ruminative thinking, or excess focus on a task, prevent one from reminding oneself to be mindful; we “forget ourselves”. This is where the app is immensely helpful.
The fluctuation’s light levels stimulate the unconscious visual centers of the brain, the superior follicular, and alert the “salience network”. This is a brain network that draws our attention to things that might be important, such as sudden movements or exter- nal changes. Since the brain has already been conditioned by watching the videos, the smooth light fluctuation is immediately associated with the breath and the mindfulness instruction to be aware of the movement of the breath. The ACC, AI and vmPFC are activated, and we return to a mindful state. The light fluctuation is gentle enough that it does not keep on alerting us, we know what it is now, so it is no longer cause for con- cern; unless we forget ourselves again, in which case it will again activate the salience network and return us to mindfulness.
34