The Secret Self-Regulation Cure (Seriously, this time)

For this Practically Perfect Parenting Podcast you should just
let yourself relax, let go of all expectations, and tune in. You
can even practice being bored, because one part of the secret to
self-regulation is that it’s all about embracing your boringness
(Spoiler alert, Sara gets bored at the end). Another way of
putting this, is that the deep secret to self-regulation (which
John shares in this episode) is to repeatedly focus on one
comforting thing that is—or becomes—boring (for you science
types, that means focusing in on one comforting stimulus).
Another big part of the secret to self-regulation is mindful
acceptance. Of course, you probably know that mindful acceptance
is from Buddhist philosophy, but the concrete application of
mindful acceptance involves accepting the fact that you will
always get distracted and won’t ever be able to meditate or use
progressive muscle relaxation perfectly. You can only strive to
be imperfectly mindful (and you shouldn’t even strive to hard for
that).


If you make it through this podcast episode without falling
asleep, then you might be able to answer one of the following
questions:
According to Herbert Benson, What are the four parts of the
“relaxation response.” What’s the problem with counting sheep as a
method for dealing with insomnia? What was the spiritual mantra
that John shared?

And if you can answer one of these questions and be the first
person to post it on our Facebook page, then you will win
something—something in addition to having that warm, positive
feeling of having been the first person to post the answer.