Page 106 - Journal of Special Operations Medicine - Spring 2015

Figure 2 A depiction of how mindfulness can benefit selection of the best course of action among a multi­
everyday life. tude of choices. Mindfulness has applications to specific
tasks; for example, saving a combatant under fire us­
ing Tactical Combat Casualty Care. SOF medics likely
practice mindfulness throughout their training without
having attached a name to it; they filter out all distract­
ing information and concentrate on the casualty; they
are aware and attending to the task. Mindfulness can
be used to control breathing, to release tension in body
parts, and to focus attention on the surroundings. Cer­
tain exercises and skills could be learned to augment
attention for many mission­specific tasks. Interestingly,
Academi LLC (www.academi.com) introduced a mind­
fulness course into its training and has been reporting
excellent results. MT is also being used for building re­
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siliency in police officers. The police force in Hillsboro,
52
Oregon, is offering one of the “nation’s first on­the­job
mindfulness training program specifically tailored to
science is needed for a better understanding and quan­ law enforcement and based on a widely recognized cur­
tification of this benefit, but what is clear is that being riculum.” A graduate of the class noted that he learned
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mindful can only help with overcoming attention lapses, to “take a few moments to breathe, pause and scan his
sustaining working memory and more. feelings” and “notice what’s important now,” in terms
of “on the job” actions. It is like Michael Jordan, the
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great basketball star, who saw in his mind the arc of the
Applications of Mindfulness
ball going into the basket before each free throw.
So how can you use mindfulness (situational awareness)
to improve performance and other various aspects of Importantly, MT is being offered in other military ven­
your life? How can this tool be useful to an SOF medic ues, with positive results. COL David Hodne, Com­
restocking his medic bag, reviewing treatment protocols, mander of the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team at Ft.
engaging in combat, or returning from deployment? Carson, Colorado, examined the suitability of mind­
First, it may be useful to differentiate mindfulness into fulness training toward broader leader development
two realms: a practice or tool, and a way of living in the efforts during his US Army War College Fellowship at
world. For SOF, indeed, for all of us, both applications Georgetown University. COL Hodne maintained that
may be critical. Mindfulness can be a tool to enhance the stressor of deployment “undermined resilience, and
various aspects of performance, but it also needs to part the prioritization of operational experience over self­
of daily living, so everything going on in your surround­ development and institutional opportunities might limit
ing environment is taken in, at least when on missions. successful combat leaders from achieving their full po­
Importantly, it may be that SOF come into this world tential as strategic leaders” (personal communication)
more mindful than others: mindfulness appears to be an Table 3 presents additional thoughts of COL Hodne
inherent attribute or characteristic in some, 23,49,50 and this about the benefits of mindfulness. He is in the forefront
may reflect self­selection or the SOF selection process. of encouraging these efforts, believing, as we do, that
Living mindfully means trying to consider every deci­ mindfulness will increase the intellectual capacity of the
sion and action fully and carefully, rather than allowing military and better prepare leaders for a dynamic and
fear, pride, ego, and negative emotions to dictate how uncertain future.
we respond and react. Thus, mindfulness can be applied
to virtually every aspect of daily life: training, missions, Another area where mindfulness skills can be used is
lifestyle behaviors, relationships, and recreation. Most with eating and drinking. How many times each week
people are not able to be mindful all of the time (this do you sit down and just gobble up your food without
evokes images of contemplating one’s navel), and mind­ even thinking about how it tastes? How often do you
fulness skills may need to be learned and then practiced. grab a bag of chips or a tub of ice cream and manage
to consume far more than intended—mindlessly? How
Mindfulness skills can be used for a multitude of mis­ often do you grab a beer and then drink several, without
sion­related activities. Agile and adaptive reasoning, really considering if it tastes good or not? Have you tried
which is required for mission planning and execution, to savor one sip of beer or truly taste a small sample of
surely can benefit from improvements in attentive­ chocolate? Try it; you might be surprised! A number of
ness and the working memory of factors influencing mindfulness skills can be taught for “mindful” eating

96 Journal of Special Operations Medicine Volume 15, Edition 1/Spring 2015