PUT YOUR BACK INTO IT. An employee gets a chair massage during a wellness event at eBay Enterprise.

When we feel threatened, our brains are naturally inclined to set off a full-scale panic response, better known as “fight or flight.” While this reactionary state once aided us in handling, oh, I don’t know maybe a bear-sized hyena, it does little to help us with what we would consider stress today – like hitting “reply all” on an office email when you didn’t mean to or figuring out how to pay your mounting student loans on an entry-level salary.

In today’s workplaces, many of us have become accustomed to processing large amounts of information while simultaneously juggling a plethora of tasks, all while managing our own pressurized personal lives. But living in the resulting chronic state of “fight or flight” can cause everything from depression or anxiety to constant high-conflict interpersonal interactions and poor health – none of which are natural building blocks for a stellar employee. As a result, employers right here in the Chippewa Valley are making an effort to bring mindfulness into the workplace.

Celestee Roufs, health promotion manager at Group Health Cooperative, says mindfulness is “paying attention to what you’re actually doing. It’s getting from point A to point B and actually remembering how you got there.” It helps us recognize (and step away from) unconscious emotional and physiological reactions to everyday stressors without judging those reactions as good or bad.

“Mindfulness affects our attention and concentration skills in the areas of regulation, learning and selection,” explains Amy Segerstrom, coordinator of Sacred Heart Hospital’s The Healing Place. “An employee who meditates regularly may be more focused, less distracted, and more open to new ideas and information.”

While stress activates the “fight or flight” part of our nervous system, mindfulness activates the “relax and digest” parts of our nervous system – heart rate slows, our respiration slows, and our blood pressure drops. This is often called the relaxation response, and it allows us to think more clearly, stay focused on tasks, and handle a variety of situations more calmly because we’re not draining energy on reacting to our initial emotions.

At eBay Enterprise here in Eau Claire, workers are given the opportunity to partake in mindful wellness activities throughout the year. From free yoga and chair massages to meditation groups and coloring to reduce stress, eBay feels like investing in their employees’ total health pays dividends. Jen Janiak, senior manager of customer service, says that the benefits are twofold.

“If you invest in your employees, they’ll invest back in you. It helps improve their mood and happiness,” which she says both translates into happy customers and shows the employee that they are important and taken care of. The second benefit she sees from a company standpoint is increased awareness of health in general, which reduces absenteeism and health care premiums.

Most of their call center employees receive upwards of 50 calls a day, some of which aren’t always the most pleasant. “Being able to get a massage during a busy workday is honestly the best break I can get. It’s amazing how 15 minutes in a massage chair can make a difference emotionally and physically,” said eBay supervisor Tabitha Lane-Adesanwo.

While the move towards mindfulness in the workplace seems to be a no-brainer for companies looking for more productive and happy employees, it does appear to tap into a widespread yearning for that way of life by many people.

If you’re interested in using mindfulness in your personal life or at work, check out thecenterec.com, sacredhearteauclaire.org, or yogacenterec.com for local mindfulness classes, workshops, and programs.