In the Spotlight: Liz Liptak
Mindfulness is more than just a catchphrase — it's a valuable tool on the path to lasting wellness. The skilled and compassionate team at The Center for Family Well-Being integrates mindfulness into all of our one-on-one sessions, groups, and workshops. We're excited to introduce one of our newest team members, Liz Liptak, LPC, who is sharing her experience with mindfulness and mental health at the Center.
With back-to-school season upon us, Liz is a great resource for anyone looking to start their fall with a more mindful approach. We sat down with Liz to learn more about her fascinating career and the valuable work she's doing with kids, adults, and families at the Center — including an upcoming Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Group.
Meet Liz:
After an impressive 25 years in the nonprofit sector, can you tell us a little about the early years of your journey and your experiences with helping children and families with reading disabilities?
I started at the Center as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in June, and as you mentioned, I spent nearly 25 years before that in the nonprofit sector. After moving from New York City to Washington DC, I began as a literacy tutor and that eventually led me to the Executive Director role at The Washington Literacy Center. In my time with the Literacy Center, we expanded from serving an adult population into family literacy and working in schools, helping both kids and adults overcome reading challenges. My work and experience there with dyslexia and reading disabilities led me to work with the International Dyslexia Association. There, one of the most valuable things we accomplished was developing reading standards and tools for teacher training programs at universities around the country. While it was rewarding to help kids and families one at a time as we did at the Literacy Center, the ability to reach a broader audience of teachers and impact more lives really appealed to me.
With so much literacy experience, you clearly have an incredibly strong background in helping kids with learning disabilities. What sorts of tools do you rely on in your daily therapy practices to help kids and families manage these challenges?
Knowing how schools operate and how teachers are trained helps me guide parents to the right resources. There's a strong correlation between a learning disability — whether it's dyslexia or ADHD or something else — and poor self esteem, and there can also be anxiety and depression present. When I have a younger client who has been diagnosed with a reading disability, I think about how it's impacting their wellbeing and self confidence. Even with adults, there can be a sense of shame surrounding a reading disability, and having that experience affects them throughout their lives. I enjoy helping children and adults learn more about themselves and come to appreciate their strengths and talents.
One of the resources you turn to often for your clients at the Center is mindfulness. How did you make the transition from literacy intervention to mindfulness training?
While I was working at IDA, I discovered that schools were bringing mindfulness into the classroom, especially for kids struggling with reading and attention issues. As a trained yoga teacher, I was interested in mindfulness, so it was exciting to see this beneficial practice brought into schools. This discovery led me to Minds Incorporated, which teaches mindfulness and social-emotional learning in the DC area schools.
We put together a mindfulness curriculum for schools — from kindergarten through high school students — as well as training programs for teachers. In recent years, we worked extensively with educators on using mindfulness to address stress and burnout and improve wellbeing and mental health. That curriculum is based on MBSR, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I use these techniques and curriculum at the Center as well!
Tell us a little more about how you use MBSR in your upcoming group and individual appointments.
The upcoming group is for adults, but mindfulness work is equally powerful for all ages in all settings!
Mindfulness is a practice of present moment awareness and observation. Many people may ask, why bother practicing it? It's because most of the time, our minds are either jumping ahead or ruminating about the past. When you're focused on what may happen in the future, that can contribute to anxiety. Alternatively, when you are stuck in the past it can lead to depression and an inability to move forward. Mindfulness is about fully embracing the present moment. This practice helps rewire the stressed or anxious brain; you improve focus, cognition, mood, and self regulation. Mindfulness training incorporates neuroscience, body awareness, dealing with difficult thoughts and emotions, and developing feelings of compassion and kindness for yourself and others — it's a valuable lifelong practice.
The group will follow the standard MBSR curriculum. When working with individuals, I use elements of mindfulness practices in conjunction with other methods, including cognitive behavioral therapy.
Can you share a few tips for kids or parents on managing stress or incorporating mindfulness into their fall routines?
Yes! Here are five easy mindfulness exercises you can start using now:
Roses and Thorns: At the dinner table, take turns talking about the "thorns" (negatives) and "roses" (positives) in your day. People tend to think of negative experiences, but this practice helps cultivate awareness of the positive things that happen each day as well.
Belly Breathing: Place one hand on your chest and your other hand on your lower belly and breathe in a relaxed way. It's very calming to have that touch and feel the rhythmic rise and fall of your body. For young kids, we call this "balloon breathing," and you can place a stuffed animal on their belly so they can watch it go up and down with their breaths.
Five-Finger Breathing: With an outstretched hand, trace it using a finger from your other hand. Starting at the base of your thumb, inhale as you trace upward and exhale as you trace downward, continuing around all five fingers on your hand. Then reverse directions.
5-4-3-2-1: This is a sensory awareness practice that is very calming and grounding in the five senses. Name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can touch, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste.
STOP: Whenever you feel stressed during the day, remember to STOP: S = stop, T = take a few breaths, O = observe what's happening in your body, and P = proceed when you feel recentered.
If you'd like to meet Liz, she is currently accepting new clients at the Center! Call us today to get scheduled or learn more about the upcoming Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Group.
