PBS高端访谈:在瑜伽垫上学习如何如何应对困境

 　　JUDY WOODRUFF: Back in this country, we turn to a classroom program designed to help young people cope with PTSD, a condition caused not by the shock of war, but by the stresses they encounter in life outside their schools.

　　MAN:We go — we start with our mountain pose, OK? And as you breath out, lean to the right and feel that stretch along your left side.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:At Cesar Chavez Academy in East Palo Alto, California, these seventh graders are part of an experiment to see if focused breathing can lead to focused learning.

　　MAN: And as you breathe out, come back to the middle.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:Stanford University researchers John Rettger and Michael Fu are using yoga and what is known as mindfulness practices to help students concentrate on class work.

　　MAN:These practices are really designed to help us feel a little bit more awake, aware and also relaxed.

　　MAN:We're going to get into sort of our relaxed state, and we're going to get into mindful practice. So, first of all, for mountain pose, everybody, go ahead and move your feet so that they are shoulder-width apart. And let's take three breaths together. Let's inhale¹ and exhale².

　　JEFFREY BROWN:Cesar Chavez is in a low-income, high-crime neighborhood, and many of these students face real-world stresses, anxieties and fears, which can impair³ their ability to learn.

　　AMIKA GUILLAUME, principal, Cesar Chavez Academy: We have, by the 2010 census⁴, as many as 50 percent of students who are homeless.

　　There are some very concrete things, like a telephone, a mattress⁵, a refrigerator with food in it, an address that you are in charge — when I say children are under stress and duress⁶, it's the little things. Let's not to mention the shootings. Let's not even go into the gang war in our neighborhoods. Just the little, simple things are very stressful.

　　MAN:I want you to notice inward what you are feeling, so an emotion. And then I want to have somebody volunteer what their emotion is.

　　STUDENT:Relaxed.

　　MAN: Relaxed? Good.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: Dr. Victor Carrion⁷, a professor at Stanford University's School of Medicine and head of Early Life Stress Research Program, oversees⁸ the project at Cesar Chavez Academy.

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION, Stanford University School of Medicine:We talk about adverse⁹ childhood experiences. We talk about trauma¹⁰. Here, we have the words suicide, drugs, sexual abuse, starving. This is what adverse childhood experiences are. This is the constant life of these children on a day-to-day basis. And not only do they live it, but they have reminders¹¹ in their own school.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: Carrion and his colleagues are trying to understand how children respond to daily stress, emotionally and even physiologically¹².

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION:With functional¹³ imaging, we actually can see what the brain is doing.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:He showed us brain images of children who suffer from chronic¹⁴ press, revealing evidence of both cognitive¹⁵ impairment and post-traumatic stress disorder¹⁶, or PTSD.

　　This link between stress and behavior actually shows up in the brain?

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION: It does.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:And, so, when there is stress or trauma in somebody's life, it shows up there?

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION:Well, yes, what we can see is there is a deficit¹⁷ in the area of the middle frontal cortex in kids that have PTSD.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: And in the developing brain of a child, Carrion says, PTSD can discourage learning.

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION: So the issue that we have with stress and chronic stress, and when it manifests as a PTSD syndrome¹⁸ or disorder is that some of the areas that are affected¹⁹ are areas that we need for our learning. For example, brain centers that process memory, brain centers that process executive function are particularly vulnerable. So PTSD can have an effect in how children learn.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: According to Carrion, up to 30 percent of children who live in low-income, high-crime neighborhoods will show symptoms of PTSD.

　　AMIKA GUILLAUME:Do I think that stress of our community can get to a child? One hundred and ten percent, absolutely. For every child who acts out at our school, I can look exactly to the point in their life where things are not working. Every single time, there is a very concrete, very sad story about why this child is not getting what he or she needs.

　　MAN:Bring your arms up, and then put your left leg right around your knee.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: By teaching children to pay close attention to their breathing and movements, Stanford medical student Michael Fu hopes they will better prepared to concentrate.

　　MICHAEL FU, Stanford University medical student:The principals of mindfulness really try to make you focus on the present moment. So whether or not you came in this morning experiencing something stressful at home or something bad happened, for you to be able to come into the classroom and really embrace it and embrace the learning, I think it really allows students to reach their potential.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:The Stanford team is also encouraging students to use these practices beyond the classroom.

　　MAN: This is then a tool that is available to us. So if we're working with some challenging emotions like anger or some fear or some sadness, these are things we can do to help change how we're feeling, right, and we can feel a little bit better.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:These students were just finishing a 10-week program when we visited. Teacher Marquel Coats said that, at first, there was plenty of skepticism.

　　MARQUEL COATS, teacher: It took us out of our comfort zone to be like moving our bodies and breathing in and out in front of everyone without giggling²⁰ and things like that. Once you just kind of just get in the zone on your own, you become comfortable, and it becomes something natural, as opposed to something that you're nervous about.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:Brayan Solorio, says that he uses both mindfulness and yoga at home when his mother, who works her third job at night, refuses to let Brian play outside.

　　BRAYAN SOLORIO, student:When I get home, I want to play, but she doesn't let me because it's too dark now. And I get so mad. And then I put my yoga mat that they give me, and I start using it. The difference is that I'm angry, and then as soon as I use it, I'm not angry no more. It calms me down.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:Can children learn to live with trauma? Do they learn to cope?

　　DR. VICTOR CARRION:They learn to cope if we teach them. If we don't do anything, their PTSD is not going to go away. So, by adolescence²¹, for example, individuals may develop self-injurious behaviors or they may develop substance abuse as a way of self-medicating. So, if PTSD, if not addressed, is avoided, is just going to get worse.

　　JEFFREY BROWN: Teacher Marquel Coats says she has seen positive results.

　　MARQUEL COATS: I have seen tremendous, like, growth in students from being in mindfulness, from, like, kids that have attitudes are quick to get upset about something, breathing and taking it slower, and then saying, you know, I didn't like that or please don't do that, as opposed to lashing²² out.

　　JEFFREY BROWN:For Principal Amika Guillaume, all of this is very personal. Her sister was murdered when, as a teenager, she got caught up in a fight. Guillaume today says keeping emotions in check can keep children safe.

　　AMIKA GUILLAUME:If we can get kids to the point that they realize that, oh, I'm getting hotheaded, oh, my adrenaline is flowing, I am not thinking clearly, I need to stop, step back and reassess, then maybe we have a chance.

　　MARQUEL COATS:And this last week, how often did you play with your friends, never, a little, sometimes?

　　JEFFREY BROWN:The Stanford team is now gathering²³ data from students about the effectiveness of the mindfulness program.

1 inhale   

v.吸入(气体等)，吸(烟)

参考例句：

• Don't inhale dust into your lung.别把灰尘吸进肺里。
• They are pleased to not inhale second hand smoke.他们很高兴他们再也不会吸到二手烟了。

2 exhale   

v.呼气，散出，吐出，蒸发

参考例句：

• Sweet odours exhale from flowers.花儿散发出花香。
• Wade exhaled a cloud of smoke and coughed.韦德吐出一口烟，然后咳嗽起来。

3 impair   

v.损害，损伤；削弱，减少

参考例句：

• Loud noise can impair your hearing.巨大的噪音有损听觉。
• It can not impair the intellectual vigor of the young.这不能磨灭青年人思想活力。

4 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

5 mattress   

n.床垫，床褥

参考例句：

• The straw mattress needs to be aired.草垫子该晾一晾了。
• The new mattress I bought sags in the middle.我买的新床垫中间陷了下去。

6 duress   

n.胁迫

参考例句：

• He claimed that he signed the confession under duress.他说他是被迫在认罪书上签字的。
• These unequal treaties were made under duress.这些不平等条约是在强迫下签订的。

7 carrion   

n.腐肉

参考例句：

• A crow of bloodthirsty ants is attracted by the carrion.一群嗜血的蚂蚁被腐肉所吸引。
• Vultures usually feed on carrion or roadkill.兀鹫通常以腐肉和公路上的死伤动物为食。

8 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

9 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

10 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

11 reminders   

n.令人回忆起…的东西( reminder的名词复数 )；提醒…的东西；（告知该做某事的）通知单；提示信

参考例句：

• The film evokes chilling reminders of the war. 这部电影使人们回忆起战争的可怕场景。
• The strike has delayed the mailing of tax reminders. 罢工耽搁了催税单的投寄。

12 physiologically   

ad.生理上，在生理学上

参考例句：

• Therefore, the liver and gallbladder cannot be completely separated physiologically and pathologically. 因此，肝胆在生理和病理上不能完全分离。
• Therefore, the liver and gallbladder are closely related physiologically and pathologically. 因此，肝胆在生理和病理上紧密联系。

13 functional   

adj.为实用而设计的，具备功能的，起作用的

参考例句：

• The telephone was out of order,but is functional now.电话刚才坏了，但现在可以用了。
• The furniture is not fancy,just functional.这些家具不是摆着好看的，只是为了实用。

14 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

15 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

16 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

17 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

18 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

19 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

20 giggling   

v.咯咯地笑( giggle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• We just sat there giggling like naughty schoolchildren. 我们只是坐在那儿像调皮的小学生一样的咯咯地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I can't stand her giggling, she's so silly. 她吃吃地笑，叫我真受不了，那样子傻透了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

21 adolescence   

n.青春期，青少年

参考例句：

• Adolescence is the process of going from childhood to maturity.青春期是从少年到成年的过渡期。
• The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence.这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。

22 lashing   

n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。