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Hello everyone , I am new here I do want to discuss a topic about inner peace from different social categories : singles , couples , married , divorced ...... and from all the races and the ages . I will be so glad to communicate with you through the different social networks . Peace .

This week's topic is "Stressful Communications: Interpersonal Mindfulness". As the different types of formal practices are discussed already in the earlier week, where you are also welcome to share this week's experiences with them, this weeks forum entry is about the informal practice, the communication calendar. As we practise applying the skills we are learning in this course to our everyday lives; we are cultivating our natural capacities to be more flexible and to recover more quickly during challenging interpersonal situations. As we grow our awareness of emotions, we may better understand the messages we are sending to others and receiving from others and the barriers to being with ourselves and others in heartfelt and authentic ways. “Once you can communicate with yourself, you’ll be able to communicate outwardly with more clarity.” Thich Nhat Hanh Psychological stress arises from the interaction between us and the world, so we need to take responsibility for our part in relationships with people who “cause us stress” By this, we mean taking responsibility for our perceptions, thoughts, emotions and behaviours. If we react unconsciously when we are having a problem with another person, just as with other forms of stress, this usually makes matters worse in the long run. One of the most useful insights was reading myself when I was about to shut down in a conversation. These days I feel my chest getting tighter, and I become aware that I am no longer listening with an open heart but that I start feeling attacked and I am putting my armour up which will not allow the conversation to come to a satisfying result as I do not hear the other person anymore. Depending on the situation I might take a deep breath and open up again, or I'll explain that I am closing up and need a pause, sometimes I'll excuse myself to the bathroom for a bit to reconsider. If I get to walk the dog for an hour through the forest that's best but that's not always possible. It can also be helpful to repeat what I understood that the other person said in my own words, so we are both sure to talk about the same thing. This shows the other person I am listening and gives us both a chance to be clear about what we are talking about to avoid misunderstandings and assumptions. Have you noticed any changes in how you are communicating with people since you started this course? What have you noticed?