By Matt Richtel
As
commander of the coalition forces in Iraq, Maj. Gen. Walter Piatt
juggled ruthless pursuit of enemies and delicate diplomacy with tribal
leaders, using a trove of modern weaponry and streams of tech-generated
data.
But his best decisions, he
said, relied on a tool as ancient as it is powerful. Maj. Gen. Piatt
often began daily operations by breathing deliberately, slack-jawed,
staring steadily at a palm tree.
Mindfulness
— the practice of using breathing techniques, similar to those in
meditation, to gain focus and reduce distraction — is inching into the
military in the United States and those of a handful of other nations.
This
winter, Army infantry soldiers at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii began
using mindfulness to improve shooting skills — for instance, focusing on
when to pull the trigger amid chaos to avoid unnecessary civilian harm.
The
British Royal Navy has given mindfulness training to officers, and
military leaders are rolling it out in the Army and Royal Air Force for
some officers and enlisted soldiers. The New Zealand Defence Force recently adopted the technique, and military forces of the Netherlands are considering the idea, too.
This
week, NATO plans to hold a two-day symposium in Berlin to discuss the
evidence behind the use of mindfulness in the military.
A small but growing group of military
officials support the techniques to heal trauma-stressed veterans, make
command decisions and help soldiers in chaotic battles.
“I
was asked recently if my soldiers call me General Moonbeam,” said Maj.
Gen. Piatt, who was director of operations for the Army and now commands
its 10th Mountain Division. “There’s a stereotype this makes you soft.
No, it brings you on point.”
you can read the full post here:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/05/health/military-mindfulness-training.html
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