Meditation
and relaxation go hand in hand, however they are learned arts. In our hectic world, many of us feel stressed
out and over worked. Meditation gives
the mind a break and makes thoughts calmer and better focused. Spending quiet time in meditation also
teaches about overcoming stress and finding inner peace and balance. Many individuals overcome negative thoughts
through meditation and also, some individuals also utilize prayer during quiet
time or meditation.
In
a 2013 Huffington Post article, author Amanda Chan identified many benefits of
meditation. The benefits include:
Lets us know our true selves by having the time to objectively analyze ourselves.
Promotes better focus ~ with working adults as well as students, cognitive function is improved.
Allows for better performance, better ability to handle and recover from stress.
Changes the brain in a protective way – for more positive thoughts.
Works as the brain’s volume knob, keeping negativity at a minimum.
Improves focus on music by improving focus.
Promotes sleep through relaxation.
Lowers depression
Boosts health by reducing the expression of genes linked with inflammation.
Meditation
needs only to last 10 – 15 minutes to be effective. Sitting in a comfortable position to meditate
is best, although there is no prescribed position. While
being quiet in meditation, don’t try to eliminate thoughts or resist them. Let them come and go freely. You may
experience a dream-like state during meditation and not be conscious of noises
or sounds. Some people fall asleep while
meditating, while others experience strong emotions. Should you experience any strong thoughts or
emotions, try to come back to breathing and focus on that.
The
Cleveland Clinic has a unique take on mindfulness and meditation. Code Lavender is a holistic care response
serving both patients and providers in need of emotional or spiritual
support. Through
the program, a provider who summons emotional support is met by a team of
holistic nurses within 30 minutes of a call. The team provides Reiki* and
massage, health snacks and water, and lavender arm bands to remind the
individual to relax for the rest of the day. The Holistic Services Team also
offers a variety of other methods, including spiritual support, mindfulness
training, counseling and yoga. According to the Huffington Post, the
Cleveland Clinic is one of a growing number of hospitals and health systems
that are integrating holistic therapies into their services. A 2011 American
Hospital Association report found that 42% of hospitals surveyed offer one
or more Complementary and Alternative Medicine therapies, including
acupuncture, homeotherapy, and herbal medicine—up from 37% in 2007.
I have included a sample meditation from Meditation
Oasis. It is an eight minute Mandela
Meditation, with beautiful music and mandalas.
*Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction,
relaxation and promoting healing. It is
a method of “laying on of hands” and is based on the idea that an unseen life
energy force flows through us and is what causes to be alive. If the life
energy force is low, a person is more likely to feel ill, stressed or unhappy.
References:
Ainsworth, B. et al. (2013) The effect of focused attention
and open monitiroing meditation on attention network function in healthy
volunteers. Psychiatry Research, 210(3):1226-31.
Foureur, M. et al. (2013)
Enhancing the resilience of nurses and
midwives: pilot of a mindfulness-based program for increased health, sense of
coherence and decreased depression, anxiety and stress. Contemporary
Nurse, 45(1):114-25.
Goyal, M. et al. (2014) Meditation programs for psychological
stress and well-being: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA
Internal Medicine, Jan 6.
Singh, Y. et al. (2012) Immediate and long-term effects of
meditation on acute stress reactivity, cognitive funcitions and
intelligence. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. 18(6): 46-53.
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