Meditation: Stress Relief Through Awareness
Meditation has been around for more than 2500 years. In some cultures, like Hinduism and Buddhism, it is practiced to gain a deeper, spiritual understanding of the self. In these cultures, meditation has religious connotations. But for quite some time, in many modern societies, meditation has gained popularity due to reasons other than those related to religion and spirituality. Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard University carried out, in sixties, ground breaking research on many popular meditation techniques. He, along with his team, also conducted experiments in Buddhist Monasteries in Himalayan Mountains. His, and many other contemporary studies, prove beyond doubt that meditation has effects on body that are antithetical to those exhibited by body under stress. - Heart rate is lowered, - Blood pressure is reduced in those suffering from low to moderate hypertension, - Breathing gets slowed down, - Lowered levels of adrenaline and cholesterol, leading to reduced stress and anxiety, - Oxygen is consumed economically, - Reduced muscle tension. You can see very clearly thatthese symptoms are exact opposite to those exhibited during stressful periods, better known as fight or flight response. Meditation:Stress & MindfulnessMeditation leads to states of deep relaxation and calmness. The mind gets settled down in meditation, stress replaced by mental clarity. Those who practice it regularly develop better self awareness. They are in a better position to take informed decisions, not getting swayed by ups and downs of daily lives. You develop mindfulness becoming conscious of hidden emotional responses. You develop awareness of emotional reactions that are causing you stress and anxiety. When you get to know the sub-conscious forces acting inside you, you are in a position to take control and subsequently to manage them. With meditation, stress management becomes a matter of choice. And, stress is not the only thing that you learn to manage, you become better adept at managing all aspects of life, as meditative state unfolds before you those aspects of your unconscious which were hitherto unknown, therefore, out of reach. Now that you see them, you have the power to change them. Psychotherapists find meditation akin to psychotherapy and find it to be therapeutic, as it helps develop cognitiveskills like focused attention, and makes one physically relaxed.Meditation helps overcome drug and alcohol addictions, besides improving social adjustment, self esteem and physical well being. SPONSORED
Meditation:It's Easy To LearnYou should not be daunted bymeditation presuming it to be some complicated process which isdifficult to follow and practice. In fact, it is very simple and can be practiced by anyone. You can start doing meditation on your own without the requirement of any teacher. It can be learnt from a book or by listening to CDs. Presence of a teacher is not required. Just remember, stress will not disappear overnight. Start meditating, without expecting any great results, or better still, without expecting any results at all. It is important to just keep doing it. With practice, you will develop proficiency in your preferred method of meditation. Where To Go From HereFor some excellent resources for learning meditation click here. Further Reading Stress Relief Meditation: A Simple Way To Get Started Learn Meditation For Relaxation, Stress Reduction And Beyond How Does Stress Affect a Person....How It Affects You? How Good Are You At Stress And Time Management? Stress Relief Tips & Techniques: Top 10 Stress Relievers 6 Simple Steps to Relaxation Response Aromatherapy for stress relief: How Natural Scents Change Your Moods Back to Home from Meditation: Stress Relief Through Awareness Sponsored Links
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