Meditation the Ideal Stress Therapy
by Joan Maughan
August 12, 2006We live in a very stressful world today – that
would be the understatement of the year! The day I decided to write
this article, the world once again was hit by the threat of yet
another act of terrorism. Not only do we have the general day to day
stresses, but we now have a threat even greater, one that promises
to take away our free way of living.
Many people find raising a family and holding onto a well paid job
so stressful that their lives almost fall apart, they suffer bad
health and just feel that they can’t cope.
So, how do we cope with the pressures of life?
Meditation is not a miraculous cure for stress, or any other illness
for that matter it is simply, putting our mind into a relaxed state
enabling us to understand and handle the stresses in our lives. The
power of the human mind knows no boundaries and if we teach
ourselves to control the way our minds work we can become more in
charge of our daily lives.
Using meditation to reprogram the mind is a step towards gaining a
healthy soul and body. With regular meditation we can learn to
relax, clear our mind of unwanted thoughts and focus on positive
thoughts. Many of us need to learn about ourselves; why do we react
the way we do to certain things; why do some things make us angry,
why do other things make us happy or sad. By getting to understand
our inner self, we can then start to change the things that cause us
stress. Of course, we cannot always change events or happenings or
avoid certain situations however, by learning to control our minds
our reactions to those situations can be changed.
Meditation is one way to achieve control over our reactions, we can
learn to accept people, situations, disappointments in a way that
reduces the amount of stress we put on ourselves. Reducing stress
not only makes our days seem brighter, but it goes a long way to
preventing many stress related illnesses, such as high blood
pressure.
Learning how to meditate should never be a worrying experience.
Instead it should be approached calmly with an open mind and with no
great expectations to begin with. Many beginners find it almost
impossible to empty their minds of thoughts and this is quite
natural. Instead of becoming frustrated with persistent thoughts
invading your meditation, you should be aiming primarily for a state
where you don’t give the thoughts any focus, just accept them and
left them drift away.
It is quite often helpful when starting to meditate to use a
professionally recorded sessions. Always ensure you purchase from a
well known reliable source as the quality of these recordings can
make or break your meditation experience. If you chose a recording
that includes voice, you need to know that the voice actually
assists you rather than annoying you.
There are a number of methods used to gain successful meditation and
you should choose the method you feel most comfortable with. Some
people prefer the mantra chant while others choose soft relaxing
music. Candles and/or incense can be helpful as a means of
concentrating on something other than your thoughts.
The most important thing to do is to start! Don’t keep putting it
off, you will be so glad you decided to use meditation to either
avoid or cope with the stresses in your life. When you become
totally familiar with meditation you will be able to meditate almost
anywhere, not just the cozy quiet relaxing corner you begin with.
Probably the best thing about using meditation as a way of coping
with stress – it is free and it is not drug therapy.
Free Articles and Content by ContentDesk.com
Coping with stress had become a large part of my life as I cared for
my chronically ill husband. I needed to find some way to remain
positive and strong and this led me to learn various types of
meditation. As meditation works for me I now wish to tell others
about its benefits. For more information and articles regarding
meditation, relaxation, sleep therapies and more please visit
http://www.mindxcell.com
|