No Pain - All Gain! Train the Brain to Remove Pain

During meditation and yogic breathing techniques, brain wave patterns change.

Scientists from The University of Manchester have found that people who meditate regularly find pain less unpleasant because their brains anticipate the pain less. The study was published in September 2010 and showed that meditation reduces the emotional impact of aches and injury.

In the study, pain was administered via a small laser and the threat of pain was also anticipated as part of the research.

The scientists found that the prefrontal cortex, the region of the brain known to be involved in controlling attention and thought processes when potential threats are perceived, was more active compared to non-meditators. The experienced meditators also perceived the pain as less unpleasant relative to controls.

The more experience that a meditation practitioner had, the more the individual was able to distance themselves from anticipation of soreness, both reducing the expectation of and the negative appraisal of pain.

Meditation trains the brain to be more present-focused and to spend less time anticipating future negative events, reducing the recurrence of depression which makes chronic pain considerably worse.

Other studies have demonstrated that the pre-frontal cortex thickens as a result of meditation and thickening of this area of cortex is also shown to protect a person from sensitivity to pain.


Meditation Reduces Pain

During meditation and yogic breathing techniques, brain wave patterns change from beta waves to alpha waves. In addition, both hemispheres of the brain and the body become balanced. In most people, one side is slightly more active than the other e.g. being left or right-handed, but balanced sides also mean that your creative, physical, and logical abilities are equal and productive.

During the alpha state, the brain produces endorphins, natural pain-reducing hormones that are also responsible for a feeling of wellbeing and calming awareness throughout the body. Endorphins are the “feel good” factor involved in maintaining a positive quality of life, aid in controlling the body’s response to stress and in the regulation of growth and gonadotropin hormones.

When the mind is balanced, the whole body is affected.

Multi-Sensory Meditation which we teach, via classes and seminars, positively impacts your internal and external perception, your awareness of possibilities, and by promoting an optimistic mental state enables you to be free from negativity. In its simplest form, it is your own way of distancing your mind from the hustle and bustle of everyday living. You give yourself permission to relinquish the thoughts, demands, and pressures coming at you from the outside as well as from within, releasing attachment to the familiar path you traveled on before and experiencing the peace of the moment.

Guided Meditation
See previous postings on the website on the basic method of How to Meditate

Train The Brain To Remove Pain
Begin by following the breath from the tip of the nose into the base of the lungs and follow the breath out again.
Notice the body
Begin at the base of the body at the right side
See the right foot then the left
Move slowly over each area of the body, without becoming attached or associated with any particular area
Notice how each part of the body feels
Notice what you sense, smell, touch, hear, see, experience

How does your body feel with your surroundings; do you feel supported by the earth, does your body and heart feel open or closed
Travel with conscious awareness from the feet to the crown of the head
Begin to release awareness of your body, one limb and area at a time
Recognize that you are not your body
As you release awareness of having a body, you release awareness of areas that have pain as well as areas that are pain-free
With practice you learn to disassociate your Self from the confines of the body




Affirmation
Thoughts have their own unique energy. Use the power of your words to create only that which is positive for you.

See yourself as strong and healthy. See healing energy passing into you. See yourself doing all the things that you are now physically able to do. You move lightly, filled with vitality and the knowledge that all is well.

I am filling each cell with light and creating a new body

Meditation, Soldiers, and You

 Meditation is a proven method for inner peace

Meditation and Soldiers
According to the David Lynch foundation an estimated 30-35% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans suffer from the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD.

When an event is shocking and severe it can cause physiological changes in the brain. The trauma and stress is still carried around by the soldiers months and even years after their tour of duty has ended, with soldiers re-experiencing the smells and sounds of the traumatic event and creating stress that compounds over time.

Operation Warrior Wellness
Their minds are in a state of heightened activation, stress, and aggressiveness and while medication can alleviate some symptoms, the underlying stress still remains.
David Lynch’s organization is teaching Transcendental Meditation to soldiers in a program called Operation Warrior Wellness and the soldiers report experiencing “resilience, strength, and internal hardiness.”

Stress-Relief
Stress is relieved enabling individuals to talk about and cope with their feelings and to successfully get through their day without turning to alcohol, gambling, or other methods of self-medication that are used in order to escape from what is re-occurring in the mind.

Meditation is an evidence-based approach to provide deep relaxation that is deeper than sleep. During meditation, practitioners experience deep feelings of relaxation and relief from stress. Deep relaxation allows soldiers to sleep better, enabling their daily activities to be performed better. Moreover, it allows the individuals to return to an active and productive life.

During meditation, the mind withdraws from the information gathered from the senses permitting a fullness of relaxation.

Awareness of Self
The Self emerges and you realize that you are not the body, nor are you the mind. This realization of the Self enables discernment to emerge and with it comes heightened intuition.

Relaxation achieved during meditation is profound and the mind and body find the method so beneficial that it wants to keep repeating the experience. Research shows that even after the first session, there are both positive chemical and physiological changes occurring in the brain and that the experience is not merely subjective.

No one has control over your thoughts except yourself. Your hope, wishes, even your imagination are all within your own power to direct their energy in one path or another. The mind cannot discern between what it has actually seen and what it is seeing via your imagination.

Meditation is a simple yet proven method to attain release from acute and chronic stress, even severe stress as in PTSD.

Living a Happy Life
Life is not about what you think may happen in the future. Life is about enjoying the journey of daily creativity and loving experiences, of focusing on the beauty of life, of filling your life with positive experiences through books, music, and the right people who uplift you with their happiness and attitude.

Meditation is a unique practice that provides relief from stress and immediate benefits that will enable you to enjoy life to its fullest.

Releasing Barriers to Peace
Self-inquiry via meditation helps you identify barriers to peace and to see that they are dependent upon the senses for their fuel. You can release all obstructions by permanently taking away the energy source and putting a permanent damper on the obstacles that threaten to ignite when the environment is right. So, what lies buried beneath the ashes in your life?

Affirmations

My thoughts are creating the reality that I desire

My imagination creates what I believe

My affirmations are creating habits in keeping with my objectives

I am now achieving my goals

Staying Positive: The Way to Success and Health

Love is all you need?

Love really does keep you healthy.

The hormone DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) is produced abundantly in the body from cholesterol and secreted by the adrenal glands. Once it is in your body, it impacts the body in multiple ways and can be converted into estrogen, testosterone, progesterone and even cortisone. It is also known as a cortisol antagonist; fighting the negative effects of stress and anxiety however it fluctuates according to your response to circumstances and decreases as you age.

High levels of cortisol have been associated with diseases such as Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and depression, as well as anxiety, increased stress, low energy and elevated blood pressure.
Studies indicate that DHEA protects from cortisol overconcentration, has an anti-depressant effect, enhances memory in young to middle-aged adults, and supports the immune-system therefore maintaining a steady level of this beneficial hormone is to be encouraged.


So how do you maintain the levels that you need?
Researchers have also found that meditation promotes positive emotional and physical states which, in turn, dramatically elevate levels of DHEA. Meditators allow feelings of peace and love to flow through their body and the multiple benefits support better overall health, outlook on life, and increased vitality.

The converse is also true; that people who harbor sad or even angry emotions and thoughts have less of the hormone in their system and higher amounts of cortisol which, over time, feeds illness and unhappiness.

Meditation does promote self-awareness, happiness, and feelings of love but you can continue to reinforce the benefits with your interactions with other people,your activities, and what you choose to surround yourself with.

Meditation and health
Meditation helps to rebuild your energy, enabling you to be inspired, at peace, and connected with the centers of your heart and mind. Without this, you risk leading a hectic lifestyle in which you feel emotionally and physically wrought and chronically exhausted.

It's more than just a relaxed feeling though and as you have seen from the brief information mentioned above it also creates positive changes to your physical and mental health.

A balance between rest and activity enhances productivity because you are able to focus, are more observant, and creativity can flourish. The difference between being tired or rested often translates into the difference between being overwhelmed with daily challenges or finding resourceful solutions to them.

Positive, successful peopleSpend time in the presence of positive, successful people either in person, in books, or online. Let them know what you are doing. Share your plans with those whom you now trust and can confide in at this point in your life’s journey. They won't be "nice" simply for the sake of it.  Successful people will be constructive and supportive, offering positive suggestions and encouraging you and you will wonder why you didn't do this sooner.

Eliminate naysayers from hearing about your aspirations.  After all, you know how they will respond.

What's your priority?
Meditate daily. Find the time. Make the time. Prioritize your time in order to meditate.
It is during your daily meditation practice that you will recognize and subsequently address self-limiting patterns of behavior and take the first steps that will release them.
Carry affirmations with you. Memorize them. They really do block out unwanted and pessimistic thoughts.

Affirmations
An integral part of any affirmation is to believe that it will happen.
If this does not come naturally to you, an easy way to learn this is to practice feeling as if it has already happened by imagining what it will feel like.
Follow up any affirmation with an expression of gratitude, whether it’s a simple “Thank You” or a more lengthy prayer or communication of thanks.

Today I choose to believe rather than hope.

Divine guidance is with me always.

There are opportunities for deeper insight in all of my interactions.

I am willing to grow. Love is my guide