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Imagine you are sitting at home...
Your favorite television is about to come on. Suddenly, your legs feel weak. You feel flush. Your hands and feet begin to tingle. Your pulse skyrockets. You become dizzy. You start shaking. You cannot breathe. Your chest is hurting.
Are you having a heart attack? What will you do if you pass out?
Immediately, you call for help. At the ER, they inform you that there is absolutely nothing wrong with you and that you can go home.
That was certainly not “nothing.” What just happened?
The Characteristics of Stress
We all handle stress on a daily basis. Stress can occur at work, home, even while running errands. Stress is not avoidable. Unfortunately, stress can build up and make a person physically and mentally ill.
Symptoms of excessive stress include:
Heartburn
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Ulcers
Weight gain and loss
Insomnia
Headaches
Hives and skin rashes
Back, shoulder, and neck pain
Fatigue
Muscle tension
High blood pressure
Dental problems
Cold or hot flashes
Panic/Anxiety attacks
Irregular heartbeat
Susceptibility to colds and flu
Difficulty concentrating
Depression
Phobias
Irritability
Sudden mood swings
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms (and it has been confirmed it is not caused by a medical condition), it might be time for you to start meditating and using other relaxation methods in order to reduce your stress. Of course, it is still a good idea to apply relaxation strategies even if you are not feeling stressed!
Causes of Stress
There are many factors that can contribute to stress. These include:
Financial worries
Poverty
School
Relationship difficulties
Moving
Birth of a child
Death
Job change
Crime
Drug or alcohol abuse
Illness (self or family member)
Sexual changes (impotence, menopause)
Abuse
Weather
Stress can also lead to additional problems, ranging from losing a job to losing friends. In some cases, stress has even been linked to heart attacks. Therefore, stress is something that every person should learn to control. The biggest way to reduce stress is by learning to relax, even when the pressure is on.
Coping with Stress
There are a number of effective ways to deal with stress. If your doctor prescribes anti-anxiety medications, get a second opinion. While prescription drugs can work, they often carry a number of unwanted side effects. The best method is to learn relaxation techniques.
You can learn to meditate on your own. Or you can pick a few guided meditations from Meditation Collector that work for you, and listen to one of them at least once a day.
If you can keep doing that for a while, I think you'll be surprised with the results.
With so much to gain and so little to lose, you should turn to relaxation and meditation and watch the stress simply melt away.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Let it Be Guided Meditation
Another high quality guided meditation from Meditation Oasis, recorded live with Marry Maddux' meditation group.
It follows the same theme(s) as the Simply Being, Effortless and Letting Go meditations. Also from Meditation Oasis...
Download Page
Look for "#30 - Let it Be"
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Monday, September 14, 2009
Intuitive Expressions
Intuitive Expressions is a monthly guided meditation podcast put out by Deborah Koan.
Deborah has a very warm soothing voice, and her guided meditations are very effective. Most of her guided meditations use a body scan type of energy work that I like very much.
One little critique I have is that the themes are sometimes a little too materialistically oriented, but that's about it.
The meditations are very relaxing.
Download Page
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Saturday, September 5, 2009
The Best Benefits of Meditation
It’s something that is often associated with spirituality, yoga and religion, but the truth is that meditation is so much more than all these things put together.
It offers both physiological and psychological benefits, and best of all, it is easy enough to practice. No effort or strain is needed to meditate; all you need is a quiet place, a willing mind, and the ability to concentrate and let your mind and body relax.
While meditation is known to offer myriad benefits, I practice it regularly to attain a few that are to my personal advantage, such as:
Self control: When you meditate regularly, you find it easier to control your mind and body. I used meditation as a way to get out of a destructive relationship that I was addicted to. I knew it was not good for me, yet I could not find the strength to break free from the emotional shackles that tied me down. Until I took to meditating for an hour every morning and evening, that is. I was able to make the crucial decision to cut loose before the relationship completely destroyed me, and this is why I urge people who struggle with other addictions like alcohol and cigarettes to try meditation as a rehabilitation tool.
Determination: Only when you’ve tried meditation yourself do you realize the power it has in strengthening the mind and making you believe that you are capable of doing you set it to. So if you’re looking for success in a sport or hoping to win a game, train your mind as well as your body with a combination of physical and psychological exercises. When you meditate regularly focused on your goal, you are more likely to concentrate better and achieve success.
Detachment: If you’re someone with a quick temper that has gotten you into sticky situations more often than not, then you must try meditation as a tool to calm you down and help you deal with situations with a higher level of maturity. Meditation helps you deal with problems and irritations patiently and without losing your temper and saying or doing things that you will end up regretting later. You are able to deal with issues with a certain detachment that allows you to look at problems from a different point of view.
Besides these psychological advantages, meditation offers a host of physical advantages too, right from helping to reduce your blood pressure to enriching and elongating the quality and quantity of your life respectively. And since it’s easy, free and effective, there’s no reason not to practice meditation every day.
This guest article was written by Adrienne Carlson, who regularly writes on the topic of christian college online . Adrienne welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: adrienne.carlson83@yahoo.com.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Guided Imagery for Stress Relief & Relaxation
Publisher: HealthJourneys.com
Format: MP3
Length: 15 minutes
Voice: Female
Here's a very good guided meditation for Stress Relief and Relaxation.
According to the publisher, listening to this meditation regularly can reduce your stress considerably.
I'm sure that's the case, indeed!
Any good (guided) meditation or other deep relaxation method practised regularly can do miracles for your (mental) health.
Listen Page
In order to listen to this guided meditation, you'll need to register on the page.
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Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Discover Your Inner Guide
If it's your thing, this is a very good meditation with which to find your own inner guide.
The voice your hear in this meditation, is from Dr. Dorothy May. More info on her can be found here.
Download Page
Look for "Click here to begin your meditation."
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Friday, July 10, 2009
Healing Meditation
A short healing meditation for instant rejuvenation.
The voice you hear in this meditation is not Patsy Grey, as with most Learning Meditation meditations, but Anne Rossiter.
You can find more information about her here.
Download Page
Look for "Click here to begin your meditation."
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