...Health RELIG2212 Buddhism: Beliefs and Practices April 13, 2009 RELIG 2212 Buddhism: Beliefs and Practices April 13, 2009 I. Introduction a. Meditation as a central role in Buddhism b. Thesis statement: there is great potential for Buddhist meditation techniques to provide both physical and psychological health benefits. II. Meditation and anxiety a. Meditation and anxiety reduction b. Study by John Miller on Clinical Implications of a Mindfulness Meditation- Based Stress Reduction Intervention in the Treatment of Anxiety Disorders. III. Meditation and health a. Meditation and cardiovascular disease/blood pressure b. Study by Vernon Barnes on the “ Impact of Transcendental Meditation on Cardiovascular Function at Rest and During Acute Stress in Adolescents with High Normal Blood Pressure.” IV. Meditation and neurology a. Meditation and mind and brain functioning/neuroscience b. Visual imagery/attention studies c. Studies on virtuous mental states/meditation on lovingkindness V. Conclusion: These scientific studies demonstrating lowered stress and blood pressure, and demonstrating the possibility for a better understanding of brain functioning, make it clear that there is a great potential for Buddhist meditation techniques to provide health benefits and advances in modern science. Under a Bodhi tree, a man in robes vows to remain in seated meditation until he achieves Enlightenment. Despite temptations and harassment by the...
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...Physiological Effects of Mindfulness and Loving Kindness Meditation Antonia Rupert Warren Wilson College For years, people have practiced meditation and mindfulness techniques to manage stress, improve mood and to boost their overall sense of wellbeing. With new advances in technology and medicine, we are now able to understand the physiological changes occurring in the body and the brain when engaging in these techniques. This paper will look specifically at the effects of loving kindness meditations and mindfulness-based stress reduction. Loving kindness meditations are meditations that use words, images, and feelings to evoke a sense of goodwill, kindness, warmth and friendliness toward oneself and others. Similarly, mindfulness-based stress reduction is a tool used to assist with and reduce the effects of physical and mental illnesses. This paper will highlight the effects of these two tools on overall feelings of wellbeing and on their neurological effects. Many studies have found that regular engagement in loving kindness meditations and mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques lead to a wide array of benefits. Loving kindness meditation has been shown to increase positive emotions, compassion, empathy, feelings of gratitude and...
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...two Paper Rasheedah Long Grand Canyon University NSG 325: Evidence Based Practice 03/30/2015 The purpose of composing this paper is to review one article that supports the PICOT statement. This paper will be written as an essay and will scrutinize major components of the study such as the introduction, the review of literature, the methods used, the findings, and lastly the discussion. This paper will provide an analytical view of the chosen article, determining the applicability of the findings, the clinical importance, the validity and the reliability of the issue addressed in the article. There are many different types of mediation practices. Transcendental meditation and mindfulness based stress reduction meditation are two of the most commonly researched. Meditation is now widely accepted into mainstream and is being used as a way for maintaining health and wellness. Several medical and rehabilitation facilities have proved meditation to be a safe and effective tool for treating: “stress, fatigue, depression, anxiety, fibromyalgia, hypertension, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, tinnitus, congestive heart failure, general pain, as well as many other health ailments. (Natural Medicine Database, 2014) Article Introduction The introduction to the study was clear and concise. It clearly identified what the researchers were looking to establish. The introduction explains that mindfulness meditation is defined as “paying attention on purpose, being in the present...
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...This paper provides a book review of 10-Minute Mindfulness: 71 Simple Habits for Living in the Present Moment. I will discuss my reasons for choosing this book and my experience while practicing techniques the authors describe. I examine the use of mindfulness as a pain management tool in pregnancy and provide research information that corroborates this theory. I also discuss the benefits of mindfulness to nurses and include supporting evidence from research. In conclusion, I consider the impact this book has made on me personally and professionally. 10-Minute Mindfulness When was the last time you cleared your mind of all thoughts and only focused on enjoying the present moment? If someone asked me this question one month ago, my answer would...
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...personality had also be found in post-traumatic stress disorder patients, which are patients that went through a trauma or life threatening event and is suffering for it, most commonly found in military patients and cardiovascular patients. Patients with type D personalities are usually shy and fearful and have withdrawal challenges which have been determined from a study by Kupper & Denollet (2013). Also this may cause patients to withdraw from the people around them and then they will become fearful of other people because they think that more people will judge them and they will eventually assume the world around them will judge them everywhere they...
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...How Does Mindfulness Benefit The Brain Physically And Physiologically? Our minds can process 126 pieces of information every second, and there is still so much that we do not notice. Mindfulness benefits the brain physically and physiologically in many ways such as the increase in the density of gray matter, preventing the brain from aging, reducing anxiety and depression, helping with addiction, and helping with concentration and focus. Mindfulness affects the brain physically and physiologically in many positive ways Physically Increases In The Density Of Grey Matter Mindfulness has been proven to increase the amount of gray matter in 4 major areas of the brain the Left Hippocampus, the Posterior Cingulate Cortex, the Left Temporoparietal Junction, and the Cerebellum. However, I will be discussing the two most important areas that we are most aware of in our everyday life. The first area that had shown an increase in gray matter was the left hippocampus. The left hippocampus control Emotion regulation and memory. In the past mindfulness...
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...Group Therapy Interventions for Combat Veterans Suffering from PTSD Name Academic Institution Author Note Class Professor Date Group Therapy Interventions for Combat Veterans Suffering from PTSD The process of group therapy can be extremely beneficial for individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the interventions used in the group therapy setting must be appropriate to each individual within the group, adding a level of complexity to the job of the therapist choosing the interventions. By using a number of different therapeutic theories and interventions, the therapist can hope for the best possible results for the group as a whole and for the individual clients. Some of the most flexible therapeutic frameworks that work well in group therapy settings are cognitive-behavioral therapy, solution-focused therapy, and psychoeducation. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a popular therapeutic framework that has been used with great success with patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. One intervention suitable to the group therapy setting is thought-stopping. Thought-stopping involves analyzing the thought patterns our brains have created and interrupting the process at the point where thoughts begin to turn irrational. For example, in the group therapy setting a member of the group may report that while walking on the sidewalk one day, a man began to approach from the opposite direction and the group member, a combat veteran...
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...healthy and normal responses when hearing another person’s trauma and what is considered as “compassion fatigue” or “secondary traumatic stress” or “vicarious traumatization” or “secondary traumatic stress disorder or countertransference. When exposed to this type of trauma, people need to identify and deal with their own emotional reactions and how this relates to their own experiences. As well as modulate their feelings and organize their thinking (Geller, Madsen, & Ohrenstein, 2004). The capacity to empathize, to feel with another person is the focal point of psychotherapy (McCann & Pearlman, 1990). That being the case, clinicians need to learn how to think clearly, modulate their emotions, feel effective when working with clients and maintain help that they are going to be effective. But, if the clinician is put into these states of stress by virtue of listening to others, they may feel inclined to withdraw from their clients (Geller et. al, 2004). When creating a psychotherapeutic relationship between a therapist and a client one approach that is considered as compatible with our theories and clinical foundations is that of the mindfulness based approach. According to Germer (2005), there are two general approaches that clinicians have applied in their clinical work. That of being mindful in psychotherapy and mindfulness – based psychotherapy (Turner, 2008). These two approaches have been shown to be effective and beneficial when in a therapeutic environment. Through...
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...working on a document, every three minutes on average” (Key Organization Systems, 2007). Heavy workload, lack of autonomy, low interpersonal support, under-utilization of skills, lack of control over work, wage scales and repetitive work environment have been cited as major contributors to workplace stress (Citation). Coincidentally, a 2006 Harvard Business Review Case ranked work-related stress as the second biggest occupational health problem in the world (Key Organization Systems, 2007). Taking another step forward, we are curious as to how musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), the leading global occupational health problem that begets physical stress, is linked to work-related psychological stress. Canada’s Industrial Accident Prevention Association (IAPA) has churned out statistics that MSDs caused over 40,000 workplace injuries in Ontario annually. In a bid to enhance ergonomic awareness and minimize MSDs in the workplace, IAPA exposed five common myths regarding MSDs in a 2009 article (refer to A2.0) (Industrial Accident Prevention Association, 2009). With the intent of maintaining all relevance to present research being conducted, we desire to apply employee mindfulness—a topic of...
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...Mindfulness practices like Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) are rooted in Buddhist traditions but it is delivered independently from the religious and cultural origins in mental health practices (Sipe & Eisendrath, 2012; Baer 2003). MBCT was created by cognitive therapists John Teasdale, Mark Williams and Zindel Segal as a form of therapy that combines aspects of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy(CBT) and Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme (Williams, Russel, & Russel, 2008; Shapiro & Carlson, 2009). The programme was originally developed to target the cognitive vulnerability in patients with depressive relapse to help them break habitual dysfunctional cognitive patterns, to reduce the recurrence or relapse of depression (Van der Velden, et al. 2015; Williams, et al. 2008). The combination of cognitive and mindfulness based therapy provides a long term form of preventing relapse (Shapiro and Carlson, 2009). Usual CBT concentrates on teaching patient’s how to cognitively approach and understand the aetiology of mood disorder and then apply certain skills to change dysfunctional and automatic thoughts (Beck, as cited in Manicavasgar, Parker, & Perich, 2011). The mindfulness component of the MBCT programme focuses on teaching patients to become aware of their bodily sensations, thoughts and feelings in a non-judgemental way. This awareness allows patients to face difficulties and discomfort from a perspective where they...
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...experience higher levels of stress. People experience some sort of stress in their everyday lives, whether in the form of eustress or distress. The stressors that people try to grapple with can have various affects on physiological, emotional, and cognitive health. Daily hassles have a more significant impact on health than high stress situations. In this paper, I will discuss the most common stressors I encountered over the course of two weeks, my physiological, emotional, and cognitive reactions, and coping strategies I used and could implement in the future. Physiological Stress Themes: Focusing on my physiological reactions during this 14-day period, I realized that I struggled with severe tension headaches due to the numerous stressors I faced on a daily basis. I felt this dull pain on all sides of my head, neck, and shoulders; these headaches would last almost the entire day usually unless I took ibuprofen, which would only help mildly....
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...Mindfulness meditation means to be aware of the present moment while acknowledging your thoughts, and emotions. It’s the 21st century and we are always so busy trying to achieve what society labels as the “perfect life”, that we lose sight of what’s really important to us. The minds of high school students are always filled with random thoughts, denying them the order needed for optimal functioning. For students who get easily stressed and distracted, mindfulness can make them more focused, decrease stress and improve memory. Mindfulness also has many physical benefits like enhancing one's general health, boosting neuroplasticity, and facilitating their recovery from traumatizing events. Lastly, mindfulness had social advantages such as increasing...
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...in Psychology Kearney, Mcdermott, Malte, Martinez, & Simpson (2012) conducted a study of the effects of participation in a mindfulness program for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. I believe that PTSD is a state of mind that an individual has or how the deal with a certain traumatic event that has taken place in their life. According to Santrock (2006), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychological disorder that develops through exposure to a traumatic event, such as war; severely oppressive situations, such as the Holocaust; severe abuse, as in rape; natural disasters, such as floods and tornados; and unnatural disasters, such as plane crashes (p.132). Much of what is known about PTSD comes from individuals who have developed the disorder because of combat and war-related traumas. Kearney et al. (2012) studied using new research to assess outcomes associated with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) for veterans with PTSD. It has been suggested that acceptance of mindfulness-based approaches may be useful in the treatment of PTSD, though currently outcome data are lacking (Kearney et al., 2012). There were initially 167 veterans referred to the MBSR during the study period. From the charts I found that after orientation and evaluation of the subjects only forty-seven veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder were randomized to treatment as usual (TAU; n = 22), or MBRS plus TAU (n = 25). PTSD, depression, and mental health-related...
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...Mindfulness meditation (MM), body awareness, and yoga are mindfulness techniques used in a cognitive therapy called Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) that are used to help people to develop a more mindful outlook on things. Out of these techniques, MM has be recognized in empirical work for its ability to promote positive psychological well-being. Many empirical articles have conducted studies on patients who suffer with mental illnesses and disorders such as anxiety disorder, depression, and chronic pain-symptom reduction and in these studies MM has been strongly related to improvement within these patients mental health (Wolkin, 2015). However, loving –kindness, compassion, forgiveness, gratitude, acceptance and best-self-visualization...
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...Mindfulness: Foundation of life to approach happiness It is no more infrequent that every time people look at the newspaper in the morning, terrible news dominates the cover and headlines. As a matter of fact, we all notice that the violence is dramatically growing in this world. This is not a new modern issue but already becomes a common topic in both the world of laypeople and that of social scientists and spiritual leaders. Hence, there is an urgent calling for a solution to the security of every individual and the whole world as well. Nevertheless, tragedies that people have been suffering, are still taking place. They are not natural but sadly man-made catastrophes. The root of cause is not in external and top down factors such as security measures, laws, and policies, but it is originated from consciousness of human. Unquestionably, the issue should be solved at the root. Hence, mindfulness, which could help people to deal with the causes, would be a solution for this problem. As an ancient notion that was taught as the heart of Buddhism’s teaching, mindfulness was proved as a valuable practice in health care and life that help people deal with their suffering and reach happiness. Religion In Buddhism’s position, mindfulness means awareness moment-by-moment in the present without forming attachment and making judgment. Mindfulness is comprised of consciousness and awareness. The motivation of Buddhism is practice that can help people to reach the enlightenment and happiness...
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