A few years ago, I had the amazing experience of learning about Ho’oponopono and meditation. In 2013, I went through a very difficult time after my husband and I decided to get divorced. A started having severe panic attacks, depression symptoms, and really bad anxiety. I knew I had to get checked out… I couldn’t sleep, and lost more than 10 pounds in a month. However, I did not want to go to the psychology, and then to the psychiatrist to be medicated. I have two children to take care of, and also considering that I’m a teacher, I knew that the side effects of antidepressants and antianxiety drugs were going to negatively affect not only me, but also my relationship with my children. So, I decided to learn a little more about “alternative …show more content…
ways” that could help me to get back on track. A friend of mine introduced me to Ho’oponopono.
As it is clearly stated by Sue (), this Native Hawaiian healing ritual attempts to restore and maintain good relations among family members and between the family and the supernatural powers (p.270). I personally followed different steps. I began praying, and asking the “angels” for guidance and support. The idea was also to stay positive and forgive all the bad and negative things which allows you to feel an incredible sense of resolution and life purpose. Ideally, and when I had enough time, I would’ve concluded with a prayer to thank the “angels” and spirits involved.
I taught the steps to my kids, and later on to my husband. Believe it or not, things began to get a lot better between both of us. Our communication improved, and we started looking at our mistakes as learning experiences instead of just blaming each other.
In addition to Ho’oponopono, meditation also has been a great experience that my husband and I have had. Meditation is a must! It only takes 10 minutes in the morning, and it certainly helps us start our day on a very positive and constructive way. Actually, we did not take any classes or meditation session…. We went simple, and downloaded the Headspace app on both of our phones. This app has been our instructor for the last six months. It gives you the steps as it gives you 10 different programs to learn meditation basics in 10 minutes a day. It allows us to rest our minds, collect our thoughts, and focus
on what we want to achieve for the day. It has been a great experience which has helped me realize about the importance of keeping ourselves open to the possibilities of exploring other alternative ways of helping and supporting our clients. We should always focus our work on evidence-based interventions that have been scientifically proven to be effective; however, we should be willing to consider spirituality as an important aspect of human beings.
However, meditation is not as common within Buddhism as most believe. There is a large assumption “that Buddhism and meditation go hand in hand”, but the majority of Buddhists have focused on “cultivating moral behavior, preserving the Buddha’s teachings (dharma), and acquiring good karma”(Braun 2014, p.1). Meditation and Buddhism are often assumed to be one and same, but this is also not true. As Buddhism has gained popularity among lay people it’s practices have changed Buddha’s teaching of the middle path has adapted to meditation being “possible in the city” rather than with monks in jungles and caves (p.4). As seen in Burma, in less than 75 years Buddhism and meditation were able to grow “from a pursuit of the barest sliver of the population to a duty of the ideal citizen” (p.5). While meditation is not the core of Buddhism it has encouraged the growth of Buddhism as it’s practice of mindfulness has been inspiring an approachable model (p.6). Meditation and mindfulness are easily manipulated to secularization, but still have significance in Buddhism and following the patterns of your
Smith, W.P., Compton, W.C., & West, W.B. (1995, March). Meditation as an adjunct to a happiness enhancement program. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 51(2), 269-73. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7797651
Meditation is an age-old practice that has renewed itself in many different cultures and times. Despite its age, however, there remains a mystery and some ambiguity as to what it is, or even how one performs it. The practice and tradition of meditation dates back thousands of years having appeared in many eastern traditions. Meditation’s ancient roots cloud its origins from being attributed to a sole inventor or religion, though Bon, Hindu, Shinto, Dao, and later, Buddhism are responsible for its development. Its practice has permeated almost all major world religions, but under different names. It has become a practice without borders, influencing millions with its tranquil and healing effects.
Impulse control and decision-making, both executive functions, are believed to center in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (Bechara, Damasio, Damasio, & Anderson, 1994). Damage to this area increases deficits in decision making (Bechara et. al.,1994). Research has shown that chronic heroin use negatively impacts an individual’s ability to restrain impulses, leading to lack of planning and decreased adaptive and social cognition (Pau, Lee, & Chan, 2001). Heroin is a powerful opiate that crosses the blood-brain barrier and produces potent euphoria (Pau, Lee, & Chan, 2001). Impulse control is defined as an individual’s tendency to act on arising wishes or urges (Murphy & Mackillop, 2012). Greater mindfulness has been shown to decrease substance dependent individuals’ urge to use substances (Murphy & Mackillop, 2012). Mindfulness focuses on the emphasis on staying in the present moment, the natural impermanence of things in an individual’s environment, and the awareness of actions such as noticing what is experienced without judgment or reactive behavior (Murphy & Mackillop, 2012). Research on the implementation of mindfulness techniques and their ability to decrease impulsivity is necessary in order to examine the ways heroin-dependent adults react cognitively, behaviorally, and physiologically to external stimuli.
When one thinks of meditation, what comes to mind? Does one think of group of 1970’s hippies sitting in a circle singing about peace? How about relaxing music being played? How about trying to form one’s body into a pretzel-like shape? What if meditation has nothing to do with the background music being played or what position one’s body is in? Meditation is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the act or process of spending time in quiet thought” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meditation). Meditation is just simply sitting in a quiet room and thinking about one’s life. The act of meditating is much simpler than many people think. Through deep concentration and relaxation, meditation becomes an altered state of consciousness.
OK. So you’ve heard, that meditation is beneficial for you, maybe you’ve read lists about the advantages of meditation. A ton of different kind of meditations are on-line, and you found several resources, articles, blog posts about the theme to select from. These articles state, that the meditation has countless benefits, which are also proven by scientific research. You can believe them, since eminent scientists carried out extensive research on this subject. And they suggest, you should try them, and of course you should practice it each day. Every day - or you won’t have those benefits.
What if there was a practice that took just twenty minutes a day to completely alter the way you feel, think and interact within your social and everyday activities? A woman from England was beaten, molested and suffered traumatically from her agonizing childhood; however, she claims meditation saved her live. She states it gave her inner peace and made every problem, every negative thought and every haunting memory disappear into every moment she spent focusing on herself. Meditation is more than a cultural fad, it is an altering practice that has proven benefits on the mind, body and soul.
Mindfulness is a concept or practice that was founded nearly 2600 years ago. It is a very integral component of the Buddhist faith and is believed to be associated with many benefits including self-control, tolerance, flexibility, objectivity, concentration, mental clarity, emotional intelligence, kindness, compassion, acceptance, and equanimity.
Growing up with a big brother four years older than me was one of the most challenging, frustrating, and greatest things from my early childhood and young adolescent life. His name is Matthew, and he can easily be compared to Ben Affleck or Howard Stern because he is extremely tall and spindly. Matthew was always scheming ways to hurt me, put me down, place me in trouble, or to use me to his benefits. As the little brother,I constantly felt pressured to meet his expectations of my actions, and, as a result, I became someone more daring than Evil Knievel and tougher than Rocky Balboa.
I grew up as a Southern Baptist. My family has always belonged to the same church and to this day my parents and my brother’s family still attend First Baptist Church in Forest City, North Carolina. One of the reasons Baptists are given this name is because they are not baptized as infants, but when they are old enough to understand the full concept of Jesus and the sacrifice He made for us. I accepted the Lord as my personal savior when I was thirteen and made a public profession of my faith by walking to the front of the church one Sunday morning. Many factors in the past have influenced my relationship with God and continue to do so daily.
By utilizing a set of research methods, that inducts different types of mindfulness meditation training programs, and advanced mindfulness practitioners to matched control, with a capitulation of detection that enhance our understanding of the nature of mindfulness. While providing insights that will help me to target symptoms and populations that are likely to benefit from mindfulness meditation
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). (2010). Health info. Meditation: An introduction. Retrieved from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm
changes/mindfulness habits have had such a profound effect on my well-being. The energy felt is
...ough meditation. If a person is practicing for physical benefits then they may practice Hatha yoga which incorporates strengthening and healing poses. Some will combine different types of yoga to fulfill both mental and physical aspirations. (Advaita Yoga Ashrama, 2012)
Both exercise and meditation have health benefits. Some take a structured exercise approach to wellness, while others grasp a more subtle meditative method. Many combine the two for strength, endurance, relaxation, and weight management. This article discusses the wellness benefits and an approach to beginning a meditation practice.