Meditation
In results released in January 2022, Americans ranked nurses as the most honest professionals for the 20th consecutive year. That’s pretty impressive. I believe a certain personality type is called to this field. Most nurses join the profession because it is their nature to help others. Admirable but who is helping the nurses? I would venture to guess that
most nurses would admit to feeling frazzled at work, skipping breaks (including potty breaks), and standing/walking/running their entire shift. Most nurses can relate to waking up in the middle of the night with a racing heart, wondering if they
remembered to give that medication or document that blood sugar. I wonder how many others have those dreams in which they have forgotten a patient altogether. As nurses, we are often called upon by family members for advice, we look at kid's boo boo’s, and we are often volunteered to help at schools/churches. Many of us have a malfunctioning “no” response button. If asked to do something, no matter how busy we are, let’s face it, we usually say yes. Living in uncertain times as we are today, how can we stay at our best for our patients? How can we help our families/friends? What about us?! How can we manage the stress of it all? How can we replenish ourselves as we reliably pour ourselves out to others?
Mindfulness has become quite the buzz word the last few years as more and more people are looking to meditation to calm the storm raging inside. Can something like meditation really help us or is it just a fad? The practice of meditating is rooted in a deep cultural history dating back to as early as 5,000 BCE. The practice has religious ties in ancient Egypt and China, as well as Judaism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and, of course, Buddhism. But it wasn’t until the 20th century that it began to move beyond the realm of specific religions, especially in the West. In recent decades, public interest in mindfulness meditation has soared and we are seeing more scientific attention as well. In fact, according to a 2017 survey, the percentage of adults who used some form of mindfulness meditation, or spiritual meditation tripled between 2012 and 2017, increasing from 4.1% to 14.2%. Hmmm, that’s interesting and all but we are medical people so we like data. The number of randomized controlled trials — the gold standard for clinical study — involving mindfulness has jumped from 1 in the period from 1995‒1997 to 11 from 2004‒2006, to a whopping 216 from 2013‒2015, according to a recent article. It is theorized that meditation is effective through the body’s parasympathetic response systems which controls physiological stress response. Helps manage Catecholamines and other stress hormones such as cortisol levels which in turn slows heart rates and improves blood flow. Other research shows certain types of meditation can impact the limbic system. US study for example, showed that a short course of behavior modification strategies that included meditation led to significantly fewer visits to physicians during the six months that followed. The savings were estimated at over $200 per patient”
The idea of meditation seems simple: Sit still, focus on breath, and reflect. Well that is certainly one method however there are many others.
Here are a few popular types of meditation:
● Mindfulness meditation: paying attention to your surroundings, your breath/body, thoughts ect
● Movement meditation: similar but involves focusing more on the body while in motion such as walking, jogging, or yoga.
● Mantra meditation: focusing on a word or phrase and repeating it, sometimes referred to as chanting.
● Loving-kindness meditation: involves mentally sending goodwill, kindness, and warmth towards others.
● Christian meditation: focusing on God through contemplation on His word.
10 Quick benefits to meditation:
● Reduced Stress
● Emotional Balance
● Increased Focus
● Reduced Pain
● Reduced Anxiety
● Increased Creativity
● Reduced Depression
● Increased Memory
● Increased Compassion
● Increased Productivity
If one were interested in learning all the benefits of meditation, they would definitely need to grab a snickers. Typing in the word “meditation” into google brings up about 682,000,000 results. There’s little argument that there is much to gain from giving ourselves some much needed time away from the grind of work, to do lists, our phones, and well…pretty much everything. With zero side effects or contraindications, meditation is definitely worth a try! Only have 5 minutes..? No problem. 5 is better than zero. Once stress levels begin to decrease, it’s easy to find a way to make it a habit. The cool thing is, it takes no skill and no special equipment. The only requirement is a willing spirit. Just about anything can be meditative: plunky wordless music while walking, listening to ocean waves while in a candle lit bath, even counting in your mind while inhaling for 4 and exhaling for 6. There are no limits to the possibilities. Anyone, of any age, and any physical ability can do it. Sometimes trying new methods just adds to the fun. Be bold…get creative…and reap the rewards!
Trish Beckman, RN
Owner/Founder of Casa Calm
Co-Collaborator of Guild of Wellness
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