10% Less Stress

Have you noticed that different people react to the same situation differently? I am going to use an (extreme) example…when one person is held at gun point, he may panic, get hysterical, etc. Another person held at gun point may remain calm and follow instructions so as not to give the person a reason to pull the trigger.

In our own lives, there are some aspects of our life that we handle a lot better than other aspects of our life. We might be better at dealing with coworkers than our own family members. Why is that so? It’s because all of us have different levels of threshold for different aspects of our lives. If our threshold is low, we are thrown in emotional turmoil.

So, how do we increase our levels of threshold to deal with whatever life throws our way? Experience is one. But it is not realistic to have the right kind of experience in all aspects of our lives. All the studies conducted by the Harvards and Oxfords of the world have scientifically proven that meditation by balancing the left and right hemispheres of the brain (an integrative brain), increases the thresholds of our mind.

In addition to other benefits, it definitely lowers our stress level. It helps us respond to situations instead of reacting. Can you see how helpful this can be at work! Fortunately, mediation has become mainstream, is generally seen as non-sectarian and doesn’t have a negative (Eastern mysticism) connotation.

There are different types of meditation. Some of them are:

• Mindfulness Meditation - on what is happening around you and being aware of your thoughts and feelings
• Breath Watching - watching and being aware of your breath during meditating
• Walking Meditation – concentrate on the movement of body parts and your breathing
• Transcendental Meditation – involves the chanting of a mantra, until a dream-like state of mind is attained
• Empty Mind Meditation – requires you to “empty” all your thoughts from your mind and allow it to rest, and allow a sense of peacefulness to take over
• Holosync – Uses binaural beats or sound waves to entrain the brain waves to get into meditative states

Like working out, people have preferences (I prefer lifting weights and yoga to doing cardio though I do Insanity a couple of times a year). Pick the one that works best for you…that way you will stick with it. Though I have done Mindful meditation (Vipassana), I found Holosync to be easier to practice (the nice feature of Holosync is that you pop on your head phones and listen to the beats and the brainwaves are entrained to get into these beneficial states. The key difference from traditional meditation is not having to focus for an extended period of time which can be difficult or chant mantras, sit in lotus position, etc.). Last summer, my kids started Transcendental Meditation (TM). To be able to guide them and answer questions, I learned TM too. It is relatively easy to practice.

Dr. Vincent Giampapa (Past-President of the American Board of Anti-Aging Medicine) studied the effects of holosync and was able to show

• Over 68% of participants increased their DHEA levels by about 47%. DHEA fights diseases.
• Melatonin (which helps create restful sleep) levels increased an average of 97.77%, in over 73% of the people.
• 68% of the people had their Cortisol (age-accelerating hormone) levels drop an average of 46.47%

There is a plethora of material related to meditation. A couple of books that I liked are:

• 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works--A True Story by Dan Harris… Loved Dan’s book and used a spin on his title for this article. The key was "meditation without losing your edge"...though I am convinced from personal experience that meditation helps, I'm still trying to find that extra edge:)
• Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises From The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. Teaches you to see the world in the present moment.

If you are looking for less stress and turmoil while keeping your edge, meditation can help. Remember that meditation is a powerful exercise to enhance brain function.