Bill Riddell

No BS Meditation part 1

I’ve been meditating for about 7 years now and find the benefits innumerable. Among others I reduce stress and apprehension, ease pain, improve concentration, clear my mind when it is clouded with multiple thoughts and more.

Don’t just take my word for it though.

One respected study showed mediation can create positive changes in metabolism, heart rate, breathing and brain chemistry. MRI imaging has even proven meditation can actually rewire brain circuitry – powerful stuff.

The University of Massachusetts Medical School studied 41 stressed out high tech employees, some were taught mediation techniques over 8 weeks while the other employees continued daily life. Brain scans were complete at the beginning of the study, after the 8 weeks and then four months after that. Scans revealed those who learnt and practiced mediation had moved the bulk of their brain activity from the stressed out right frontal cortex to the calmer left side. They were noticeably calmer and happier than those who did not learn mediation.

A Taiwanese study in transcendental meditation showed increases in IQ, creativity and practical intelligence in practitioners.

Other forms of meditation are used to decrease pain (controlled breathing techniques are widely used to ease the pain of childbirth), lower blood pressure and more. A 1996 study published in The American Journal of Medicine even showed 100% of insomnia sufferers enjoyed improved sleep after practicing mediation.

A 1982 study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience showed mediation can even slow the aging process. Long term meditators (five years or more) had a physiological age that was on average 12 years younger than their chronological age. Short term meditators were typically 5 years younger. You never hear respected results like that from regular beauty treatments

My first introduction to meditation came while I was enduring what at the time was an unknown illness that left me debilitated for 18 months. During that time I became incredibly depressed, stressed about my future and, at my lowest point, was seriously contemplating suicide.

As part of a pain management program (whereby doctors give up trying to find a diagnosis or cure for you and instead try to teach you to ‘deal with it’) I saw a psychologist. After berating and insulting me for twenty minutes, she thought it would be nice to finish the session with a 10 minute guided meditation. After the previous 20 minutes my mind wasn’t exactly open to the experience and I didn’t notice any benefit.

I was highly skeptical of the practice but after exchanging emails with a girl who suffered from a similar affliction a few months later she mentioned that she received some strong benefits from meditation.

She described how it had calmed her distressed mind, as well as giving her some temporary relief from pain. She kindly gave me some brief instructions to the method she used.

My mind had been alternating between thoughts of sorrow, pity, suicide, anger, worry, pain, more anger, pain and worry before the cycle repeated again, 24 hours a day. I thought it was time for a change.

My first ten minute session was a welcome relief. For that period I was free, the pain slipped from my mind and with each deep calming breath all of the worries, anger and sadness left me. From that day on I was a convert – meditation has been vital a part of my daily life since.

I would encourage everyone to try it with an open mind. There is nothing to lose, no damage to be done and little if any cost. There is however plenty to potentially gain so give it a try.

Continue on to part 2 of this series, where I cover some of the many different techniques and practices and get you started meditating.