Smith's findings also reveal that not only can relaxation go beyond stress management, but that different families of relaxation have different effects."--BOOK JACKET.
Meditation and mindfulness aren't easy. Most people quit, usually frustrated by problems concentrating -- the result of outdated, ritualized, dogma-based instruction. Here is a complete and practical guide that takes a groundbreaking new direction in the instruction of meditation and mindfulness. Over a decade of research at the Roosevelt University Stress Insitute has found that learning one type of meditation, meditation, or relaxation is not enough. Different approaches have different effects and work for different people. A balanced combination is more effective than a quick fix of one technique or ritual. In this program, the student first masters six foundation skills of yogaform stretching, muscle relaxation, breathing exercises, autogenics, and imagery. Then simple and fun instructions guide one through the adventure of developing a personally tailored relaxation and meditation program, one that is based on individual strengths and needs.
Clear guidance and effective techniques to tune out the distractions of the modern world—and find calm and contentment. Most of us have much more than our grandparents and great-grandparents did—more material wealth, consumer goods, advanced technology, abundant entertainment. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always make us happier and more content than they were. It can even have the opposite effect. In this simple, straightforward guide, Joel and Michelle Levey reveal their tools for leading a conscious life—a key to the kind of satisfaction that eludes us. Their technique allows readers to put aside distractions while gaining greater energy, health, and contentment. Mediating and relaxation isn’t about “losing your edge”—it’s about finding a new strength, deep within, that helps us think more clearly, act more calmly, and live more fully. This book teaches you how. Praise for Joel Levey and Michelle Levey: “A skillful blend of time-proven antidotes to the stress of modern life.” —Daniel Goleman, Ph.D., author of Emotional Intelligence “Evocative suggestions for making use of different ways to practice relaxation, concentration, and meditation. A real gem.” —Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D., author of Wherever You Go, There You Are
College Mindfulness Training is a ground-breaking book that carefully combines selected meditation exercises with guidance explaining the background, scientific context, and practical applications of mindfulness practice. More than just a meditation manual, this book details how and why personal mindfulness practice is essential for the college-aged student. In addition to extensive practical exercises for both beginner and intermediate-level meditation students, the author explores the kinds of institutions and organizations that have arisen out of the popular mindfulness movement and what career options in the field may be available in the future. Throughout the manual, the author provides readers with insights into basic meditation techniques; active and passive meditation techniques; Focused Attention Meditation in both guided and self-guided forms; Open Monitoring Meditation; informal meditation exercises; a brief history of the MBSR program and Koru meditation; a survey of current apps and meditation-supportive technology platforms; and detailed instructions for self-driven practice, and a semester-long outline for teachers. A captivating read, this book covers many of the essentials of mindfulness meditation and self-care of interest to college students, making it an essential tool for those of college age seeking to practice mindfulness meditation as well as college educators seeking a guided system to enhance their students’ emotional well-being and academic performance.
Break the cycle of anxious thinking and rumination that keeps you up at night. With this much-needed guide, you’ll learn to quiet your mind, relax your body, feel less tense, and finally get the sleep you need. Sleep plays a crucial role in our waking lives. While we sleep, our bodies are recharging with energy, damaged tissue is repaired, and our memories are stored. When we don't get enough sleep, we are tired, less positive, less motivated, less focused, and more likely to feel depressed. We may even experience more intense cravings for high-fat, sugar-rich foods. And yet, despite the myriad advantages of getting a good night's sleep, countless people suffer from chronic insomnia. If you’re one of them, this book can help. In this guide, a trained mindfulness expert teams up with a behavioral sleep specialist to offer evidence-based meditations and an innovative four-week protocol to address the emotional stresses and anxieties that lie at the root of sleep issues. You’ll learn practices grounded in mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), mindful self-compassion (MSC), and guided mindfulness and acceptance for insomnia (GMATI) to alleviate the mental, emotional, and physical suffering caused by insomnia. You’ll also learn to identify both internal and external factors that may be compromising your sleep, and develop a plan to address these issues. There is nothing we can do to “make” ourselves fall asleep. In many ways, this is why insomnia can be so maddening. But what we can do is help create the conditions necessary for healthy slumber. The mindfulness tools in this book will help you do exactly that.
Millions of people meditate daily but can meditative practices really make us ‘better’ people? In The Buddha Pill, pioneering psychologists Dr Miguel Farias and Catherine Wikholm put meditation and mindfulness under the microscope. Separating fact from fiction, they reveal what scientific research – including their groundbreaking study on yoga and meditation with prisoners – tells us about the benefits and limitations of these techniques for improving our lives. As well as illuminating the potential, the authors argue that these practices may have unexpected consequences, and that peace and happiness may not always be the end result. Offering a compelling examination of research on transcendental meditation to recent brain-imaging studies on the effects of mindfulness and yoga, and with fascinating contributions from spiritual teachers and therapists, Farias and Wikholm weave together a unique story about the science and the delusions of personal change.
A beautifully illustrated collection of mindfulness exercises for grounding, relaxation, and finding inner peace, from contemporary mystic Osho All of us have experienced moments of "coming home"--feeling relaxed, grounded, free of the restlessness that characterizes so much of our everyday lives. These moments can arise in nature or in the depths of an activity we enjoy, alone or together with people we love. They show us that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. The meditations in Coming Home to Yourself were selected from Osho's hundreds of public talks and intimate conversations. These passages are designed to be a companion on the journey toward transforming our rare moments of "at-home-ness" into an undercurrent that permeates all aspects of our lives. They offer guidance about meditation and specific techniques to try, insights into the habits that keep us tense and conflicted, and what life might look like if we recognize those habits and let them go. Exercises include activating your awareness, opening the heart, learning to relax and concentrate in order to reap the benefits of meditation, and freeing the brain from mental blocks. Featuring whimsical full color illustrations throughout, Coming Home to Yourself invites the reader to dip into the meditations at any point or read the book in sequence for a true homecoming experience.
World-renowned restorative yoga teacher Jillian Pransky came to the practice of yoga to heal herself. For much of her life, she subscribed to a relentless work hard/play hard mentality, burying parts of herself beneath the pursuit of busy-ness and accomplishment. It wasn’t until a devastating personal loss and health crisis thrust her into suffocating anxiety that she stopped racing around. As she began to pause and examine her actions and emotions, she found herself able to unlock deeply seated tension in her mind and body. Since then, Pransky has been devoted to studying and teaching mindfulness practices, deep relaxation, and compassionate listening. In Deep Listening, Pransky presents her signature Calm Body, Clear Mind, Open Heart program―a 10-step journey of self-exploration that she’s taught around the world. Derived from the techniques that healed her, the practice of Deep Listening invites you to pay close attention to your body, mind, and heart. You’re taught how to tune inward and relax into a state of openness, ease, and clarity. This is the new frontier in integrative wellness—mindfulness designed for healing. Pransky doesn’t ask you to “be your best self,” or “do more!” She asks you to “be here” and “do less.” She guides you gently through the stages of Deep Listening, from being present and noticing your tension to welcoming what you discover with softness and compassion. She integrates tools like guided meditations, journaling prompts, and restorative yoga poses to help you regard yourself with kindness and curiosity. Immersing yourself in the practice of Deep Listening will allow you to nurture your own well-being.
A lucid, practical guide to develop relaxation, awareness, mental clarity, and spiritual insight in your daily life. Since mindfulness is known to be so physically, mentally, and spiritually beneficial, why not practice it right now? Why not in every moment? Burmese Buddhist master Sayadaw U Tejaniya writes that we can indeed practice in this way, and the key is not forceful effort but rather a continuous gentle remembering of our intention to renew our awareness. Thirty-one short chapters--"A Month of Daily Life Meditations"--show precisely how to build a daily life meditation practice that steadily develops relaxation, refreshment, and enlightenment. "The right time to meditate is all day long, from the moment we wake up and open our eyes, until the moment we fall asleep at night," writes U Tejaniya. "If you are practicing correctly with right effort, it will definitely bring peace and joy."