Emotional Health: In Nursing, What to Do When a Resident Feels Scared, Anxious or Excessively Worried

The nursing mission would mandate that, when appropriate, you should help the resident understand that fear and worries are appropriate responses in some situations and can even be life saving!

They serve a purpose in life, and become a problem only when they begin to interfere with one’s daily functioning. Here is a check-list that you can go through with the resident to help him/her get a handle on worries and fears.

 1.Rule out underlying physical causes.

  If the resident is experiencing excessive symptoms such as headaches, stomach upsets, rapid breathing and fast heart rate, have a physician rule out underlying medical causes that can mimic anxiety.

Some medications may produce side effects that are experienced as physical symptoms of anxiety. Discuss this with the resident’s health care provider.

Be aware of the resident’s daily caffeine consumption. Too much can cause symptoms of anxiety or make existing symptoms worse.  

  1. Check out the resident’s thoughts.

When s/he feels afraid or anxious, take a moment to ask him/her what s/he is afraid of. Ask the resident to what extent this perception matches reality. How realistic is it that the worst possible outcome will actually occur? Search for evidence and see if it supports the resident’s assumptions.

When the resident feels overwhelmed by waves of fear and worry, “Thought Stopping” is one way to help him/her deal with it.

Teach the resident to substitute the fearful thought with the word “STOP” and visualize a traffic sign if s/he needs to.

Many people find prayer useful in helping them cope with their worries. If prayer is a part of the resident’s tradition, it can serve as yet another way to still the mind when worries are rampant.

  1. Slowing down the resident’s bodily response to worries can be helpful.

In nursing, one can teach the resident to pay attention to his/her breathing when s/he feels anxious or fearful. Teach and show him/her how to take deep, full and slow breaths that will help to return a sense of calm.

  1. Exercising as a way to ease tension can help.

Teach the resident that engaging in physical activity can help diffuse tension and also serve as a momentary distraction from it.

This is especially useful if s/he finds that thought stopping and slow breathing are not enough to help him/her feel calmer.

Physical activity need not be strenuous for it to have positive effects. Activity can include anything from walking, to vacuuming, to knitting, to dancing.

Teach the resident how to modify the movements in order to fit them within his/her range of abilities. With a little bit of thought and creativity, it is possible to come up with activities that can be adapted to his/her situation.

  1. Develop a response plan that you and the resident can put into action when needed

If the feelings persist, help the resident “map” their occurrence. Are there particular situations where s/he is more prone to such feelings and reactions?

The more one knows about his/her pattern of anxiety or worry, the better equipped one will be to overcome it.

Once a pattern has been identified, you and the resident can come up with a coping plan, which includes calming self-talk, challenging negative assumptions and taking deep breaths. These can be helpful alone, or used in combination.

Remind the resident that the next time s/he has these feelings, to remember the plan and ask for help to follow it.

The regular practice of meditation can be useful in this respect, as it helps to slow down rapid breathing and fast heart beats. It also helps to clear the mind, which often gets worked up when a person is worried.

  1. Tap into resident strength in times of real need

Teach him/her to remember that many times the worst things we expect to happen never do; and if something terrible does happen, it is quite likely that s/he will cope and go on. People have untapped reserves of strength that they are generally not aware of.

Finding a balance between reality and worries.

Life is to a certain extent uncertain, and we have to accept that. In nursing, one knows that the key to managing anxiety is to find the balance between reality, fears and worries.

Teach the resident to stay focused on this balance and not to give in to excessive negative thoughts.

  1. Seeking help

If the problem persists and is severe enough to disrupt his/her normal functioning, nursing protocol would require that you make a referral to a mental health professional or physician.

Effective treatment in the form of medication and cognitive therapy can be helpful in bringing relief.

If you or one of your family member is disabled and in need of an easy and portable ways to shower, check out the products and models on Fawssit’s website.

Making pizza on a barbecue grill

a-fresh-homemade-mushroom-and-pepper-pizza-fresh-out-of-the-oven-and-ready-to-slice-shallow-depth-of-field

It’s summer and no one wants to heat up the kitchen by having the oven on at 450 degrees. But sometimes you want a pizza, and chances are the pizza you make yourself will be better than a pizza that you can get delivered. If you need new ideas for your next pizza, then check out BC Pizza.

Cooking a pizza on a barbecue grill isn’t hard, but there is some technique involved. And which method works best for you depends on what kind of grill you have.

As a rule, you’ll be able to use all your favorite pizza toppings. But since it’s summer, lighter toppings such as shrimp or chicken may be more enjoyable.

If you have a gas grill with a lid, it’s a little easier, because you have more control over the temperature and the flames. But charcoal adds more flavor. You can add some wood chips soaked in wine to the coals for extra smokiness.

Before you get started, brush the grill with some oil so your pizza dough won’t stick. Once you roll out your pizza dough, you’ll want to put it on the grill before you put on the pizza toppings, so you need to plan how to transfer it.

You can put some corn meal on a pizza paddle or peel and use that to transfer the dough onto the grill. Another alternative which works really well is to roll out your pizza dough on waxed paper or parchment. Brush some olive oil on the dough, season it with some garlic powder, a little freshly grated Parmesan, and herbs, then take it out to the grill, lay it face down on the grill, and peel off the paper.

Cook the dough on one side until it gets golden brown. Depending on how hot the barbecue is, this might only take a couple of minutes. It may get charred in a few places, but that’s okay. Once it’s done, turn it over and add your pizza toppings.

Make sure all the ingredients are well drained so your crust gets nice and crisp.

You’ll need to keep an eye on things so your pizza doesn’t burn. If you’re using toppings that take a while to cook, such as onions or peppers, you may want to pre-cook them. That way, your pizza will be ready when the cheese is melted and all the ingredients are heated through.

If your grill is big enough, you can also place a pizza stone or pizza pan in the grill, preheat it, and then transfer an already topped pizza to the stone and cook it as you would in a conventional oven. This will produce a pizza that‘s similar to what you‘d get using an oven. So the main advantage to this method is that you won’t heat up the kitchen.

 

Rustic Vegetarian Pizza Recipe

rustic-vegetarian-pizza

Rustic style meal recipes are in great demand, and rustic style pizzas are favorites for delicious products which combine healthier, better quality ingredients to bring back the natural flavor of foods, pizzas included, without the heaviness and prompter fullness achieved thanks to meat toppings. Rustic pizzas with whole wheat crust are definitely healthy owing to the whole wheat flour and vegetables used, and healthwise they are great solutions for a lunch or dinner, or for a tasty snack. Furthermore, vegetarian pizzas are in conformity with a lot of diets, and they comply with a number of diet friendly rules which tend to bypass meat as a less healthy ingredient.

 

Rustic vegetarian pizzas are easy to prepare, typically with a thin, golden crust, minimally or lavishly topped with vegetarian ingredients, with more or less cheese, according to taste.

 

Numerous vegetables can be combined on a rustic pizza with a whole wheat crust. Mandatory pizza toppings components such as olives, especially kalamata olives, and different kinds of cheese complement the ensemble on top of healthy whole wheat pizza crusts. Vegetables such as locally grown onions, broccoli, cauliflower, boiled potatoes, etc. are welcome on top of a rustic whole wheat vegetarian pizza. Goat cheese can add the final touch to deliciousness.

 

Fans of zucchini, as well as buffs of loads of garlic can include their favorite ingredients for their variety of rustic vegetarian pizza, and tomatoes are another staple in pizza toppings that appropriately complement vegetarian combinations. When fresh tomatoes are in short supply, sun dried tomatoes are a good substitute.

 

Besides the other advantages of rustic vegetarian pizza with whole wheat crust, there is the indubitable advantage of being able to use random amounts and combinations of vegetables, according to the products currently available at home, or according to the season and the availability of vegetables on the local market. Of course, the rustic vegetarian pizza taste will vary according to the combinations, which is yet another benefit that attracts pizza lovers always ready to welcome variety in pizza taste.

 

Pizza sauce can also contribute to the overall deliciousness of rustic vegetarian pizzas. Light and tomatoey sauce is a good basis for a mixture of vegetables topping the pizza crust. Fresh vegetables blend attractively with the sauce, and when fresh vegetables are not widely available, frozen ones can substitute them for a vegetarian delicacy.

 

PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes

 

COOKING TIME: 10 – 12 minutes

 

INGREDIENTS:

  • Whole wheat pizza crust
  • Kalamata olives, shredded
  • Onions, shredded or cut in rings
  • Broccoli
  • Cauliflower
  • Boiled potatoes
  • Any other vegetables available
  • Goat cheese
  • Olive oil for sprinkling the pizza crust

 

PREPARATION:

  1. Put the whole wheat pizza crust in a pizza pan.
  2. Drizzle the crust with olive oil.
  3. Arrange a preferred amount of olives and vegetables on the crust.
  4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the crust becomes crisp and the vegetables become slightly brown. Using a proper Californo oven will improve the result of the crust.
  5. Leave the pizza to cool, slice up and serve.

 

Measuring the Internet Brand Effect

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make any noise? Or, reworded for this audience: When a banner ad is served and no one clicks on it, does it have any effect?

Until recently, the answer would be a collective shrug. But with strides in the ad serving arena happening on a weekly basis, a number of firms have released tools that now capture the true return on investment when measuring brand effect on the Internet.

What Exactly An Advertiser Measures

People believe that about one in every 100 ads are clicked on (a number which is actually closer to three) and either lead to a sale or not. The question then becomes: What happened to the other 99 ad views, or impressions, that were purchased?

Most ads are seen and never acted on in any capacity. But we now can measure which ads were seen, never clicked on, but eventually led to a sale.

Say That Again?

Let’s say you go to a site, you see a banner ad for a product that may interest you, but you don’t feel like clicking on it. The next day you are back on the Net and you decide that you want to buy that product you saw in the banner ad. So you type in the URL, go to the site, and buy the product.

Today, this brand effect is measurable. An advertiser can now attribute the sale of a product to a specific ad served that was never clicked on.

Expanding Your ROI Analysis

In the past, conversion rates of sales from click-through were the single factor in determining the success or failure of your Internet advertising return on investment. Today, a new conversion model is being instituted. Not only can we be concerned with sales from clicks, but also sales from ad views.

So Let’s Not Get Out Of Hand

Of course if an ad is viewed, not clicked on for two months, and then that same person visits the site and purchases the product, the sale should not be attributed to the brand effect of the ad served. Shelf life for any ad program must be taken into account. A tight timeframe must be decided on when implementing a brand effect measurement program. Giving undue credit to any ad campaign will only hurt the overall ROI model.

What Effect Will This Have

The greatest effect will be the further justification of the ad dollar being spent online. It will allow marketing directors, media planners, and anyone else who is accountable for the performance of Internet based ad plans to claim a greater stake in the number of product sales resulting from dollars spent in online advertising.

After this, if you want to know more about branding, advertising and SEO, click here.

New Technology for the Disabled

From wheelchairs to pens, new and innovative technologies from all over the world are helping to improve the lives of the disabled.

People without disabilities sometimes take a lot for granted, things as simple as taking notes in class or a meeting or dancing. Thanks to new technologies from all over the world, simple, everyday tasks are becoming easier for people with disabilities.

Innovative New Wheelchairs

Toyota and researchers in Japan have developed a wheelchair that users can control and maneuver with thought alone.

Electroencephalography (EEG), or brain-wave detecting technology, isn’t new. Scientists have been working with it for years. The simplest explanation of how EEG works is that a device, usually a cap or hat, that has been wired with sensors detects a person’s brain waves and feeds them to a computer. The computer instantly analyzes the data and applies to the device in question.

Plans are underway by Toyota to make this new brain-wave controlled wheelchair a commercial product to be used in rehabilitation centers. The most practical use, as of right now, for this wheelchair is for rehab patients who have been paralyzed or otherwise lost their muscle control.

A collaboration between the theater/dance and engineering departments at the University of South Florida has resulted in the development of a hands-free wheelchair for dance.

A professor from the school’s dance department came up with the idea for the chair four years ago while dancing with a mixed-ability dance company. She realized that standard wheelchairs aren’t built for dancing. She approached the school’s center for assistive and rehabilitation robotics technologies and they began work on the hands-free chair.

The chair essentially turns the user’s body into a joystick. Sensors attached to a bracketing system underneath the seat detect the user’s movements and steer the chair.

The university has received a patent and students are now working on a new prototype that they hope can be sold commercially.

Other Technologies are Helping the Disabled

The Pulse SmartPen is helping students and professionals who have limited writing ability to take better class notes and capture meetings.

Users of the SmartPen generally take short notes on the special paper that accompanies the pen. When the user taps on the note, the pen will sync to that portion of the audio recording. The SmartPen has the ability to record up to 400 hours of audio. The device has a USB plug to connect to your computer, giving it the ability to instantly transfer the recording to your desktop.

The Weizmann Institutes scientists in Israel have published a study that shows that people with “locked in” syndrome and others in similar situations can communicate and control a wheelchair by sniffing.

These scientists theorized that people who could no longer control their bodies can still control their soft palate- the tissue that is located in the back of the mouth roof which is closing off the nasal passage when swallowing.  They have created a device that is measuring the nasal pressure and it’s turning into an electrical signal.

When this device was hooked up to a word-processing program, few “locked in” people were enabled to communicate. Being wheelchair hooked up, quadriplegics were enabled to learn to control it with a series of sniffs.

There are limitations to sniff technology. Not everyone will be able to use it. About 25% of the healthy volunteers who initially tried the technology were unable to control their soft palate. Communicating with this technology is also still incredibly slow at a few letters per minute.

Individualized Supports Info Center

NYSACRA’s strategic plan calls for exploration of new service paradigms as part of its overall goal to shape the industry, by helping agencies to develop individualized services and supports.  NYSACRA participates in a variety of activities to help make quality, customer-directed supports available to more people with developmental disabilities.

  • Learning Institute
  • Individualized Shared Living
  • Stakeholder Collaboration
  • Self Advocacy

Most Common Eye Diseases Revealed

Most Common Eye Diseases Revealed

Millions of  people all over the globe suffer from eye diseases. Some of these conditions, when caught early are easily treatable with the proper combination of drugs as well as other corrective measures. The leading cause of blindness is primarily age-related eye conditions such as cataract, macular degeneration, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.

Refractive Errors

Refractive errors, for example, myopia, astigmatism and hyperopia are the most often occurring eye diseases. They occur mostly in individuals aged between 40-50 years old, however, they can affect anyone 12 years or older. It can be corrected through the use of eyeglasses, contact lenses, and for severe cases, surgery.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a condition that results from aging and it damages central and sharp vision. AMD affects the central part of the retina called the macular which enables you to see very fine details. Surgery is usually prescribed especially for wet AMD if caught early.

Cataract is the number one cause of blindness in the entire world. It is the clouding of the eye lenses and it can occur at any age. Treatment for cataract is widely and easily available, however most people ignore it because of lack of insurance or due to lack of awareness. Those who aren’t thrilled to wear prescription eyeglasses or aren’t ready for cataract surgery, clear vision can also be achieved through the use of exceptionally comfortable disposable contact lenses.

Glaucoma is defined as a group of eye diseases that progressively damage the eye’s optic nerve leading to blindness. Treatment is quite possible if the disease is caught early, especially with the open angle glaucoma which develops tardily and over a long period of time.

Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is a complication of diabetes that is quite common. It is classified as damage to the retina that progresses slowly in four stages leading to blindness. The risks of getting DR can be mitigated by ensuring that you control your blood sugar and blood pressure level. Early diagnosis and treatment can mitigate the risk of vision loss.

Below is an explainer video about refractive errors.

To avoid permanent loss of vision due to the above mentioned eye diseases, you should consider visiting an ophthalmologist or optometrist. An ophthalmologist is a medical doctor specialized in surgical as well as medical care of the eye while an optometrist is an eye care professional specialized in refractive and primary medical care of the eye.

Most Common Eye Diseases Revealed - Color Contact Lenses

Both can answer your questions and address your concerns about prescription eyewear. They can also recommend corrective contact lenses that compliment natural eye color.

Service Dogs Assist Handicapped in Many Ways

Dogs can be trained to perform a multitude of tasks to assist their disabled owners. Many trainers rescue mixed-breed shelter dogs.

Once used only as guide dogs for the blind, service dogs now assist not only sight-impaired owners, but individuals with impaired hearing, mobility issues, autism, seizures, and a wide variety of other disabilities, including psychiatric disorders. These working dogs provide invaluable assistance to their owners.

Assist Dogs Come in Many Breeds

Working service dogs range in size from massive Saint Bernards to tiny Teacup Terriers. Although some types of assistance require a larger dog’s weight and strength, temperament and intelligence count more than size in many cases. Mixed-breed and pure breed dogs alike can be good candidates for service dog training.

Service Dog Training

Many organizations and business, as well as individuals, specialize in training assistance dogs. Owners, often referred to as handlers, may train a service dog for their own use, but the majority of service dogs are professionally trained, then matched to an owner.

A dog selected for assistance training is usually less than 3 years of age and is seldom already owned by the individual who will use the dog after its training period. Sometimes referred to as A-Dogs, candidates for such training must possess friendly, confident personalities; have high intelligence, a desire to perform the tasks for which it is trained, and sufficient energy to work all day, every day.

Trained to Assist Special Needs Individuals

According to Dogs For The Deaf, a dog trained to assist someone who is hearing impaired alerts it’s owner/handler to such noises as a doorbell or telephone ringing, a teakettle boiling, a microwave or kitchen timer beeping, an alarm buzzing, and many other noises that require the owners attention, or ensure their safety.

Individuals with balance or mobility issues benefit from having a dog specially trained to assist them in tasks they cannot perform alone. From helping a Parkinson’s patient stay upright by becoming a counterweight when that person starts to fall to fetching a dropped item for a severely arthritic owner, service dogs help their owners cope with disabilities.

Children suffering from autism often respond to service dogs, and social therapy dogs can provide emotional support for individuals with psychiatric disorders.

More Service Dog Tasks

In addition to the tasks mentioned above, service dogs are often trained to perform such tasks as:

  • Bringing a ringing phone or headset to their owner.
  • Signalling when stairs or other obstacles are in their owners’ path.
  • Turning lights on or off.
  • Opening or closing a door, even unlocking locked doors.
  • Making a 911 call via specially adapted equipment.
  • Getting human assistance and leading rescuers to a stranded or injured owner.
  • Pushing or pulling a wheelchair or wagon.
  • Carrying packages or parcels.
  • Alerting deaf parents when their babies are crying or their children are in danger.
  • Assisting owners with dressing or grooming tasks.
  • Alerting others when the owner has suffered a seizure.
  • Countless other specific tasks to assist owners with a variety of physical, mental, and emotional needs.

Service Dogs Are Not Pets

While the bond between a service dog and its owner may become deep, others should remember the dog is a working animal and must be treated as such. Their job is to remain focused on their owner’s needs and safety, and any distraction could endanger that person. Service dogs, however lovable, should never be fed, petted, or talked to without their owner’s permission. They are highly skilled, on-duty, working dogs.

Tips for Caregiver and Parent Attending Disability Meetings

Attending meetings is one of the many unpaid jobs that caregivers of disabled individuals face. Be prepared to get results with these seven tips. Attending a meeting on behalf of a disabled individual is a daunting task. Annual meetings are held to determine services, reevaluate educational goals, discuss results of evaluations or to decide on a course of treatment. These meetings are often very hard on caregivers (parents) as they can directly impact the course of both the lives of the individual and caregiver. Sadly, caregivers often express that they feel like helpless victims to the actions of everyone else in the room. However, with proper preparation, like using the tips listed in this article, caregivers can view these meetings as opportunities to engage professionals to obtain a better quality of life for the individual experiencing a disability. Every disability meeting is important. Treat each and every meeting like a business appointment with serious consequences because that is precisely what these meetings are. Thoroughly review any paperwork that was made available for review prior to the meeting. Dress for the meeting thoughtfully. If professional dress is required of the meeting’s participants it is for the caregiver as well. Know the purpose of each meeting. Many meetings involving caregivers are fairly pro-forma but this is not always the case. If the meeting has a title, know what it is. Special education and disability service agencies use many acronyms and abbreviations and they can be quite confusing. Ask for definitions of terms until their meaning is clear. Know who is running the disability meeting. Everyone in the room has an agenda that may or may not be obvious to the caregiver. Ask for an introduction of everyone in the room and a small explanation of the services they provide to the individual. Before the meeting, skim any paperwork provided and match people with their respective paperwork. Avoid writing down information that is readily available in material provided at the meeting. Know the purpose documents before you sign! It is never advisable to sign any paperwork that has not been reviewed and more importantly understood. Treat every paper that is signed as a legal document with far reaching consequences. Stay on topic at the meeting. Caregivers tend to become overwhelmed at meetings and sometimes feel that other professionals over simplify the needs of the individual. Do not waste time discussing matters that are not germane to the meeting. The goal is a productive meeting not a pity party. The individual with a disability should be present at the meeting. Whenever possible, bring the individual with the disability to these meetings. Nothing keeps the focus on the individual more than the actual person who precipitated the meeting. Many times, the participants in the meeting have had almost no contact with the individual so having the individual physically in the same room can be quite an enlightening experience. Be gracious and polite to everyone at the meeting. People work in the disability services industry because they want to help people. No matter how constrained budgets become or understaffed a facility is, no one wants to watch an individual with a disability suffer. These meetings may be contentious but no matter what was said in the room, a parent or caregiver should thank each person individually for his/her time. Attendance of annual meetings is just one of the many unpaid jobs that parents and caregivers of disabled individuals are faced with. Although the meetings’ outcomes are not always what caregivers want, they can improve their opportunities for success with a little preparation. When caregivers view themselves as active participants in their individuals' future, everyone on the treatment team benefits.Attending a meeting on behalf of a disabled individual is a daunting task. Annual meetings are held to determine services, reevaluate educational goals, discuss results of evaluations or to decide on a course of treatment. These meetings are often very hard on caregivers (parents) as they can directly impact the course of both the lives of the individual and caregiver.

Sadly, caregivers often express that they feel like helpless victims to the actions of everyone else in the room. However, with proper preparation, like using the tips listed in this article, caregivers can view these meetings as opportunities to engage professionals to obtain a better quality of life for the individual experiencing a disability.

Every disability meeting is important.

Treat each and every meeting like a business appointment with serious consequences because that is precisely what these meetings are. Thoroughly review any paperwork that was made available for review prior to the meeting. Dress for the meeting thoughtfully. If professional dress is required of the meeting’s participants it is for the caregiver as well.

Know the purpose of each meeting.

Many meetings involving caregivers are fairly pro-forma but this is not always the case. If the meeting has a title, know what it is. Special education and disability service agencies use many acronyms and abbreviations and they can be quite confusing. Ask for definitions of terms until their meaning is clear.

Know who is running the disability meeting.

Everyone in the room has an agenda that may or may not be obvious to the caregiver. Ask for an introduction of everyone in the room and a small explanation of the services they provide to the individual. Before the meeting, skim any paperwork provided and match people with their respective paperwork. Avoid writing down information that is readily available in material provided at the meeting.

Know the purpose documents before you sign!

It is never advisable to sign any paperwork that has not been reviewed and more importantly understood. Treat every paper that is signed as a legal document with far reaching consequences.

Stay on topic at the meeting.

Caregivers tend to become overwhelmed at meetings and sometimes feel that other professionals over simplify the needs of the individual. Do not waste time discussing matters that are not germane to the meeting. The goal is a productive meeting not a pity party.

The individual with a disability should be present at the meeting.

Whenever possible, bring the individual with the disability to these meetings. Nothing keeps the focus on the individual more than the actual person who precipitated the meeting. Many times, the participants in the meeting have had almost no contact with the individual so having the individual physically in the same room can be quite an enlightening experience.

Be gracious and polite to everyone at the meeting.

People work in the disability services industry because they want to help people. No matter how constrained budgets become or understaffed a facility is, no one wants to watch an individual with a disability suffer. These meetings may be contentious but no matter what was said in the room, a parent or caregiver should thank each person individually for his/her time.

Attendance of annual meetings is just one of the many unpaid jobs that parents and caregivers of disabled individuals are faced with. Although the meetings’ outcomes are not always what caregivers want, they can improve their opportunities for success with a little preparation. When caregivers view themselves as active participants in their individuals’ future, everyone on the treatment team benefits.

Meditation for a Healthier and Happier Life

Meditation and HealthMeditation has been proven in hundreds of unrelated scientific studies across the globe to have significant benefits to health, happiness, learning, creativity, and elimination of stress, anger, and substance abuse.

Health Benefits of Meditation

Meditation offers many health benefits for all types of ailments and diseases, including both physical and psychological ailments. Some of the positive effects of meditation include stress reduction, increased feelings of inner peace and great joy, improved personal and professional relationships, original creative ideas, and reduction of the biological aging processes by about ten years.

Sources of more detailed material include many publications including books, magazines, websites with both text and video health data which are too numerous to list and are continually increasing. Meditation has been shown to be an important part of prevention and cure of diseases.

Meditation improves immunity and memory functions, increases air flow to the lungs, decreases high blood pressure, removes depression, anxiety, and anger, especially in older individuals and people with disabilities. It can also greatly increase other positive changes in personality and in the user’s spiritual life.

Silent meditation easily eliminates harmful stress which can cause not only problems with health but also in every other aspect of life. The meditation replaces stress and negative problems with joy and happiness, inner peace, and positive solutions. After getting accustomed to it, meditation can even be used with eyes open and within minutes, but is best used as instructed, especially when first learning to meditate.

Scientific Findings About How Meditation Works

Levels of the healthy hormones, including the anti-aging hormone DHEA, (dehydroepiandrosterone) produced by the adrenal glands greatly increases during meditation. Dehydroepiandrosterone is released while in the delta brainwave state of 4-8 cps (cycles per second), and thus is rarely significantly increased unless increased through meditation. Dehydroepiandrosterone is significantly decreased in the body by about age 30 and continues to diminish with advancing age.

If an individual suffers from serious disease, such as immune system problem, some forms of cancer, or illnesses such as osteoporosis, etc, DHEA levels will be extremely low regardless of age. Just as the systemic levels of oxygen and alkalinity are low in individuals with serious diseases, and high in healthy individuals, low or high DHEA levels also reveal and determine immune function and physiological age.

Other hormones that increase during meditation include the natural painkiller endorphins; the antioxidant sleep-aid melatonin; serotonin which influences happiness, headaches and anxiety; growth hormone HGH which also protects against muscle loss, obesity, and brittle bones.

In addition to increasing levels of healthy hormones, meditation also reduces levels of cortisol and adrenaline hormones that are associated with increased risks of heart attacks, strokes, and pulmonary embolisms.

Blood clotting problems also affects the ability of cancer to metastasize and can cause other cancer complications. These serious health risks need to be monitored by a physician. Regular check ups with a physician, and meditation, healthy dietary habits and exercise can ensure that the essentials of maintaining health are addressed.

Meditation is one of the most effective methods of reducing stress

Meditation improves health, happiness, concentration, perception, and causes the brain to have a more positive outlook. Meditation shows the user how to learn from negative situations to help others, and how to easily improve his or her own personal life also.

Other results of meditation include significant elimination of addictions to illegal drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Meditation has proven more effective than standard treatments at reducing addictions to substance abuse. When using meditation for treatment, the relapse rate with traditional methods of treatment is replaced by even more improvement over time.

Meditation can help anyone who is willing to give the small amount of time it takes to completely relax for about ten minutes twice a day. It does take some time to learn to set aside ten or 20 minutes to completely relax but it is definitely worth the minutes spent. Considering meditation is such a flexible activity and reduction of stress can be achieved in just twenty minutes per day, meditation becomes a very valuable aid for improving every aspect of life.

Here is a 20-minute guided mindfulness meditation to help you make meditation a daily habit.