The hundreds of types of meditation share a key feature: they all involve keeping your attention on the present moment, often by sitting quietly and focusing on your breath or a mantra.
These days many doctors, even in America are prescribing meditation instead of medication as a cure for many disorders or conditions suffered by thousands of people. Researchers have found that meditation has great healing power in stress related problems, high blood pressure, chronic pain, anxiety disorders, headaches, PMS etc. Since premenstrual woes can be exacerbated by stress, using meditation to reduce tension can help a mod out of the dumps, says Dr. Geoffrey Redmond, director of The Hormone Center of New York. In one study Oming 15 to 20 minutes twice a day for three months cut women’s PMS symptoms by more than half. It was a patient who told Dr. Brian L. Weiss of her success with meditation; the technique helped her prevent colds and anxiety-induced stomach-aches. So he tried it.
“At first it was difficult to remain so focused, but once I dropped the concept of needing to progress, I felt great.”
says Dr. Weiss who runs a holistic medicine center in Miami.
“I even get fewer migraines.”
His patients benefit too. Dr. Weiss recently saw a woman who couldn’t tolerate chemotherapy.
“She meditated once a day for two months and he pain threshold went up so much that she could go back to chemo.”
he says. Because she was able to finish her treatment, she is now in remission.
So ready to try it? Any Yoga center will teach you meditation techniques. You can also check out Alternative Cure India (ACI), established by a former KEM doctor, Dr. Deepak Rao whose own multiple health conditions – a long-to-heal ligament tear, chronic peptic ulcers and ulcerative colitis let him to try out alternative therapies.
“Natural cures are driven by fundamental truth – that the human body has an innate capacity to heal on its own if it is allowed to do so.”
says Dr. Rao. ACI also offers classes in Qi Gong and Zen Meditation.
“These Chinese forms of meditation involve synchronizing breathing with Qi, i.e. universal energy,”
says Komal Mishra, who teaches at the institute. She claims her sessions have not only helped individuals suffering from heart diseases and stress but also aided couples embroiled in marital discord.
