Meditation
Photo by Jyotirmoy Gupta on Unsplash
Meditation is the practice of quieting the mind by slowing down and distancing yourself from your thoughts. By eliminating the busy thoughts crowding your mind, you’re better able to eliminate stress and just focus on the present moment. This provides a sense of calm, peace and balance.
Benefits of regular meditation include: (i) reduced stress, anxiety and the negative effects that both have on the body, (ii) stronger immune system, (iii) increased levels of antibodies and melatonin, (iv) regulation of harmful emotions, and (v) the ability to turn on healthy genes while turning off unhealthy genes associated with disease.
There are many types of meditation, including but not limited to guided/visualization, mantra, mindfulness, transcendental, gratitude, Qi gong, Tai Chi, yoga and yoga nidra. With so many options, enjoy the experience of trying different ones and find the method that works best for you.
As with any type of full wellness support, it is important to fully research and form your own opinion on whether meditation is right for you in partnership with a qualified healthcare professional. Below are some resource links to help you get started.
Informative Articles
By Erin Easterly
Explains the 5 ways meditation could reduce your risk of cancer: (i) counteracting the effects of stress, (ii) lengthening telomere strands, (iii) increasing melatonin, (iv) regulating harmful emotions and (v) consciously making healthful choices.
https://chopra.com/articles/5-ways-meditation-may-reduce-your-risk-of-cancer
Provides information on 3 different types of meditation: mindfulness, non-directive and concentrative.
https://www.healthline.com/health/breast-cancer/meditation-for-cancer#1
By Prudence Sinclair
Discusses how meditation helps us to replace our body's constant "fight or flight" mode with "rest and digest" and covers 5 different types of meditation: transcendental meditation, heart rhythm meditation, guided visualization, Qi Gong and mindfulness.
http://berniesiegelmd.com/2019/08/meditation-can-heal-cancer/
By Hari Sharma
A scientific article on meditation and its health benefits.
Insight Timer
Thousands of guided meditations and talks from the world's top meditation and mindfulness experts, neuroscientists, psychologists and teachers with 10+ new guided meditations added daily. Includes music tracks and ambient sounds to help you relax, discussion groups, community features and the ability to track your personal meditation progress. Free with optional in-app purchases.
Guided meditation and mindfulness techniques for daytime and bedtime use. The app builds personalized plans based on your input, so you can learn the essentials of meditation and build from there. One- or two-week free trial, before having to pay for an annual/monthly subscription.
Meditation Apps
Guided Meditations
There are many guided meditations available online for little to no cost. Please use the list below as a starting point to find the ones that work best for you. We will continue to update this list with additional guided meditations recommended by our Connect4Hope community members.
Full Disclosure: Connect4Hope has an affiliate marketing relationship with Amazon.com
Healing Meditations
By Dr. Bernie Siegel
Dr. Bernie Siegel is a physician who has been at the vanguard of the patient empowerment movement for over twenty years. These free meditations restore the hope and optimism that is innate within each one of us.
Meditation #1 - 15 minutes long
Meditation #2 - 23 minutes long
Infinite Possibilities Meditations
By Dr. Joe Dispenza
Meditation #1 - 18 minutes long
Meditation #2 - 32 minutes long; meditation begins at 2:38
Meditation #3 - 35 minutes long, meditation begins at 7:00
By Dr. Joe Dispenza
While long, Dr. Joe Dispenza's guided meditations can be incredibly powerful. If you can devote an hour to practicing his meditations, we highly recommend them. To fully understand the concepts behind these meditations, we recommend reading some of Dr. Dispenza's books.
Dr. Michael Sealey
This is a hypnosis meditation that is great to do in the evening as it can help you fall asleep.
By Mind Set
Another hypnosis meditation better enabling your mind to focus on your cells healing your body.
Yoga Nidra Meditations
By Natalie Holland
A couple of Yoga Nidra meditations recorded and shared by Natalie Holland, a member of our Connect4Hope community.
By Diana Winston, UCLA Health
Full Disclosure: Connect4Hope has an affiliate marketing relationship with Amazon.com