MIND OVER DISEASE

[Guest guest]

MIND OVER DISEASE

By Lisa Liddane

In the middle of the night, Dale Lecht-man wakes up, all kinds of thoughts

crowding sleep out of her mind. But Lechtman has an effective weapon to fight

her insomnia: meditation. Lying in bed, she focuses on breathing. She breathes

in deeply. Then she exhales through her nose and mouth slowly, as if she were

trying to make a feather float on her breath.

In time, the intrusive thoughts are no match for Lechtman's skills. They

disappear into the darkness, and finally the 62-year-old nurse is relaxed

enough to resume sleeping. Lechtman has found that secular meditation - the

deliberate quieting and focusing of the mind and body - can be beneficial to

her health. Indeed, as patients and doctors seek alternatives to medication to

treat illnesses, some are discovering that meditation can be strong medicine.

According to Dr. Roger Walsh, a professor of psychiatry at the University of

California, Irvine, more doctors have opened their minds to the idea of

meditation as complementary therapy. Walsh has published research on meditation

and teaches the practice as an elective to medical students.

Among the latest findings:

# A pilot study led by Walsh suggested that meditation is useful in

understanding the effects of anti-depressants and might be useful as

maintenance therapy for depression.

Researchers found that meditation, like anti-depressants, fostered a state of

equanimity - the ability to tolerate and not be disturbed by potentially

provocative or stimulating thoughts, events, encounters or experiences. The

study appeared recently in the Journal of Mental and Nervous Disorders.

# A study presented at a recent American Heart Association meeting found that

transcendental meditation, or TM, reduced the severity of risk factors in

metabolic syndrome. This syndrome is a collection of conditions, such as high

blood pressure and increased blood-sugar levels, that lead to heart disease.

People who practiced TM significantly decreased their levels of blood pressure,

blood sugar and insulin, said Dr. Noel Bairey Merz, study author and medical

director of the Preventive and Rehabilitative Cardiac Center at Cedars-Sinai

Medical Center in Los Angeles. Merz continues to study the effect of meditation

on heart disease.

# Preliminary results of a study on meditation and binge-eating disorder showed

that meditation can help people "reconnect" with their minds and bodies to

understand when to eat and when to stop.

Practical applications

Mindfulness meditation can help those with the disorder gain control over their

eating habits, said Jean Kristeller, professor of psychology and director of

the Center for the Study of Health, Religion and Spirituality at Indiana State

University in Terra Haute, Ind. Some meditators in hospital settings say the

turning point for meditation in medical practice came after 1975, when Harvard

University researcher Dr. Herbert Benson first wrote about the value of

meditation in treating illnesses in the book "The Relaxation Response."

Meditation already is an essential part of the Dr. Dean Ornish program for

reversing heart disease, which impressed Lechtman and her husband, Max.

This year, the Lechtmans took weekly beginner meditation classes taught by

Martha Jensen at UCI Medical Center in Orange. In these classes, Jensen teaches

a range of meditation techniques in sets of four weekly sessions. "Everything we

learn in meditation we can use in everyday life," Merz said. "As we strengthen

our concentration, we become less reactive to what's happening to everything

outside of ourselves."

It's important for beginners to be exposed to different types of meditation to

find one that's right for them, Jensen said. One person may find walking

meditation effective, while another may prefer to use a mandala, a symbol upon

which one concentrates. Some choose to chant a mantra or repeat a prayer or

word, such as peace or calm. A common mistake some novices make is to try a

type of meditation and not like it, then give up without experimenting with

other ways.

Not surprisingly, time - not motivation - is the biggest obstacle to maintaining

the practice of meditation, said Dr. Wadie Najm, associate professor of family

medicine at UCI. Longtime practitioners recommend meditating twice a day for 20

minutes each time. "It's not as quick as taking medication," said Najm, who has

recommended meditation to some patients. It requires a time commitment, much as

exercise does.

Rhymes with medication

Sometimes, meditation helps the body and mind so much that patients can reduce

their dosage of medications, such as drugs to reduce blood pressure or stress

and anxiety, Najm said. In a few cases, meditation has proved so effective that

it picks up where medication leaves off.

To maintain the state of equanimity that sometimes results from meditation,

meditators have to continue practicing throughout life. Even longtime

meditators are never completely rid of intrusive thoughts and distractions, but

with practice, are better able to deal with them, Walsh said.

"The biggest myth is that if one learns to meditate, one will never feel upset,"

Najm said. "We learn to develop a more accepting outlook, with less resistance

to life."

How to meditate

There are many ways to meditate. Here is one to try. If you are unable to

complete this for 20 minutes, do not worry. Relax and do as much as you can:

Choose a quiet place. Sit, as if on a throne, with dignity and stability. Allow

breath to move gently through your body. Let each breath be like a sigh,

bringing calmness and relaxation.

Be aware of what feels closed and constricted in your body, mind and heart. With

each breath, let space open up those closed-in feelings. Let your mind expand

into space. Open your mind, emotions and senses. Note whatever feelings,

images, sensations and emotions come to you.

Each time a thought carries you away, return to your sense of connection with

the Earth. Feel as if you were sitting on a throne in the heart of your world.

Appreciate moments of stability and peace. Reflect on how emotions, feelings and

stories appear and disappear. Focus on your body and rest for a moment in the

equanimity and peace. Sit this way for 10 minutes. Slowly stand up and take a

few steps, walking with the same awareness as when you were sitting.

Source: "The Meditation Year," by Jane Hope (Storey Books)

 

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