An 8-week Mindfulness-Oriented Meditation (MOM) course improved anxiety, depression, emotional exhaustion, psychological well-being, interoceptive awareness, and mindfulness in Italian female teachers during the Covid-19 lockdown. Teachers with low baseline resilience showed greater improvements in depression and psychological well-being than those with high resilience. The findings suggest mindfulness training can help mitigate pandemic-related psychological distress, especially for more vulnerable individuals.
Sleep paralysis affects about 7.6% of the general population, but among Polish university students in Lublin the rate is 32%, higher than the 28.3% average for other student populations. Somatic symptoms dominate: 94% of those reporting sleep paralysis experienced physical sensations, most commonly rapid heartbeat (76%); 93% reported fear, especially fear of death (46%); and 66% had hallucinations, mostly visual (37%). More frequent episodes were linked to shorter sleep and sleeping on the back. Severity of physical symptoms correlated with lifestyle factors and anxiety. A substantial number of students experience recurrent sleep paralysis accompanied by fear and physical distress.
A 30-year-old man with schizophrenia and a history of drug abuse was hospitalized with acute ischemia of his left arm—pallor, pulselessness, paresthesia, and motor deficit—after sublingual intake of a substance bought as 25I-NBOMe. Imaging showed reduced artery diameters and pathological flow profiles, suggesting vasospasm, distal thrombosis, or embolization. Intravenous alprostadil and anticoagulation led to symptom improvement within a day; five days of treatment restored normal perfusion. Drug analysis revealed 25I-NBOMe, 25C-NBOMe, 25H-NBOMe, and traces of pentylon. NBOMe ingestion carries a risk of severe, limb-threatening peripheral vasospasms.
Self-reports from meditation participants reveal how three distinct Viniyoga meditations, each using a different aspect of the ocean as a meditation object, can contribute to health and well-being. Yoga philosophy and anatomy models help explain participants' experiences and benefits. Four personal factors influence meditation outcomes: current life circumstances, the state of one's mind-body-breath system, reactions to meditation instructions, and prior experience with the meditation object. The authors, grounded in Viniyoga and yoga therapy, discuss why and for whom each meditation may be beneficial.