Acute and chronic environmental and psychosocial stress contributes to the pathogenesis and progression of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Stress reduction via Transcendental Meditation (TM)® has been shown to lower blood pressure (BP) levels and reduce CVD risk in adults and adolescents. This article reviews recent findings indicating a beneficial BP-lowering impact of TM in hypertensive adults...
La atención plena o “mindfulness” hace referencia al estado mental en el que la conciencia (yo observador) se instala en el momento presente y se abre al fluir de la experiencia en su estado emergente. Es una habilidad psicológica que, al igual que aprender a tocar el piano, requiere práctica. Históricamente, ha sido cultivada en las tradiciones contemplativas y, en la actualidad, ha emergido...
El mindfulness puede entenderse como atención y conciencia plena, como presencia atenta y reflexiva a lo que sucede en el momento actual. Pretende que la persona se centre en el momento presente de un modo activo, procurando no interferir ni valorar lo que se siente o se percibe en cada momento. Como procedimiento terapéutico busca, ante todo, que los aspectos emocionales y cualesquiera otros...
BACKGROUND: The metabolic syndrome is thought to be a contributor to coronary heart disease (CHD), and components of the syndrome have been identified as possible therapeutic targets. Previous data implicate neurohumoral activation related to psychosocial stress as a contributor to the metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of transcendental meditation (TM) on...
This essay challenges the common conception that biomedicine operates by separating the mind from the body, and by attending to the biological rather than spiritual. In actual practice, there are practical and strategic concerns that bring the spiritual into play. This is because, at least in the case of chronic illnesses, clinicians cannot simply fix bodies; they must create partnerships with...
The purpose of this article is to (1) provide a comprehensive over view and discussion of mindfulness meditation and its clinical applicability in oncology and (2) report and critically evaluate the existing and emerging research on mindfulness meditation as an intervention for cancer patients. Using relevant keywords, a comprehensive search of MEDLINE, PsycInfo, and Ovid was completed along...
OBJECTIVES: Given the demands of caring for chronically ill children, it is not surprising that caregivers often experience high levels of chronic stress. A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program may offer relief to these caregivers by providing tools for self-care and heath promotion that otherwise may be lacking. METHODS: MBSR classes were offered without restriction to parents of...
Whereas the causes and negative consequences of stress among nurses are well known, less is known about effective ways to reduce or prevent this growing problem. Mindfulness-based stress reduction programs are proving to be effective in reducing stress and improving health in a variety of clinical populations. A smaller body of evidence suggests that these programs are also effective for...
An existential-phenomenological methodology was utilized to investigate the experience of meditation for female survivors of intimate partner violence. Six coresearchers were taught a form of concentrative meditation and were asked to meditate daily and to attend a weekly group meditation for 6 weeks. Semistructured interviews were utilized to gather the data. The essence of the experience that...
BACKGROUND: Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is an 8-week course developed for patients with relapsing depression that integrates mindfulness meditation practices and cognitive theory. Previous studies have demonstrated that non-depressed participants with a history of relapsing depression are protected from relapse by participating in the course. This exploratory study examined the...