What is Meditation

The average person may consider meditation to be a sort of worship or prayer, but it is not. Meditation simply means awareness. Whatever you do with awareness is meditation. "Watching your breath" is meditation; listening to the birds, or feeling the sun on your face can be meditation, as long as it's done with awareness. As long as these activities are free from any other distraction to the mind, it is effective meditation.

The practice has been around for thousands of years and is described in ancient Indian scriptures some 5,000 years old. Buddha's teaching spread throughout Asia, and other counrtries & cultures then developed their own forms of meditation. It has taken several thousand years to reach the Western World, and has evolved to become the structured practice we see as meditation today.

What is it good for?

• Reduces stress, anxiety & depression
• Reduces sleep problems
• Increases creativity
• Allows clearer thinking & better decision making
• Can reduce blood pressure
• Balances mind, body & spirit
• Can help to put a stop to addicitions (ie smoking or alcohol)
• Increase in self-esteem - gives a sense of "inner peace"

Now for the science

Meditation brings the brain wave patterns into an ALPHA state. This is the level of deep relaxation & causes physical changes in the body.

It decreases metabolic rate, lowers heart rate (reducing its work load). It lowers levels of cortisol & lactate (the stress hormones). It decreases blood pressure, and lowers cholesterol levels. It improves airflow to the lungs.

More GPs are now acknowledging the benefits of this form of relaxation for stress related problems.

How many sessions

There are many different techniques/ways to meditate. We offer a basic 4 week (1 hour/week) course on a one to one basis.

However, to be of true benefit it has to become a way of life, practised daily, and for this reason we do offer a weekly meditation group to encourage ongoing practise.