Stress Relief Meditation – How to Get a Meditative Trace Quickly

November 29th, 2009 . Posted in Stress Relief Meditation | No Comments »
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Stress relief meditation is a great way to reduce stress levels but many people who try to achieve a meditative stance find the process difficult or too lengthy and give up after a few tries.

This is a real shame because mediating for stress relief does not need to be hard or take too much of your time. Some people can meditate anywhere at any time and so gain an advantage of stress reduction wherever they are.

Here is a quick how to guide to get into a stress relieving meditative trance quickly:

  • No distractions – Turn off your cell phone. Put some headphones on if you cannot find a quiet place. Lock the door or tell people you don’t want to be disturbed for 15 minutes.
  • Visual Focus - There are two methods you can use. A focus object or closing your eyes. A focus object is something you can stare at and it can be anything simple. This will allow you to give your undivided attention to something that will not stimulate your mind as you are trying to empty your mind of distracting thoughts. You can also choose to close your eyes which gives the advantage of getting rid of all visual distractions.
  • Breathe - A steady rate of breathing is desirable, relaxed breathing is the goal so do nto breathe too deeply or too shallowly. Just a relaxed breathing rate.
  • Posture – While it is not always  possible to sit on a proper billow or mat the idea is that you should have a straight spine with good sitting posture to make sure you do not get sore in any part of your body to distract you from your meditation.
  • Audio Focus – This is probably the biggest thing or at least it was for me. Without focusing the mind on something you can hear that is relaxing and steady your mind is likely to wander to the tasks of the day and the things that stress you. Your hearing is a major factor in being able to meditate for stress relief quickly so make sure to concentrate on your own breathing which is a good way to get a rhythm going or to a guided meditation CD or MP3s which can be helpful.

If you want really fast and effective stress relief meditation you can use anywhere at all then listen up!

Sorry for the huge headline but I just made a recent discovery in the realm of meditation and stress reduction called Totally Tranquil.

A friend of mine who is into technology and gadgetry of all kinds pointed me to this meditation tool that I have been using for the last few days which is amazing. While I am quite good at meditation by now the audio focus has always been my Achilles heel which has sometimes made my meditation sub par.

I own about 12 different guided meditation CDs of which some or not too bad and a whole heap are even MORE distracting than NOT using them so when Dave (my tech head friend) suggested I try this new product I was skeptical but they had a demo download so It was no skin off my nose to try it.

All I have to say is WOW.

I was so impressed by this that I got 6 of my workmates to try it to see if I was not just influenced by Dave’s recommendation and all 6 of them had positive things to say.

Basically what this does is more than just give you something to focus on, It actually has some good audio and neurological science behind it that actually helps you synchronize your brain waves to a desired state of meditation and stress relief as well as better focus.

I do not think this is a cure all pill but it is a powerful addition to anyone who is serious about stress reduction and especially those that might find meditation difficult as this is a very easy to use product.

If this sounds interesting check out their website where you can get a free demo and try for yourself. All you have to lose is your stress.

Totally Tranquil FREE Demo

Meditation For Stress Relief – 3 Ways to Reduce Stress While Meditating

November 26th, 2009 . Posted in Meditation | No Comments »
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Meditation for stress relief can be very helpful to reduce stress in your life if you can learn to meditate properly. However once you can fall into a deep meditative trance after some practice just how do you use this to get rid of the stressful thoughts and emotions?

Here are a few ways I used mediation to cope with stress:

  • Visualization -  When you are meditating one of the best ways to melt stress away if to practice visualization or guided imagery. This more than just imagining a less stressful place but also incorporating as many other senses as you can. Try to see, feel, hear, smell and taste a place that is relaxing and inspiring to you. Some might imagine a placid beach or other scenic holiday spot and others might reminisce about their childhood house and others might have completely different ideas of what de-stresses them. Just make sure to imagine it in as much vivid detail as you can.
  • Deep Breathing – Slow and deep breathing will allow your body to relax physically and will help you meditate deeper and also leave behind the stresses that your body has accumulated. This will help muscle relax if they are tight without massage if you meditate and breath deeply and slowly.
  • Affirmations – This might feel silly for some bu if you have an open enough mind to try meditation this is worth trying too. Affirmations are a way of speaking a thought that is what you want to be and repeating it over and over until you reprogram your brain to believe it is true. This is not brainwashing or anything magical, it is simply a way you can change the way you think slightly so you will act on those ways later. More on affirmations here

Using these skills, mediation for stress relief can be a wonderful way to cope and eliminate stress form your life to have a healthier mindset and increase your physical health too.

To short cut to great stress relieving meditation however click here to find out more

Meditation and Stress Relief – 3 Steps to Better Meditation

November 25th, 2009 . Posted in Meditation | No Comments »
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Meditation and stress relief are a great combination if you have an open enough mind to try to meditate properly. Most people who do try to relieve stress with meditation unfortunately never achieve the deep state of focus that is needed to really unshackle the mind and body from the stresses of daily life.

With this in mind here are a few steps I take to get a really deep meditation:

1. Choose the Perfect Place

Where you meditate can make a big difference to how well you meditate especially if you are just starting out. Choosing a location that is calm and relaxing to start with is very important and one that will guarantee you have no interruptions even better.

Make sure your meditation location is also free of clutter and anything that might be related to stress. Some people prefer somewhere sterile or bland, others prefer somewhere with sunlight and views and others like to surround themselves with non-stressful memorabilia that calms and relaxes them. This is up to you and your personal tastes but it is meant to reflect your detachment from emotion and from stress that you need when meditating.

Now it is not always possible to have a perfect place to meditate and as you become more advanced you may be able to meditate anywhere but for beginners this is an important step.

2. Good Posture

Having a good and comfortable posture is essential to freeing your mind of bodily concerns to get a really deep meditative stance to reduce stress. If you sit up straight with an straight spine and breath slowly and deeply you will have a good start but there are other things you should know.

If you are going to be sitting down for a decent period of time you must be comfortable in this position. If you sit in a way that will cut off blood flow to yoru feet for instance you will end  up breaking out of meditation due to this. Also if you slouch or are bending in a certain way you may get a sore back or hip of knees. Your posture must be good and you must be able to maintain it for a decent length of time without it being uncomfortable of painful.

The addition of a few pillows can help a lot in this but also knowing your own body and what is comfortable for you.

3. Focus Object

Many people find it very helpful to have an object to focus on when they meditate. Others can just close their eyes or concentrate on a bit of wall but when I started i found using a lit candle was an excellent way to draw your attention to a single object which allows you to free your focus from everything else down to something so simple and unrelated to stress.

Good mediation and stress relief are highly interlinked and using these few steps you can get into a better state of mind to reduce the stress in your life.

To short cut to great stress relieving meditation however click here to find out more

Stress Relief Meditation – Does it Work?

November 25th, 2009 . Posted in Stress Relief Meditation | No Comments »
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Stress relief meditation sounds like an appealing idea. You site down for a few minutes and zone out and all the stresses of your life melt away like magic! Sounds too good to be true right?

I thought the same way when a friend first suggested it to me. I believed that stress could only be relived of the sources of the stress just went away … other than that only screaming very loudly seems to help me. (I still suggest this sometimes as long as no one is around to hear!)

However meditation for stress relief is not a hoax, it is not just some new age claptrap and it does not only help a little bit … it can help a LOT.

Why does stress relief meditation work though?

Basically meditation is a way that you can balance your mental, emotional and physical states. This can be used to detach your emotional and mental attachments to the stress causing things in your life. This in turn stops the body producing the hormones related to stress and allowing you to also analyze and distance yourself from those stressful situations.

While it will never stop whatever is causing the stress it will allow you to understand your own emotions and cope with that stress from an emotional and a physical perspective.

This linking of mind and body is a very important factor because stress is a mental and physical thing. Meditation will help you clear your mind of the clutter and stress which produces a calming effect on the body which is also very good for your health. A reset button for stress if you will.

Now if you do not tackle the stress in your life you will never be fully free of it but stress relief meditation is an important part of coping with stress and for some people it is all you need because when you are not stressed as much you SOLVE stress problems that much better.

To short cut to great stress relieving meditation however click here to find out more