CityView Magazine

48 | Januar y 2020 H E A L T H BY DANIEL MONTOYA Meditation, Mindfulness Good Life AND THE A s an associate professor of psychology, I usually start my classes with random questions to instigate discussion. "When was the last time you sat alone with your eyes closed?" I sometimes ask. It always astounds me that most of the students have not had the experience of sitting quietly in a room for a few minutes, the experience of being alone and in silence, without being distracted by something or someone. My students' responses highlight not only the times in which we live, but also our inability to disconnect, even for a few minutes. Caring about our own minds daily is a lost art these days. We spend much more time and money in taking care of a car than we do with our own minds. It requires a lot of training to shut down our own brains and avoid the panic that may come with it. But it can be done. Aer all, we're not far removed from the age when being awake and still was part of the fabric of our days. In the past, before technology erased free time and boredom, people would sit for hours knitting or talking in a rocking chair. ose activities are akin to meditation, creating mindfulness and promoting good health. Many people don't understand the concept of meditation. e truth is that the word meditation may mean different things to different people. Simply put, meditation is a practice, an exercise of being silent, and quieting the mind by different means, with the purpose in many cases of gaining enlightenment. We can use meditation to reach a good life, a better way of living with ourselves and others. e basic types of meditation include mindfulness meditation, spiritual meditation, focused meditation, movement meditation, mantra meditation and transcendental meditation. ere is, of course, a difference between meditating, being mindful and leading a good life. Meditation is the practice of meditating using any of the techniques. Mindfulness is the mental state achieved by focusing our awareness on the present moment. We can be mindful without necessarily being in the process of meditating. Like everything, it just takes practice. People are drawn to meditation because of the perceived health benefits. Meditation is as popular as yoga today in the U.S., and over 14 percent of adults in the U.S. have tried it at least once. Even children's meditation has increased, resulting in a reduction of suspensions in schools where meditation has been implemented. Meditation also has been the object of scientific inquiry. e results accumulated over the years show that meditating, in general, results in a good return of investment since it brings immediate benefits to our body and mind. Data points to the fact that meditation leads to a variety of health benefits. For example, a brief breath awareness meditation has been shown to increase alpha power in the brain. Alpha waves appear in the electroencephalogram when a person is awake and quietly resting. e effects of meditation can reach deep in our cells. In 2015, a study showed that a combination of several kinds of meditation practices reduced telomere attrition. Telomeres are the protective caps of chromosomes. Telomere shortening is associated with cellular aging and is implicated in the growth of tumors and cancer. Other studies have shown that mindfulness meditation improves overall mental health by minimizing stress and maintaining well-being. People who meditate regularly perform better than non-meditators when attention is measured. ey also report that their own mindfulness is higher. is shows that mindfulness is linked to improved attention and other cognitive functions. In one of the most interesting developments to date, meditation counteracts the physiological effects of depression, increasing activity in several brain areas. is has led some researchers to even suggest meditation as a "cure" for depression. Everyone must start somewhere. e good life is a process. Practicing meditation and mindfulness are necessary steps that just might lead us to it.

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