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Meditation Techniques – Reduce Nervousness

Meditation Techniques For Relaxation

In our hassled society, it is valuable to learn worthwhile tools to help us relax body, mind and spirit. Many folks find that using a meditation technique can be a real lifesaver, particularly when you are in the midst of a challenging or troubling period of your life.

How Hard is it to Learn Meditation?

It’s not as difficult as you think. The process revolves around focusing your thoughts on a specific relaxing image or experience over a period of time-even just a few minutes per day. This way, your mind is able to rest. Your stress is diverted elsewhere so your body can recuperate and relax; toxic build ups are also decreased.

You will find that while you’re meditating your breathing slows, your blood pressure is reduced, the muscles relax, anxiety and irritability are reduced. Stressful thoughts and lactic acid are eliminated, clearing your mind and heart. Headaches and stress are also lessened. These are only some of the documented mental and physical advantages to meditation.

Placing your attention on just a single thing is the basis of meditation. Meditation is usually performed for about 30 minutes, so be sure that you’re in a relaxed position wearing comfortable clothing. You can lie on your bed, sit on your favorite couch, or select any position that you’re completely comfortable in.

Focus your attention on your breathing, an object, a sound, or even an object such as a delicate flower. Keep your eyes closed or open, whichever you prefer. Whichever you choose, it is ideal to stay focused. If you feel any distractions or bothersome thoughts, simply notice them and let them recede on their own. This is normal when you’re just a beginner; you will always find your thoughts wandering but as you continue practicing meditation, you will readily improve. Your thoughts will never disappear completely, unless you become enlightened! What will improve is your reactions to your thoughts, and your feeling of being overwhelmed by worries, anxiety, jealousy, pain and other disconcerting states of mind and body.

Try the following elementary exercises and incorporate them into your meditation so that you can reach total relaxation.

Tense Relax. With this meditation technique, start by clenching your fists, then pull forearms firmly against the upper arms. Keep your leg muscles muscles tensed. Clench you jaws and close you eyes tightly. Breathe deeply and hold for about 5 seconds. Then let go of everything at once. Feel the sensations while your tension is being released.

Heaviness/ Warmth. This is done by sensing your legs and feet feeling heavier and warmer by the second. Envision that you are wearing lead boots. Try to envision that your central body area is also feeling warmer and relaxed. Tell yourself that you’re forehead is getting cooler and relaxed. Breathe easily and regularly. Just feel all the heaviness and warmth cover your entire body.

Ideal Relaxation. In this process, close your eyes and try to create a heavenly relaxation spot inside your mind. Pick out any place, whether it’s imagined or real. Visualize that you’re in that place. Feel calm and comfortable in your imagined and ideal relaxation place. Enjoy that positive, special moment for as long as you need.

There isn’t just one meditation technique. Meditation is a long-established art, and books abound on the methods and practices used for thousands of years by many cultures and spiritual traditions. With practice, you will be able to restore your energy and still your mind by focusing on your breath. Your facility to experience the benefits of meditation will improve if you make a commitment to meditate daily. By simply resting for a few minutes each day, feeling your body sensations, feelings and emotions without judgement or attachment, you will be cultivating mindfulness, and creating a path toward peacefulness, self-healing and stress reduction.

Yoga Benefits Of Pranayama

Pranayam is made up of two words Prana + Ayam.

Prana is the vital force present in whole cosmos. We have been provided Prana, the supreme source of energy by the creator. Proper utilisation of this free source of energy can make remarkable changes to our physical and mental health, vitality and self confidence. Prana is more subtle than air and can be defined as the energy essence that is within everything in the universe.
Ayama means to control or to give a rhythm or a definite flow.

In this sense Pranayama may be defined as a process and technique through which vital energy can be stimulated and increased and this brings about perfect control over the flow of Prana within the body. Pranayama locks the scattering of pranic energy, consolidates it at the centre of your body-mind complex and laser-beams it to an intense awareness of the self. In simple language Pranayam can be said to be the right form of breathing technique to control our energy.

Breathing Technique: We can train ourselves to breathe more slowly and more deeply. We can reduce our breathing rate from about fifteen breaths a minute to 5-6 breaths a minute. Reduced breathing rate leads to slowing down the heart rate as more oxygen can be pumped even with less number of breaths. Time of exhalation should be longer than that of inhalation in the breath cycle.

Types of Pranayama:
1.Bhastrika Pranayama
2.Kapal Bhati Pranayama
3.Baghi Pranayama
4.Anulom Vilom Pranayama
5.Bhramari Pranayama
6.Udgeet Pranayama

Most of us are not well aware of tangible and intangible benefits of Pranayama. All benefits of pranayama cannot be written down, few of them are listed below:-

Healthy Heart: Heart is the key organ of our body which beats about 70 times per minute to pump blood non-stop all your life. The health of your heart indicates our life expectancy and quality of life in old age. More oxygen in the blood means more oxygen to muscles of the heart.

Better Blood Circulation: As a result of better breathing techniques, the freshly oxygenated blood travels from lungs to the heart. The heart pumps it via arteries and blood vessels to every part of the body, where in turn is absorbed by every tissue and cell. This improves the blood circulation and more oxygen energy reaches all parts of your body.

Stress Management: Pranayama is an excellent stress relief technique. Pranayama practice provides freedom from negative thought, anger, depression, lasciviousness, greed for money, arrogance etc. With pranayama fluctuations of mind are controlled and it prepares the mind for meditation. With practice of pranayama, we can experience lightness of body, feeling of inner peace, better sleep, better memory and better concentration whereby improving the spiritual powers/ skills. Mental peace and clarity of thought occur in our mind. Cheerfulness and enthusiasm is increased in life.

Functioning of Body Organs: By practice of pranayama all body organs gets more oxygen, toxins are removed from body; therefore onset of various diseases is prevented. Better functioning of autonomic system improves the working of lungs, heart, diaphragm, abdomen, intestines, kidneys and pancreas. Digestive system improves and diseases pertaining to digestive organs are cured with good appetite. General irritability due to lethargy/ fatigue vanishes. Pranayama strengthens the immune system. Pranayama reduces wear and tear of internal organs.

Longevity and Quality of Life in Old Age: Higher the breath rate, lower the life of creature in the world. Dog and monkey have higher breathing rate and lower life in contrast with elephant and tortoise taking four to five breaths in a minute and it lives up to 200 years or more. As a person with sedentary lifestyle reaches middle age, lung tissues tend to grow less and less elastic and lung capacity decreases. Pranayama can help to reduce the effects of following old age problems.

CHARACTER OF THE BOSS IN KATHERINE MANSFIELD’S THE FLY

CHARACTER OF THE BOSS IN KATHERINE MANSFIELD’s THE FLY

Katherine Mansfield’s short story The Fly is taken from the collection ‘Dove’s Nest’ and inspired by her dear brother Leslie’s death, it is one of her finest short stories. The Fly is the story of a person haunted for six years by the death of his son. It is the depiction of anguish. Mansfield’s technique in her stories was to make her characters show their thoughts by a kind of mental soliloquy -fluttering, gossipy, breathless with questions and answers.’ Moreover like Lawrence she creates an intense atmosphere through suggestive details. The character of the Boss in the story The Fly is represented through dialogue, monologue and symbolism. These are the three clear cut sections in the story. The first introduction to boss is to his outside appearance. The second ventures into his mind. The third presents a thoroughly complex character that one has to think over.

The Boss is introduced through a conversation with his friend Woodifield. We realize Woodifield is old, retired, physically weak, and financially not very well off. Boss is presented through the method of contrast. The Boss is stout, rosy, healthy, although five years senior to him, but still going strong and in control of affairs. The Boss has done well for himself. He has a comfortable office with new carpet, new furniture, electric heating and with all the physical comforts that would give him -solid satisfaction’. But all this is appearance. The chink in the armour is the photograph of a grave looking boy in uniform. It was not new, it had been there for six years. The photograph strikes the discordant note. It is one old thing in all that is new. It hides a secret. It is a story of agony that the boss wants to avoid. So he does not draw attention to the photograph. But Mansfield’s process of breaking the appearance has started. She does it through Woodifield. The latter tries to remember something. The Boss feels sympathy for him. This is ironical. We soon question who wants sympathy. However the Boss produces a whisky to Woodifield’s glee. But the whisky unleashes a series of agony for Boss and soon the positions are reversed. Woodifield starts talking about Reggie’s grave and the grave of the Boss’ son nearby. The daughters of Woodifield had gone to Belgium and spotted it. The Boss makes no reply but only a quiver in his eyelid showed that he heard. This is the beginning of the process of suppression of emotion. Woodifield goes on describing the graves. The boss responds without even knowing what he was saying. The contrast in characters is clear. Woodifield had accepted his son’s death and could talk freely about it. But it hurt the Boss to even think about it. He wanted to avoid it. In fact he is a figure of pity. It was a hidden sorrow in his mind. After this Woodifield leaves. The mention of Reggie’s grave was a shock to the Boss. For six years the Boss had suppressed sorrow in his mind. He had never thought of the boy dead but in his uniform, sleeping peacefully. Now at the mention of his son’s grave, which was reality he tried to cry but he could not cry. It is common in Mansfield’s stories that characters come to the brink of tears but do not break down. She avoids sentiments. But she expresses something deeper. The Boss prepared to weep but could not weep. In the initial years the Boss used to break down thinking about his son. He had thought then the Time would not change his sentiments. He had considered himself far more hurt by his son’s death than others. He had worked all his life building up his business for his son. Life was meaningless without him. He had been the proud father. Often they had journeyed together. He had been loved by the office staff and he was not spoilt. But one telegram carrying the news of his son’s death had crashed his world. All this Mansfield narrates to bring out the depth of hurt in Boss and the intensity of his loss. It helps us understand the Boss’ emotions. But now after six years he could not recall his emotions. This was causing him further agony.

At this moment a fly falls in to the inkpot in front of the Boss. Somehow it clambered out. But then the Boss had an idea. He dropped ink over the fly again and saw it struggle. He admired the insect’s pluck. From this point onwards the Boss starts paralleling the plight of the fly with that of his son. Perhaps his son too had struggled like that on the battlefield. The Boss dropped another drop on the fly. He wanted to see what would happen. His son had not escaped death. The Boss becomes God here. He refuses to let the fly live. The fly drops dead on the blotting paper. Then the Boss realizes the loss. It was the loss of his son. In agony he asks for fresh blotting paper. He could not remember what he was thinking about. He is reduced to the state of Woodifield. It is a highly complex mind that we encounter. It is left to the reader’s imagination to interpret what he is thinking. The Boss emerges as a pitiable character with a wound nobody can heal.

Creatine For Dummies

This article gives you a brief overview on creatine, which is a natural component of skeletal muscle. It provides all the important creatine info that you have always wanted to know. The word creatine has been derived from the Greek word “keras” that means flesh. The vital creatine info that you need to know is mostly about its components and how it helps in muscular force generation, increasing mental energy, and some other aspects.

The scientific community has been discussing creatine quite a bit lately. Evidence shows that scientists in the USSR were actually researching creatine in the 1970’s. However, a French scientist and philosoper, Michel Eugene Chevreul is being credited now with the discovery of creatine.

If you go through the available creatine info, you will come to know how important creatine is to your body. The creatine actually resides within the skeletal muscle of your body. This is not an exception as far as the human body is concerned. Rather, this is a common feature shared by all the vertebrates. You can obtain good amount of creatine for your skeletal muscles by having fish and meat. The muscles of your body absorb creatine from the blood stream of the digestive tract.

As the creatine info says, for enhancing your physical performance, you can add synthetic creatine salts in your dietary supplements. By doing so you can increase your creatine content in the muscles. The advantage in using the creatine synthetic salt is that, you can get doses of this salt even when your calorie intake is not high, unlike the usual practice. For your information, creatine levels are generally lower among the vegetarians.

Fuel generation and fuel movement in the muscle cells are also assisted by creatine. Our nervous system is dependent on creatine for proper function. Having low levels of creatine in the human body leads to neurodegenerative disorders. This will then delay muscle fatigue in the body.

Good physiological importance is another benefit of creatine, so the literature says. Clinical trials have shown that creatine can be used for curing nervous and muscular systems. If lacking in adequate levels of creatine, anyone can now take artifical creatine supplements. Luckily there are many inexpensive brands on the market which make it possible for anyone to use.

After going through the popular creatine info papers, we came to know that commercialization of synthetic creatine or monohydrate became a success in the year 2000. Synthetic creatine market sold 2,500 metric tons of it earning an average of 5.5 million pounds. Such was the demand for this component, that “creatine boom” emerged as a popular phrase in the medical industry.

If you want to buy and use available creatines, for safety’s sake, check into all the info available. Cheaper brands of creatines are out there and their manufacturers may be dubious as they are looking to make a quick buck. Synthetic creatine, as a dietary supplement, has fewer quality checks on its manufacturing as prescription drugs would. To be safe, check out your creatine info before buying or using.

Konsep Kesehatan Mental

Lebih mudah untuk mendefinisikan penyakit mental daripada kesehatan mental. Meskipun kita tidak selalu menderita penyakit mental yang dapat didiagnosa dengan jelas tetapi terbukti bahwa kesehatan mental seseorang berbeda dari yang lain. Beberapa dari kita secara mental lebih sehat daripada yang lain. Kesehatan mental adalah kombinasi dari faktor genetik, biologis, psikologis dan lingkungan. Suatu keadaan tidak adanya gangguan mental. Ini mencakup kemampuan individu untuk menikmati hidup dan mencapai keseimbangan antara aktivitas kehidupan dan usaha untuk mencapai kapasitas dalam menghadapi stres dan kemalangan dengan sangat tenang. Ini juga merupakan ungkapan emosi yang menandakan sebuah adaptasi sukses untuk berbagai tuntutan. Orang yang mentalnya sehat bisa bekerja secara produktif dan efektif bagi komunitas di mana ia tinggal.

Tidak ada definisi resmi yang diterima secara universal tentang kesehatan mental. Perbedaan budaya, penilaian subyektif, adat dan konvensi umum, kondisi masyarakat, politik, dan aspek sosial di mana ia tinggal adalah faktor-faktor penentu dalam menentukan hal kewarasan dari pikiran seseorang. Sehatnya mental seseorang dapat ditentukan dari karakteristik tertentu.

Pertama, kemampuan untuk menikmati hidup tanpa khawatir tentang masa depan atau memikirkan masa lalu merupakan suatu tanda pasti tentang kesehatan pikiran. Rahasia hidup adalah melihat berlalunya saat ini. Kadang-kadang orang membuat dirinya sendiri sengsara dengan memberikan perhatian terus-menerus terhadap apa yang tidak bisa disembuhkan atau tentang sesuatu yang tak dapat diprediksi. Hal ini buruk bagi kesehatan pikiran.

Kedua, kemampuan untuk menangani stres atau trauma dan bangkit kembali dari kesulitan menunjukkan kewarasan mental. Karakteristik daya tahan seperti ini dimiliki oleh mereka yang dapat menangani situasi stres dengan mudah.

Ketiga, kesehatan mental yang lebih besar merupakan hasil dari keseimbangan dalam hidup. Dalam kehidupan, kita selalu perlu menyeimbangkan sejumlah hal. Sebagai contoh, kita akan diperlakukan sebagai ‘penyendiri’ jika kita tidak bisa membuat keseimbangan antara waktu yang dihabiskan untuk sosial dan untuk sendiri. Juga kita perlu menyeimbangkan antara beberapa hal seperti bekerja dan bermain. Tidur dan terjaga, istirahat dan bergerak, waktu yang dihabiskan di dalam ruangan dan waktu yang dihabiskan di luar rumah.

Keempat, fleksibilitas emosional dan kognitif adalah tanda kekuatan mental. Beberapa orang memiliki pendapat yang sangat kaku dan tidak ada diskusi yang dapat mengubahnya. Orang-orang ini menderita stres bagi harapan kaku yang mereka pegang. Orang-orangnya yang sehat mental membuka perasaan dan emosi, bukan menutup diri ke dalam ruang gelap alam pikiran.

Kelima, kita semua memiliki bakat alami atau kemampuan batin. Beberapa menggunakan potensinya dan yang lain tampaknya merusaknya. Orang yang sehat mental sedang dalam proses aktualisasi potensi diri mereka.

Keenam, fokus pada topik yang mencemaskan dan mendiskusikannya dengan orang lain adalah tanda kesehatan mental. Dekonstruksi dari kekhawatiran yang mengganggu Anda terus-menerus membuahkan kesehatan yang baik bagi pikiran.

Ini adalah hanya beberapa konsep yang penting untuk mencapai kesehatan mental. Pada kenyataannya untuk mencapai kesehatan pikiran yang menyeluruh orang harus bebas, fleksibel, berpikiran terbuka, positif, energik dan yang terpenting optimistis. Penyakit mental tidak selalu jelas terlihat. Kadang-kadang tidak terdeteksi. Kesehatan mental adalah jumlah total dari faktor yang berbeda secara bersama-sama. Orang yang bermental sehat berkontribusi banyak untuk masyarakat. Tidak ada definisi resmi mengenai kesehatan mental namun dapat diasumsikan. Aspek sosial yang berbeda, adat budaya dll, mempengaruhi kesehatan mental. Masyarakat yang berbeda melahirkan orang-orang yang berbeda. Mereka berbeda dalam mentalitas, suasana hati dan temperamen. Tetapi beberapa karakteristik umum yang ada menjadi pegangan untuk mempertimbangkan kesehatan mental seseorang. Dengan karakteristik tersebut seseorang dapat dinilai memiliki mental yang seimbang.