Using Meditation to Calm Down Anxiety and Cope With Depression

Using Meditation to Calm Down Anxiety and Cope With Depression

We get it. Life is busy. There is a plethora of research that clearly indicates that if we take time out and care for ourselves, we are happier, more productive, have better relationships - even better sex! One way to allow our brains to take a break, to slow down, to care for ourselves is through meditation. Meditation is the practice of focusing our attention on something specific, such as our breath. It means noticing our thoughts as they occur and just letting them be. A thought does not have to lead to an action. Practice intent. Just let them pass by, as if you’re noticing them as you would scenery from a moving train. One way to help us to focus on managing our brain functioning is to pair the practice of meditation with virtual reality. That’s right. There are some virtual reality platforms (e.g., the Oculus) that can pair with brain sensing headbands (e.g., the Muse) to engage more of your senses and to create a fuller, richer experience.

Something else that we know? That if we make an appointment for something - actually have it scheduled in our calendars - it is more likely to happen. Stop into our space on your way to work, at lunch or on your way home for a 10 minute neurofeedback meditation session. Ten minutes - that’s all it takes to notice positive changes in your life.

Depression and Anxiety. We have seen an increased awareness of mental health around the globe. This increase is related to mental wellness as well as mental illness. One of the confusing things that can come out of this increased awareness is that what has typically been a medical lexicon is now moving into the general population. The two are not always synonymous. For example, it is “normal” to feel the full range of emotions - this includes the ups and the downs. The feelings of down become problematic when they persist for longer periods of time without remission - or when the downs permeate overall being. For example, see the following article from the National Center for Biotechnology Institute (NCBI) which suggests that neurotransmitters that we know are associated with anxiety and depression and are targeted by some pharmacotherapy approaches are also triggered in the brain with which we participate in meditation.