AP 35 Project One
Practicing Meditation Could Be Beneficial to Health
written by Sophia Milcevski
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This blog post is from my own personal experience with anxiety and depression.
I am not a doctor, so this post should not work as a diagnosis, and my recommendations are a friendly suggestion.
I am not qualified medically to help people with disorders, I am only qualified in the ways that I have experienced life so far, and wish to offer my perspective.
I want to spread happiness into people's lives, and I understand that the disorders that I talk about in this post can affect people in serious ways.
I want to make this clear because my topic is a sensitive one. The ways that I have experienced depression specifically in the past were to me debilitating, and I did have professional help.
If you or anyone you know if needing professional help, I can personally say that finding a therapist you are comfortable with helped me in my situation. I understand everyone is in different circumstances and comes from different backgrounds.
My post is offering a useful technique that I as a person who has occasional low-level anxiety from stress and social situations, and does not have an anxiety disorder, uses and I am not stating it works for everyone, but instead urging you as the reader of my post to give it a try to manage stress.
A suicide prevention hotline is here
"You, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection"
The Buddha
taken by me at New Brighton State Beach
It was 2016,
and I was in my second semester of my freshman year in college.
I was being gripped by depression.
I felt absolutely hopeless, with fears of no one liking me taunting my brain every second.
This was my experience of feeling lost and without hope.
I never studied and was on academic probation, I would use drugs to hide my problems, and I lost touch with reality.
I realized I was in a situation that I couldn't control-- I needed help.
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By going to see a therapist that I had access to through my university,
I started to realize that environment I was in was dangerous to my health when combined with the state of my mind.
I changed schools and I had the chance to move to another place and learn a new language.
I took a year off from going to university, and instead was able to work as a Kindergarten teacher's assistant in the most beautiful place.
I felt genuinely happy for the first time since 2016.
It was lightness that I felt.
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Photo of me taken on July 14th, 2017
in Volketswil, Switzerland
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This photo is from one of my most joyous moments. It was the last day of the students' day of school at the Kindergarten I worked at. It was the moment I realized how much I loved doing this kind of work. I realized how badly I wanted to continue doing it.
I moved back home, started attending Cabrillo College, and I have been on track to get my degree so that I can move back to Switzerland and work with kids again.
It's been over a year since I've been back, and I have been able to really to put in effort into classes-- I even got A's for the first time.
Even though it's never gotten as bad as it was like in 2016, there have still been moments of fear of socializing and feelings of sadness that creep in.
One strategy I've learned that is helpful for me personally has been practicing meditation.
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There is the possibility that someone who reads this blog post
might be able to relate to it in some way.
There might be other people that have had experiences similar to mine.
If I can help someone who's going through difficult times by sharing my experience,
then that means less darkness in someone's world,
and more light.
That's why I've chosen this topic for my project, because depression and anxiety have played their parts in my life, and I want to share the strategy that has brought some peace to me. Those going through similar experiences can look through my experience, and possibly find their own peace of mind by learning a new strategy for dealing with anxiety and depression.
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5 Facts About Anxiety
1. "Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S.,
affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older" [1]
2. "70% of youth in state and local juvenile justice systems have a mental illness" [5]
3. "Anxiety disorders affect 25.1% of children between 13 and 18 years old" [1]
4. "Research shows that untreated children with anxiety disorders are
at higher risk to perform poorly in school, miss out on important social experiences,
and engage in substance abuse." [1]
5. "Anxiety disorders are highly treatable,
yet only 36.9% of those suffering receive treatment" [1]
What are the Symptoms of Anxiety?
- panic, fear, uneasiness
- sleep problems
- shortness of breath
- not being able to stay calm or still [6]
The Difference Between Anxiety
and General Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety is a normal part of everyone's life. From giving a speech to say your name during roll call, many of us can think of the butterflies or feeling in our gut that we relate those events to.
But there is a difference to feeling anxious and "constant, chronic, and unsubstantiated worry causing significant stress," [11]
If your anxiety is persistent and doesn't allow you to do daily functions, then it could be General Anxiety Disorder (GAD). [11]
On a personal note, I do not deal with GAD, I only have occasional mild feelings of anxiety when I'm in social situations and from stress. Sometimes when I'm on campus I feel like people hate me for some reason, and I wish I could disappear. In these moments I sometimes slip into a quiet corner of the library and put in my headphones to listen to a guided meditation.
I think it's important to note that it doesn't matter whether or not it's severe for you or not, it can still be managed in any way you need. And I challenge you to try meditation for yourself!
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5 Facts About Depression
1. "Depression is both a brain disorder and a state of mind" [2]
2. "It's not uncommon for someone with an anxiety disorder to also suffer from
depression or vice versa" [1]
3. Is the leading cause of disability worldwide, and is a major contributor to the overall global burden of disease [2]
4. Is the leading cause of the rate of someone dying of suicide
approximately every 13 minutes, which is 41,000 people in one year [3]
5. On a global scale, depression is one of the most debilitating conditions,
and severe depression is ranked together with terminal stage cancer in the same disability category [4]
3 Quick Things to Know About Meditation
1. It has been shown to reduce daily stress and perceived stress.
2. It has been shown to promote subtle improvements in focus, attention and the ability to ignore distractions.
3. Meditating for three weeks may enhance compassionate behavior toward others. [7]
2 Studies in Peer-Reviewed Journal
1.
In 2006, a psychology meta-analysis and systematic review was conducted to measure the the effectiveness of meditation therapy in treating anxiety disorders, (Chen, Berger, Manheimer, Forde, Magidson, Dachman, Lejeuz, 2006). The review recognized that meditation is often a sought after tool for patients with anxiety. "A total of 36 RCTs were included in the meta-analysis," (Chen et al., 2006) and the patients typically named anxiety as a secondary concern. "This review demonstrates some efficacy of meditative therapies in reducing anxiety symptoms, which has important clinical implications for applying meditative techniques in treating anxiety. However, most studies measured only improvement in anxiety symptoms, but not anxiety disorders as clinically diagnosed," (Chen, et al. 2006).
This review is pertinent to this topic because of the findings pertaining more toward anxiety symptoms and not clinically diagnosed disorders because that was what I had previously mentioned was my experience. There is some efficacy of "meditative therapies" which fuels the idea that there are aspects of meditation that can help address the symptoms of anxiety and help treat them. [8]
2.
In this study, participants completed a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) meditation program, which was designed to help participants manage stress, pain, and illness. The MBSR was 8-weeks long, and the participants were surveyed one week before and one week after the mindfulness-meditation class. The participants were surveyed on mindfulness, stress symptoms, emotional regulation, and sleep quality. [9]
The purpose of the study was to answer the following questions:
(1) "Is MBSR associated with significant improvements in physical symptoms of stress, sleep quality, and transdiagnostic processes in a community sample of adults?
(2) Are such outcomes directly related to increased mindfulness following MBSR?
(3) Is the hypothesized link between increased mindfulness and improved symptoms of stress and sleep quality partly explained by changes in transdiagnostic processes that, in theory, are amenable to mindfulness training?" (Greeson, et al. 2018).
The study wanted to focus on "aim[ing] to determine whether perseverative cognition, indicated by rumination and intrusive thoughts, and emotion regulation, measured by avoidance, thought suppression, emotion suppression, and cognitive reappraisal, partly accounted for the hypothesized relationship between changes in mindfulness and two health-related outcomes: sleep quality and stress-related physical symptoms," (Greeson, et al. 2018).
The study brings forth the topic of cognitive perserveration and its relationship to "ongoing emotional reactions and downstream stress physiology (e.g., cardiovascular, metabolic, neuroendocrine, and immune/inflammatory systems) that ultimately progresses to stress-related chronic disease," (Greeson, et al. 2018).
Results from this study show that the stress-reducing effects of MBSR may be in close relationship to improved perseverative cognition, which can be measured by intrusive thoughts, and emotion regulation, two “transdiagnostic” mental processes that cover stress-related disorders. These findings are important, because they show "empirical evidence to support the overarching hypothesis that mindful emotion regulation may be a key psychological process that contributes to physical and mental health outcomes associated with mindfulness meditation," (Greeson, et al. 2018).
This study is important because it shows the important relationship between practicing to better and lessen having intrusive thoughts, and stress-reducing effects when doing Mindfulness-Meditation practice. This study does not show causation, but it shows how these practices are happening in part of each other.
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How to Start Meditating?
I think it's important to know, that you can really meditate in any position comfortable to you. There is sometimes a pressure to sit like this:
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This is zazen posture, and it's a way to meditate. [10]
I like to meditate laying down, or walking my dog, or cooking my dinner.
Life is busy, crazy, and hectic, sometimes I only have time to meditate while I'm falling asleep, and I think it's completely okay!
Here are some ideas for where to meditate. Remember, it's all up to you!
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Guided or Unguided Meditations?
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Overall, it's best to try both and find which type of meditation you prefer. Both offer similar effects through different experiences. I find that guided meditations can be helpful when my thoughts wander, it helps me bring my focus back.
Some Meditation Apps to Try
Insight is an app my mother and I have both used. There's really nice sounds that you can listen to for falling asleep. It's completely free and there are a lot of options on the app.
Headspace is my personal favorite. I asked for my birthday for the subscription to the service, since there are more meditations if you pay for it. The voice of the main person in the app has been one of the only ones that I really like. The quality is very high, and they have really awesome meditations for almost everything.
Video About Meditating from Headspace
How to Meditate
Video of a Guided Meditation from Headspace to Try Yourself
Guided Meditation
Meditation Centers in Santa Cruz, CA
Here is Insight's schedule
I challenge you to try to meditate once!
Download an app, kick back and clear your head.
I hope that this post brought you information, and perhaps interest in trying to give your head some relaxation.
Meditating has definitely brought happiness into my life, and has been my friend in many scary situations, I don't know where I would be without it!
Important Links
References
[1] “Facts & Statistics.” Anxiety and Depression Association of America, ADAA, 2018, adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics.
[2] “Facts about Depression.” Hope For Depression, 2018, www.hopefordepression.org/depression-facts/.
[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Web -based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [Online].(2013,2011)National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, CDC (producer).
Available from www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/index.html
[4] World Health Organization. The Global Burden of Disease: 2004 update. Available at www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/2004_report_update/en/
[5] “Teens and College Students.” Anxiety and Depression Association of America, ADAA, 2018, adaa.org/living-with-anxiety/college-students.
[6] “What Are Anxiety Disorders?” WebMD, WebMD, 2018, www.webmd.com/anxiety-panic/guide/anxiety-disorders#1.
[7] “Meditation and Mindfulness Made Simple.” Headspace, The Orange Dot, 2018, www.headspace.com/.
[8] Chen, K. W., Berger, C. C., Manheimer, E., Forde, D., Magidson, J., Dachman, L., & Lejeuz, C. W. (2012). Meditative therapies for reducing anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. NCBI.
doi:10.1002/da.21964.
[9] Greeson, J. M., Zarrin, H., Smoski, M. J., Brantley, J. G., Lynch T. R., Webber, D. M., Hall, M. H., Edward, C., Wolever, R. Q. (2018). Mindfulness Meditation Targets Transdiagnostic Symptoms Implicated in Stress-Related Disorders: Understanding Relationships between Changes in Mindfulness, Sleep Quality, and Physical Symptoms. eCam.
dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/4505191
[10] “Zazen.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Sept. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zazen.
[11] Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Anxiety Disorders Association of America, adaa.org/sites/default/files/July%2015%20GAD_adaa.pdf
[10] “Zazen.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Sept. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zazen.
[11] Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Anxiety Disorders Association of America, adaa.org/sites/default/files/July%2015%20GAD_adaa.pdf
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