10 Scientifically proven ways to make yourself happier

9. Meditate – rewire your brain for happiness

Meditation is often touted as an important habit for improving focus, clarity and attention span, as well as helping to keep you calm. It turns out it’s also useful for improving your happiness:

In one study, a research team from Massachusetts General Hospital looked at the brain scans of 16 people before and after they participated in an eight-week course in mindfulness meditation. The study, published in the January issue of Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, concluded that after completing the course, parts of the participants’ brains associated with compassion and self-awareness grew, and parts associated with stress shrank.

Meditation literally clears your mind and calms you down, it’s been often proven to be the single most effective way to live a happier live. According to Shawn Achor, meditation can actually make you happier long-term:

Studies show that in the minutes right after meditating, we experience feelings of calm and contentment, as well as heightened awareness and empathy. And, research even shows that regular meditation can permanently rewire the brain to raise levels of happiness.

The fact that we can actually alter our brain structure through mediation is most surprising to me and somewhat reassuring that however we feel and think today isn’t permanent.

The 22 Things Happy People Do Differently

Number 16: Meditate

Meditating silences your mind and helps you find inner peace. You don’t have to be a zen master to pull it off. Happy people know how to silence their minds anywhere and anytime they need to calm their nerves.

Original article: http://successify.net/2012/10/31/22-things-happy-people-do-differently/

Qigong during radiotherapy recovery

Qigong improves quality of life during breast radiotherapy
By Delicia Honen Yard
Oncology Nurse Advisor - February 11, 2013

The ancient mind-body practice of qigong may help relieve depressive symptoms and enhance quality of life among women undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer.

Mind-body practices appear to improve quality of life in cancer survivors, explained Lorenzo Cohen, PhD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, and colleagues in their report for the journal Cancer. However, they pointed out, little is known about the benefits of such activities for persons undergoing radiotherapy.

Working with associates in Shanghai, China, where the study patients were located, Cohen's group randomized 49 women with breast cancer to a modified version of Chinese medical qigong consisting of synchronizing one's breath with various exercises. These women attended five weekly, 40-minute classes during their 5-to-6-week course of radiotherapy. An additional 47 women with breast cancer were assigned to a wait-list control group and received the standard of care.

The mean age of the participants was 46 years (range 25 to 64 years).They had stage 0 disease (7%), stage I disease (25%), stage II disease (40%), or stage III disease (28%). Slightly more than half the women (54%) had undergone mastectomy.

Multilevel analyses revealed that compared with the control group, the qigong participants reported fewer depressive symptoms over time. Depressive symptom scores in the qigong group declined from a mean of 12.3 at the end of radiotherapy to a mean of 9.5 through the 3-month postradiation follow-up. No changes in depressive symptoms were noted in the control group over time.

Women in the qigong group who had elevated depressive symptoms at the start of radiotherapy particularly benefited from the intervention, reporting clinically significant degrees of less fatigue and better overall quality of life than the controls. Women with low levels of depressive symptoms at the start of radiotherapy had good quality of life throughout treatment and 3 months later regardless of whether they were in the qigong group or the control group.

No significant differences between groups emerged for two other outcomes measured: sleep disturbance and cortisol slopes.

The fact that the benefits of qigong were largely observed after treatment ended may indicate that the practice prevents a delayed symptom burden or speeds the recovery process, particularly for women with high levels of depressive symptoms at the start of radiotherapy.

Relax - Practice

Qi Magazine | Issue 75 | March 2005

by Helen Massy

When we start to relax we notice how tense we are. How and when these tensions crept in is an individual matter – partly hereditary, social conditioning or self-imposed attitudes. All these tensions arise out of a sense of need to protect or defend this ‘island’ that we call ‘me’. Undoing the tensions can feel scary. We may feel vulnerable, off-balance and yet gradually freer and more comfortable with ourselves. The things that upset or disturb us, causing us to become tense or defensive, are good teachers. They show us where our beliefs need reassessing.

There can be a sense of safety in being good at things: survival of the fittest, top of the class, praise, accolade, prestige. Yet what happens when this is threatened, if we become ill or fall out of favour? Can we take it in our stride or do we react with fear, anxiety or anger?

Why not just relax and enjoy life, whatever our level? It is so much more important to feel at ease and comfortable with ourselves and our imperfections. There is no need to strive to be different or better than others, just to be ourselves – natural and at ease. This is possible at times, though for some people these times are rare. Which is why we have developed practices like Qigong, Taiji Quan and meditation to bring our awareness into the present, so that we can appreciate our daily lives and live them to the full.

We can notice our ways, habits, thoughts, preferences and beliefs and see through the illusions that we construct about our lives. Gradually we understand that the defences we hold so close to us actually limit our vision. And there is no way we can speed up the process by more ‘doing’.

I do not advocate that we give up practice or that we practise less often, simply that we watch for those subtle thoughts and tensions that diminish our sense of self and set us on the path of striving. Such thoughts pull us out of the present and relaxed awareness. We know in our hearts when enough is enough and also when we are driven to practice through tension, rather than choosing to practise and develop our skills at a natural pace. Being happy with ourselves as we are (and others too) brings us right into the present. Then we can relax and find inner freedom. This is translated into trust in the moment, where gravity can work with the body to create a sense of buoyancy. There is no need to fight or struggle to hold ourselves upright. Instead, we can yield to the pull of gravity and let the Earth give us support. Then we can open to our surroundings and the Heaven Qi around us. The resultant posture is one of confidence and expanded awareness in the present. In terms of meridians, the Stomach meridian takes energy down to the Earth and the Spleen meridian, in turn, gives lift to the body. We also take in energy through breathing (Lung meridian) and as we breathe out, we can let go of the moment, thoughts, ideas etc (Large Intestine meridian). Other meridians are involved of course, but my studies of Movement Shiatsu with Bill Palmer, interpreting Traditional Chinese Medicine from a Western perspective, show that these are the main ones for the embodiment of grounded confidence and an open mind or radiance. 

It does not matter about the theory as much as practising, to discover for ourselves the benefits of letting go, so that we can be present, relaxed and aware, poised for action. Then our actions reveal more about us as we interact with others and so the process continues. And there is no one way to do this! We each have our own approach to life and so we need to understand how to harmonise and to find inner peace and tranquillity. No one can do it for us. The responsibility is always ours – to see through our beliefs and conditioning and to find real peace and harmony with all life.

Science Proves Feeling Good Grows on You

From Universal Healing Tao - Mantak Chia Qigong

Universal Healing Tao Website

     Medical thinking is at the cusp of change. Modern medicine is focused on a left-brained, logical view of the physical world. The wonderful medical advances in the physical realm: surgery, drugs, medical diagnostics, and research are only part of the story. There is another part to the reality we live: the energy part. It is no longer possible for medicine and science to ignore the truth of this other side of life. Herbert Bensen from Harvard, who pioneered the use of "The Relaxation Response" decades ago, states the difference between Alternative Medicine and Mainstream Medicine is Science. Now that we have scientific evidence that the practice of Qigong works, this is not alternative any more. It is Science. Teachers can use these scientific facts to help students take small steps toward the goal of appreciating the power of Qigong on personal progress. Qigong [chee gong ] is the art of internal energy development perfected by the ancient Chinese Taoist sages. Finding a way to connect the mundane daily reality of an earthbound population to the glorious treasures of spirit is a challenge dating back to ancient times.

     The nervous system has two main parts: the somatic, or voluntary; and the autonomic, or involuntary. The Autonomic Nervous System is the more automatic one. It takes care of breathing, heartbeat, digestion and other basic functions. It has three parts, the Enteric Nervous System in the gut, the Sympathetic and the Parasympathetic nervous systems. In a research paper from HeartMath published in the Journal of the Advancement of Medicine, patients recalling an angry episode for just 5 minutes suppressed their immune system function for up to six hours. This episode also produced erratic heart rhythms, jangled nerves and other common symptoms produced by the Sympathetic Nervous system making the body ready for "fight or flight". Qigong techniques are known for quieting down the Sympathetic Nervous System. This allows the Parasympathetic Nervous System, PSNS, to dominate and quiet the body down. One of the known actions of the PSNS is increased saliva. Master Chia says a lot of saliva is a signal to him things are working right in a qigong meditation session. A 20 year study done by a London university showed people who had unmanaged negative emotions were more likely to develop one of the biggest killers: cancer and/or heart disease than the people who smoked tobacco and ate high cholesterol foods. The emotional risk factor was greater than the physical ones: people died faster from built-up. The book, Science Proves Feeling Good Grows on You (by John Starman, M.A.) states that "consistent happiness reduces stress and enhances health, emotional stability, performance and quality of life." These same steps are used in qigong to begin to develop inner strength. The research specifically points out it is important to focus attention on the heart and actually feel the emotion, not just think about it. This is exactly what Master Chia has taught us: "Mix the deep energy, the jing, with compassion in the heart and the benefit will stay."

 
     Over the years, the idea of how the emotions work has evolved. The current idea is the whole brain and the body are both necessary in the full experience of emotions. The brain includes the thinking part, the memory, and the limbic system: the deep connecting and integrating parts. The nerve and hormone messages from the body to the brain are also necessary. In an article published in The American Journal of Cardiology, (Vol.76, 1995), Dr. McCraty and others detailed how bringing attention to the heart and feeling positive emotions, such as appreciation, tends to bring about smooth, healthy heart rhythms and a much healthier nervous system. Some of the measurable benefits are: "reduced depression and improved functional capacity in elderly patients with congestive heart failure; the restoration of normal blood pressure levels in hypertensive individuals and improved glycemic control and quality of life in patients with diabetes". The researchers believe the basis for the action is the nerve impulses going back up to the brain. These afferent signals come from the viscera, [ the internal organs ] and the extremities. Scientists now believe experiencing emotion requires perception of external stimuli, brain processing, memory, and the signals from the body, all working together.

     How can a person send a message into the brain at just the right place? Science has found a direct line into the brain: the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is the tenth of twelve cranial nerves. This pair of nerves comes right out of the brain and goes down each side of the neck into the chest and abdomen, connecting to the organs. These are large nerves, as big as your little finger, and can carry messages each way, both to the body and back to the brain. Even though the vagus is not part of the voluntary nervous system, researchers have found they could communicate right inside the brain by using the vagus nerve. These messages returning to the brain go right into the so-called "limbic system" deep inside the brain where they are processed in the emotional centers and then connected to the thinking part of the brain, the cortex. Are there other ways to use this pathway, maybe Chi Nei Tsang [internal organ massage used to clear stored emotions, CNT]? Science is finding emotional memories exist in the viscera as well as the brain, and CNT brings them out. A new treatment for depression is based on the idea of using these messages sent from the body back to the brain. Scientists found a small electrical stimulation to the vagus nerve helped prevent seizures in epileptics. [ The stimulation is in the range of 0.25 mA to 3.0 mA, 20 Hz to 30 Hz frequency, 250 msec to 500 msec pulse width, with 30 second stimulation intervals every three to five minutes]. A small device is surgically implanted with wires going to the left vagus nerve in the neck. [ The right vagus has a strong connection to the heart, so they don't use it.] The scientists noticed the epileptic patients not only reduced their seizures, they also started having a better mood. Studies showed changes in the activity of various brain structures were similar to the changes found when using antidepressive drugs. The scientists also reasoned that since the vagus was connected to the heart, a "top down" approach, and depressive patients showed heart rate variability, maybe a "bottom up" approach would work. It was tried on severely depressed patients who had tried many other treatments with very little success. It showed 40% of the patients reduced their "depression scale" scores by 50%. Half of them had results in 3 weeks and of the total, 17% were said to have completely responded! This is very significant and other trials are now taking place around the country. Since the vagus nerve connects to the organs and sends messages to the brain, and since studies have shown attention and positive feelings to the heart cause very positive physical changes; What happens when we use movement, breathing, and ALL of the organs and ALL of the virtues: Love, Joy and Happiness; Openness and Fairness; Gentleness and Wisdom; Kindness and Generosity; and Courage and Righteousness? This is just the first part of the Qigong. This shows how the wisdom of the ages goes far beyond science, but it is good to see science catching up. What a wonderful System of Learning we have been given. I have great hope and faith that more and more people will find and use these tools of Qigong. I am excited to imagine millions of people becoming truly mature and evolved: physically, mentally, emotionally, and energetically. Many will achieve higher levels of mastery than ever before in the world and we will have the privilege of seeing "full fledged" humans, showing the true capabilities that people can achieve. May we truly appreciate this and receive the strength and guidance to bring these powerful tools to a thirsty world! Come and enjoy learning the art of internal energy development. Get powerful tools to help you achieve emotional harmony and radiant health. 

Meditation Training for the Martial Arts

Meditation Training for the Martial Arts

By Sifu Zopa Gyatso

Meditate on the unborn nature of mind:
Like space, no center, no limit;
Like the sun and moon, bright and clear:
Like a mountain, unmoving, unshakeable;
Like the ocean, deep, unfathomable.
- Jetsun Milarepa 

Just as they hone the fitness of their bodies and their reactions, many martial artists practice meditation to hone and control their minds. Meditation can assist martial arts training and performance by giving the practitioner the ability to focus and relax the mind. In combat a relaxed but focused mind is essential and may well be the factor which ensures you are a survivor. Japanese samurai well understood this and sought out Zen masters to learn this skill and studied it assiduously. Likewise, Chinese masters, both Buddhist and Taoist, in various martial traditions, have stressed the necessity of mind training to attain superior skills. This is especially marked with respect to the internal systems, some of which have extensive chi gung and meditation curricula. Wing Chun Kuen, of course, has its Siu Lien Tao form, the first section of which can (and in my view, should) be used as meditative exercise.

In this article I will restrict myself to discussing seated meditation. Standing meditation is slightly physically different but involves essentially the same mental processes. Likewise I refrain here from commenting on chi gung. The thing to bear in mind, in both martial art and meditation, is that you must seek transfer of training to application. In other words, the calmness you achieve in practice must be transferred to the normal world by consciously practising the transfer. Otherwise, you are simply training something in isolation, "in an incense-filled room", as some-one recently put it. You need to practice your calm relaxation during training and to be aware of it during an actual self-defence encounter.

In the Tibetan tradition of mind training there are two types of meditation. These are: Shi-ne (Tibetan), Samatha (Sanskrit) or Calm Abiding meditation (English) and Lhag mthong (Tibetan), Vipasyana (Sanskrit) or Insight Meditation (English). Both are essential but one must master Shi-ne before Lhag mthong can yield any benefits. This article focuses on Shi-ne. In the words of my lama, Lama Choedak, Shi-ne tunes our minds to the wave length of spaciousness, freedom and happiness.

***

Here are the reflections on Shi-ne meditation: 

My mind has long been lost in search of happiness Without knowing how transient all things are. Seeing the unsatisfactoriness of real life experiences, I will not allow my mind to wander outside.

Turning back the forcers of harmful habitual inclinations And holding firmly to the peace and tranquility within I rejoice in the store of joy I have discovered I the happiness of observing the intrinsic calmness. Let this clear and luminous state of mind Not be overshadowed by my habitual tendencies; Abiding in the natural calmness and serenity of the mind Let me see all perceptions as nothing but its mere reflection.

Neither grasping nor rejecting any sensory perceptions. I shall see them as adventitious ripples and waves Of the sea of my mind in deep meditation And absorb them into the ocean of clear mind.

As I focus my mind to sit in the correct meditation posture Let the physical self express the deep yearning To experience the calm, still and spacious nature of the mind And transcend the problems I have with this body.

The incoming breath brings in all the positive things outside me And permeates the whole nervous system of my body; As the rays of the morning sun dispel the darkness It soothes the pain and temporary discomfort.

As I retain my breath, let me sustain The vital energy of wakefulness and awareness Enabling me to let go and forgive the past And enjoy the fresh manifestation of this bare moment. My outgoing breath releases all feelings Of tension, anger, stress, anxiety and worry As the masses of dark clouds suddenly disappear Let the adventitious circumstances lapse to dawn a new beginning.

Breathing and observing the bare moment of awareness Without assuming what it will become May I live every moment with pristine awareness Without delaying an unforeseen future to cultivate it.

Following the wise sages by respecting their words of wisdom Let me remember skillful ways to apply them to everything I do, say and think, so that my conduct brings no harm to others And may I not become a victim of what I do, say and think.

While watching the constant flow of thoughts Without discriminating between those that are good or bad Let me neither be overjoyed with meditation Nor depressed by my lack of concentration Sinking in a withdrawal of the senses Is relaxation of the conscious self, but not meditation. Let me not be excited by the slight virtues of concentration I have just begun to experience.

Holding the rope of mindfulness and the hook of alertness May I resolve to tame this mind which is like a wild elephant.

Steadily focusing the mind with moderate application of antidotes May I discover what causes its restlessness.

When I find no sensory objects which are not in my reflection All visions and experiences are the circumference of my self. Like trees, mountains, rivers and heaven and earth My existence is to give and share what I have with others.

How can I cling to and grasp what I have obtained from others? As soon as I let something go, I create space and experience joy. As soon as I give things away, I find a joy not found in keeping them. Learning to cherish others will bring me happiness that will last.

***

If you decide to add meditation practice to your training then you will not regret it. In my view meditation is an essential component of training in martial arts both for the practical benefits which flow from it in application but also for the training of a calm mind which can express Mo Duk .