Photo by Daniel Santoso on Unsplash

🧘‍♀️Unplug, Breathe, Thrive 🧘‍♂️

“Quiet the mind and the soul will speak.” – Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati

Whatever makes you glad to be alive - do that,  whenever you can.

📅 Next Sessions:

• Online: Tuesday, March 17th, 7 PM ET
• In-Person: Thursday, March 19th, 7 PM ET 185 Lincoln St. Suite 300, Hingham (Crow Point Pizza Plaza)

This Week's Focus: Why Meditate

Key Points:

· Meditation makes you happier by activating the part of the brain associated with positive emotions.

· It helps manage stress and anxiety by reducing activity in the part of the brain associated with these feelings.

· It is accessible to everyone, regardless of religious background or beliefs.

🆓 The teachings are given freely! If group meditation has enlarged and enriched your life, please consider donating to its nourishment with a donation. Your support makes all the difference. 

(Donations welcome via VENMO @Eileen-Shaw-8)

👉 RSVP Now to Join Zoom Meeting or reserve a seat for In-Person Group Meditation (eileenjshaw@mac.com)

“The thing about meditation is you become more and more you.” – David Lynch

Join our community and rediscover your inner peace. All levels welcome!

Questions? Reach out to eileenjshaw@mac.com

Why Meditate?

Meditation is the habitual process of training your mind to focus, redirect your thoughts, and achieve a heightened state of awareness. Although it is well known as a technique to reduce stress and anxiety, research shows that it may also help enhance your mood, promote healthy sleep patterns, and boost cognitive skills.

While some people imagine meditation is only for free spirits, the truth is that these life-altering practices have been around for millennia. Though it has roots in Buddhism, secular mindfulness meditation as practiced today is accessible to people of all backgrounds and beliefs. Here are three key benefits.

First, meditation makes you happier. People who meditate generally lead happier lives than those who don’t. Scientific evidence supports this claim, as extensive studies conducted on a group of Buddhist monks found that the pre-frontal cortex of the monks’ brains—the part associated with happiness—was extra active during meditation.

Second, meditation helps you manage anxiety, stress, and depression.

 Studies conducted at the University of Wisconsin proved that meditation has physiological effects on the brain. Researchers found that the part of the brain that regulates stress and anxiety shrinks when meditation is practiced consistently. By focusing on moment-by-moment experiences, meditators train the mind to remain calm, even in stressful situations, and experience less anxiety due to uncertainty about the future.

Finally, you needn’t be a religious person to meditate. Meditation is beyond doctrine; it is about developing calmness and decluttering the mind. Although contemplation is a key component of most world religions, you do not have to adhere to a religion to practice. In fact, a 2018 Pew Research Center study found that mindfulness meditation has become mainstream in the US, regardless of religious affiliation.