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Meditation is a discipline wherein our minds concentrate on a single thought and when we direct our attention to one single point of reference. Meditation is considered to be not only a discipline but a lot of people describe it also as an art form. Meditation is also a form of alternative therapy and has been recognized by medical science; today this form of therapy has been categorized as a type of mind-body medicine. Meditation is becoming more and more popular these days and a lot of physicians have started recommending it as one of the best forms of alternative therapy for reducing blood pressure. There are two basic approaches to meditation:1. Mindfulness meditation: this type of meditation would require the meditating person to sit quietly while he or she focuses on a process or an object. The person could focus either on sound, breath or any form of visualization. According to Dr. Borysenko, the author of “Minding the Body, Mending the Mind” this kind of meditation will be able to help create a better, calmer and clearer state of mind. A person will be able to witness whatever goes through his or her mind with this form of meditation.

2. Concentration meditation: This form of meditation is usually used to perform spiritual practices. In this form of meditation, the mediator would concentrate on an object; this will help him to not be distracted by anything. The important thing to understand in this form of meditation is that meditation could be practiced by simply sitting silently while paying attention on your own breath. As you concentrate more of your awareness on your own breath you will be able to synchronize your mind with the rhythm of your inhalation and exhalation. When you do this, your inhalation will become slower while your mind will start to be come more and more relaxed and conscious.

Meditation is rapidly gaining recognition in today’s world of medical science. The use of concentration and contemplation may not be new, but the acceptance meditation receives today is rapidly spreading all around the world. Studies have recently showed that a healthy state of relaxation could be achieved with the help of meditation. You will not only be able to reduce strain but you will also see a decrease in your blood pressure if you meditate on a daily basis.

Recent studies have also showed that meditation could help us achieve a state of physiological and psychological well being. By meditating regularly, you will also be capable of lowering your cholesterol levels as well as levels of your cortisol chemicals which are related to stress. Below are some of the major health benefits that meditations provide.

1. Meditation is considered to be one vital element of Ornish therapy. Meditation also helps reduce heart diseases.

2. Meditation also helps reduce respiratory problems such as emphysema, asthma, and other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

We cannot ignore the awareness that meditation provides us. Not only this, meditation also provides us with a source of self-acceptance and personal insight. Meditation is a simple process that helps us reduce stress while living a healthy life.

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How many times have you had a brain lapse? I’ve had about a million, and it seems to be increasing lately. What most people don’t realize is that there are simple things you can do to improve your memory. Ranging from a 30 second exercise to a small lifestyle change, these things will help your memory to an unbelievable extent. Furthermore, there are tricks and systems that are really easy to commit to memory that will help you remember things you thought you could never remember. Through this article I’ll show you everything I know :).

How does your memory work?

First, let’s look at the mechanics of it all. There are two types of memory, which you probably know are short term and long term. Short term memory is used to store information for a few seconds or minutes. Information stored usually contains no more than 7 pieces of information, which is the reason you can remember phone numbers but not credit card number. Short term memory is here so we don’t fill up our brain with information too quickly. If you remembered everything that happened to you in your long term memory, it would soon fill up.

Long term memory stores memory for long periods of time. To retain things in long term memory, you usually have to make an effort (consciously or unconsciously) to retain it. Usually things that you retain in your long term memory are things that have had an emotional impact (family members death, a movie), are things that you need to know (things for your job or school), or are things that are personally meaningful to you (friend’s birthday). A lot of the time you recall information from your long term memory you don’t even notice since you do them so often. This is a type of memory called procedural memory, and it involves the simple routine tasks that you don’t need to consciously recall because you perform them all the time. The things that you do need to consciously recall is stored in either episodic memory, specific memories about personal experiences you’ve had, or semantic memory, which involves factual data not linked to you specifically.

Why do we forget things?

The impossible question. Nobody is really positive of what exactly prevents us from remembering a certain thing. We do know things that will impair our memories, such as traumatic experiences, drug and alcohol use, disorders like Alzheimer’s, etc, but we’re not exactly sure why we forget simple things like what we wore yesterday, or worst yet, things we wanted to remember and didn’t. Most people agree it has something to do with the neurons in your brain not making connections correctly. Most of the things you’re trying to remember are there, you just can’t quite make the right connections…You have nothing to jog your memory.

How can I improve my memory?!

Let’s start listing

1. Law of Attraction - Of course this is my first tip to you. You’re not going to improve your memory much if you are convinced that you have a terrible one. Make yourself know that you have a great memory, you just don’t know how to properly use it yet (but you will soon!).
2. Keep your brain active - Even though your brain isn’t a muscle, regular activities to stimulate your brain, brain exercises, will improve the function of your brain. Challenging puzzles and games, such as HT-ZS11 - Electronic Sudoku, more advanced handheld things made specifically for improving brain function (Brain Games Gold), or even that little Brain Age game for Nintendo DS will greatly improve the function of not only your memory, but your entire brain.
3. Get healthy - Exercise and eat right! This is pretty much a tip for every self-improvement article out there! Exercise increases the efficiency of your entire…everything.
4. Stress Reduction - Another tip for pretty much everything. Meditation is especially good for improving your memory as studies have shown that people that meditate show better memory recall abilities than those that don’t. Even if meditation isn’t your thing, getting your stress down to a reasonable, preferably zero level will help your memory out a lot.
5. Concentrate on what you’re attempting to learn - Most people don’t really focus on what they want to remember. Next time you need to remember something, sit there and focus on it for a minute or so. Don’t allow distraction into your mind, as most people do. Focus specifically on the information you’re trying to remember and your chances of recall are much better. This works really well with names, but in a slightly different name. When you meet someone, try saying “Nice to meet you, Chris” while actually focusing on the person and their face.
6. Sleep - Get enough sleep!

As you can see, most of the above for improving your memory are pretty much for improving your health in general.

Part 2 coming tomorrow - Will include systems you can learn to remember everything from super long numbers to names.

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