BellaOnline
Posted By: pegleg Meditation Questions? - 02/22/04 10:28 PM
Hello everyone. I'm a undergraduate student at UC Santa Barbara and I'm currently working on this huge research project for one of my classes that I could use some help on. In this project I am investigating the perceived physical and emotional effects of meditation and how that differs from what the average person believes it to be.

Therefore...I need some thoughts on what people think or know about meditation who haven't been studying it for 6 weeks like I have. So...my questions are...

What do you think the effects of meditation are both physically and mentally? What do you know about it? What experience might you have with it, if any? Anything else you'd like to say on the subject. I'm just trying to find out what people know and compare that against what I've learned. Especially on the effects that meditation has on the body.

Realize that I will be using direct quotes from any answers you may put. They will remain anonymous and if you have any reason that you don't want what you've said to be quoted in my paper just let me know, but please still tell me what you think as I can use it to get a general sense of what ya'll think.

Also realize that in responding to this thread you are participating in my project of your own free will, and that if at any point you want to retract what you've said, feel free to do so and I will not use it.

I will be very thankful for any help that you may give. Hope to read some responses from ya'll soon.
Posted By: Susan Helene Kramer Re: Meditation Questions? - 02/24/04 06:29 AM
Thanks for your questions!

Who is your professor for your course? I worked at UC Santa Barbara for 10 years as the Graduate Program Assistant in German. It is a small world!

Over the years I've used the meditation technique of taking even regular breaths to calm my body down when feeling stressed. It brings my heart rate back to normal. I breathe in counts 1, 2; breathe out counts 1, 2, and continue that pattern.

I've also used walking meditation to calm my body down when feeling stressed. I do it like this: moderate walking while swinging my arms back and forth in opposition, which means that when I step forward with my right leg I swing my left arm forward, and vice versa.

Take care!

--Susan <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
© BellaOnline Forums