Fragrant Heart Blog

One evening I began to feel quite lethargic. My nose was stuffy and I had a sore throat as well. I had read that meditation boosts the immune system so I decided to sit and meditate (I usually meditate in the mornings). At the end of the practice I did some visualization as well. I visualized breathing life force energy into my body that would quickly clear any virus. Well, next morning I awoke bright and early with a clear head, feeling energetic, and ready for the day.

Why does meditation boost our immune system?

When we meditate our bodies produce endorphins. Not only can endorphins make us feel euphoric, but they can also boost our immune system. Endorphins stimulate our body’s production of natural killer cells which locate and destroy harmful organisms, such as bacteria and viruses.

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I’ve found more evidence as to why meditation helps so many people with high blood pressure.

The role of a chemical called lactate in our bodies

As we go about our day our bodies produce a substance called lactate. When levels of lactate increase in the body due to stress, a person can experience symptoms that are associated with tension and high blood pressure. Apart from a physiological reaction there is also underlying anxiety as well.

How meditation reduces lactate levels

Research shows that lactate concentrate is reduced in people who meditate four times as much as people who are just resting.

I read that 3.5 million people in the UK are given 13 million prescriptions a year for anti-depressants. In the US over 8 million people are using anti-depressants. In Australia depression is now the fourth most common reason for a visit to the doctor.

Since the 1990’s there has been an enormous increase in these drugs throughout the world. It is an indication that people are not only unhappy, but their lives are out of balance, and often out of control. Of course there is a place for medication for people with serious mental disorders.

Meditation – The New Anti-Depressant

These drugs do alter people’s moods. They feel happier, better about themselves, and their lives. However, meditation does exactly the same. Research shows that meditation changes the chemistry in our bodies enhancing a greater sense of well-being. Consider too, that when you do encounter difficulties in your life, meditation helps you cope a lot better with whatever challenges confront you.

People will so often say that they don’t have time to meditate. It’s easier and quicker to pop a pill and still keep up a frenetic lifestyle. This may be a short-term solution, but long-term adverse side effects may outweigh the “quick fix”. If you’re aware that your fast paced life is keeping you on the treadmill of underlying dissatisfaction and stress, you may begin to step back and question your state of doing rather than your state of being. In this case meditation could become part of a change that brings greater contentment, peace, and joy back to living.

I’ve been doing walking meditations this summer. The weather here has been very balmy for the past two months. I leave home while the sun is still awakening the new day. There is stillness and quietness in the early morning air, and gentleness in the light touching nature around me as I walk along. I have been walking the same route for some time now and it has become very familiar to me. I keep my focus a few metres ahead to reduce visual distractions. At first that was challenging as I like to look about as I go along. Then I become aware of my feet as they touch the ground. I put my attention into my feet; the impact of the heel, then the ball of the foot, then the whole foot being placed down, then the feel of my toes, and the ball of my foot as I lift it up again.

I’m aware of the sounds in the environment in which I walk, the lapping waves on the shore, the cry of a seagull, the plaintive squawking of its fledgling offspring, the wind blowing through the cliff top trees. These sounds come and go, as I remain focused on the stepping of one foot, and the stepping of the other foot. When my mind wanders off, I bring my attention back to my feet. I am finding as I continue this practice there is an increasing effortlessness in walking. I also notice an overall sense of well being, a natural deepening of the breath, and a mind where thoughts, like footsteps are rising and falling and passing away.

You can also do walking meditation indoors. You don’t need a huge amount of space, just enough room to walk backwards and forwards, and a place where you won’t be disturbed. You can focus on your footsteps; on the sensations of your feet touching a wooden floor, or a carpeted floor. You can also focus on the breath, and link it to your footsteps. Stay with whatever one pointed focus you choose for ten minutes to begin. Then increase the time, and see how this form of meditation energizes your practice.