Author: Tammy

Looking for Natural Remedies to Relieve IBS Symptoms?

Posted on by Tammy

We love finding all-natural ways to deal with various symptoms in the body, and now a small clinical trial shows that a combination of mindfulness meditation and gentle yoga may help soothe symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a Reuters report.

In a study of 75 women with the digestive disorder, researchers found those assigned “mindfulness training” saw a bigger improvement in their symptoms over three months than women who were assigned to a support group.

The mindfulness training included lessons on meditation, gentle yoga postures and “body scanning,” in which people focus their attention on one body area at a time to detect muscle tension and other sensations.

Three months after the therapy ended, women who’d undergone mindfulness training, on average, had scores on a standard 500-point IBS symptom questionnaire that fell by more than 100 points, with a 50-point drop considered a “clinically significant” improvement, according to the report.

In contrast, women in the support group averaged a 30-point decline, according to results in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.

In other news, Dr. Gerard E. Mullin, M.D., author of “The Inside Tract,” posted a blog on Huffington Post offering his top 5 natural remedies for IBS:

  1. Stress reduction – He explained negative thoughts have a major effect on digestion, and recommended techniques such as meditation, deep breathing, yoga and even hypnosis.
  2. Diet – As food is a trigger for IBS, Dr. Mullin often puts patients on an elimination diet, cutting out common allergens, such as corn, soy, dairy and wheat, he said.
  3. Acupuncture – Dr. Mullin reported some research has found a link between acupuncture and the reduction of IBS symptoms.
  4. Peppermint Oil – This can calm intestinal spasms, and often provides “rapid relief” for those with IBS, Dr. Mullin stated, recommending people take capsules of it. “Look for enteric-coated peppermint oil and take 0.2 mL in capsule form two to three times per day with meals,” he said.
  5. Probiotics – Friendly bacteria, or probiotics, have also been found helpful in studies.

Celebrities Hit the Meditation Mat

Posted on by Tammy

The benefits of meditation are not lost on the celebrity crowd – that is why so many turn to the practice to keep them balanced, often attributing meditation to their continued success in all areas of life.

Supermodel, Elle Macpherson, told Radio Times she practices yoga and meditation daily for both her mind and body. In fact, she attributes her success to meditation and healthy eating – she follows a strict organic diet.

“I don’t run eight miles a day like I used to,” she told Radio Times. “I eat a lot of organic food and drink lots of water, and I take time for meditation to set up my day. Beauty comes from within.”

Fellow supermodel, Gisele Bundchen, also credits meditation for keeping her healthy – especially while she was pregnant to her son.

In January, actress Gwyneth Paltrow said her New Year’s resolution was to learn how to meditate, according to The Telegraph, and singing legend Tina Turner credits her Buddhist beliefs and her practice of meditation for giving her the strength to leave Ike Turner in the ‘70s, the report stated. Even singer, Katy Perry, says she often sits to practice meditation with her husband, comedian and actor, Russell Brand – who is devoted to the practice.

And that’s not all! Actor Steven Seagal moved to Japan at 17 years old and studied acupuncture and martial arts – and has practiced meditation for more than 27 years. Actor Orlando Bloom “credits meditation and the philosophies behind it for helping him to keep away from the self-destructive path so common in Hollywood,” according to the Telegraph. And actor Richard Gere – known for being a devout Buddhist and friend/follower of the Dalai Lama, believes meditating daily helps to motivate him.

Rivers Cuomo, who is the frontman in the rock band Weezer recently attended a 45-day meditation retreat, and director, David Lynch has not only been meditating for more than 35 years, but last year, he launched the David Lynch Foundation to teach students in urban areas the technique of Transcendental Meditation.

Other Transcendental Meditation devotees include hip hop mogul and author, Russell Simmons, who has been interviewed twice by Elevated Existence and also practices yoga, and George Harrison, who even introduced meditation to other Beatles.

Sting and his wife Trudie Styler also practice yoga and meditation, and the singer has said: “Yoga introduced me to a style of meditation. The only meditation I would have done before would be in the writing of songs,” according to The Telegraph.

Still confused on how to meditate or which method to choose? Read our Free Article on The Right Meditation for You!

Former Mets Player, Mike Piazza, Talks Faith

Posted on by Tammy

Former Mets baseball player, Mike Piazza, revealed how his faith helped him through his career and now his retirement in an interview with Bleacher Report.

“It just brings me a lot of peace,” Piazza said in the article. “It allows me to deal with the issues of my new challenges in life for being a husband and a father and having a family.”

He explained there was a point in his life where he began to focus on the “bigger picture,” and not just success in his career. He prayed during his baseball games, but told Bleacher Report it was not to win or succeed but to “do his best.”

“I just prayed to God to clear my mind and allow me to execute and do the best that I can,” Piazza said in the report. “If I got a hit or didn’t get a hit, it really was irrelevant to me. Success and failure is not necessarily measured in wins and losses or numbers.”

The former Mets player realized his ability to play baseball was a gift that he wanted others to share in, the report explained.

“Once we get to certain point in our lives, we need to internalize our success and really give thanks for why we are successful,” Piazza told the Bleacher Report. “A lot of those things are a spiritual gift.”

Raised Catholic, Piazza also believes faith is a gift. “We need to get back to roots and understand the path to true peace,” he said in the report. “Ultimately, if you look inside your own heart, you’ll find peace.”

Piazza gave an example of how his faith played an important role – the first game in New York after the terrorist attacks on 9/11.

“I remember specifically on the first base line when I first heard the bagpipes and I started to cry, I was saying to myself, ‘Please God, let me execute and do my job. Please help me hold it together.’”

It was during this game that he hit a home run in the eighth inning, which became know as the “Healing Power of a Swing,” according to the Bleacher Report.

“I truly believe that was divine intervention; that was God, or at least the Holy Spirit, working through me to calm me down, let me execute and do my job,” Piazza said in the report.

Mike Piazza will be entering the Hall of Fame in 2013.

Meditation Helps Special Needs Students Control Behavior

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The Benjamin Franklin Freshman Academy in Levittown, Pa. is taking part in a district program this summer to help 25 students – first grade through eighth – with special needs conditions such as autism and attention-deficit disorders (ADD), according to a report by Philly.com.

Students with these conditions often have difficulty reading the social cues of language, voice and behavior in others, and may react in inappropriate ways, as well as experience anxiety at a higher level, according to the report.

Occupational therapist Charles E. Gallagher, who studied Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and trained at the Mindfulness Institute at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, is teaching the children meditation techniques and deep breathing exercises to help them cope, according to the report.

“They feel out of control,” JoAnn Allison, the district’s supervisor of special education said in the report. She explained the strategies being taught help the children feel in control of both themselves and their surroundings.

Meditation can help children control anxiety enough to reduce medications they are taking, Christina DiNicola, a pediatrician with the Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine at Jefferson told Philly.com, explaining that early studies show “promising results” in children with ADD who practice yoga and biofeedback to relax.

New Show “A Gifted Man” Coming to CBS This Fall

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Imagine this: a successful surgeon reconnects with his ex-wife right before her sudden death … only to begin communicating with her spirit as she tries to teach him life lessons from beyond the grave.

This is the premise of a new CBS series called “A Gifted Man,” premiering in the fall and set to run on Friday evenings.
Two-time Tony award nominee Patrick Wilson, who will play the surgeon named Michael Holt; Tony nominee Pablo Schreiber; and two-time Tony winner Jennifer Ehle, who plays the ex-wife, have been cast in the new series, according to Deadline.com

Check out the video below to see a sneak peek of what is coming soon!

Yoga Enthusiasts Take Over Times Square

Posted on by Tammy

Organized by the Times Square Alliance, the annual yoga event “Mind over Madness,” took place yesterday in Times Square on Broadway and 48th Street in Manhattan — historically called ‘the crossroads of the world’ — to celebrate the first day of summer, and the longest day of the year.

Sponsored by Lucy Activewear, the first 1,000 attendees received a free yoga mat and gift bag, and the event offered three classes with local New York yoga instructors, as well as special guest speakers, including Nicole Nichols from Yoga Studies; Patrick Lynch from Bikram Yoga NYC; and Douglass Stewart from YogaWorks.

“We’re trying to create a little ocean or perhaps just a little lake or just a drop of serenity in the midst of all this madness,” Tim Tompkins of The Times Square Alliance said in a report by The Telegraph. “It’s an attempt, on the longest day of the year, when the sun is shining brightest, to tap into that energy and have it help carry us through the rest of the year.”

Watch the video below to see the amazing event in action!