MEDITATION - TUITION AND EXERCISES
DETAILS OF MY PRACTICAL MEDITATION CLASSESMeditation is suitable for all ages.
There are a number of advantages to individual learning:
- faster progress
- feedback, advice and support suited to an individual
- exercises tailored to individual needs and lifestyles
- opportunity to work on specific issues in privacy and confidentiality e.g insomnia, stress
COST OF INDIVIDUAL CLASS (75 MINS): £40
As I recommend 6 classes, in order to become proficient in meditation, I am offering a discount to keep the cost of your sessions down.
6 SESSIONS FOR THE PRICE OF 5: £200 (PAYABLE AT FIRST SESSION) - equivalent to £33 per session.
Please contact me if you wish to seek advice, or obtain further details.
KAREN YOUNG
TEL: 0208 742 0643
email:karendekowski@hotmail.com
MEDITATION WORKSHOP AT EARTHLIFE HOLISTIC CENTRE
This workshop aims - through practical life philosophy and simple meditation and relaxation exercises - to introduce participants to practices that can have a significant impact in reducing their stress levels and promoting their well-being. Better still, everything taught on this day can be incorporated into one's everyday life, easily and without spending more money!
Come and learn these techniques with Karen Young, who has practised and taught meditation for many years and who specialises, through many different complementary therapies, in stress management.
For more details about the benefits of meditation and the kind of practical exercises that I teach, please click onto the "Meditation Tuition/Exercises" heading.
SUNDAY 10 OCTOBER 2010: 10.30AM - 3.30PM
COST:£50
To Book: Please contact me direct:
KAREN YOUNG TEL: 020 8742 0643
email:karendekowski@hotmail.com
or EARTHLIFE on: 020 8940 0888
email: info@earth-life.co.uk
To visit their WEBSITE:CLICK HERE
I have written in more detail below on the kind of practical, straightforward approach I take, as well as the benefits that can be obtained from regular meditation. The section "Meditation Exercises" gives a flavour of the type of techniques that I teach.
I have developed a technique for teaching meditation that is not based on a particular philosophy, culture or religion. My teaching is centred on practical exercises offering wide choice. I work from the
premise that modern Western urban life brings its own particular stresses that can be tackled through specific exercises. Often these exercises can be incorporated into day-to-day life at home, in the office or on the move. My teaching includes:
Exploring breathing techniques
Working with the correct posture and bodyscan techniques
Understanding the principles of meditation
Short relaxation exercises
The theory of mindfulness
Positive visualisation
Working with music and sound
Muscle release exercises
Awakening the senses
Meditation for emotional health
Practical stress release in daily life
Setting one’s own personal meditation plan and goals
Gaining an understanding of the physiology of stress and relaxation
Meditation is a very safe practice that promotes a deep state of relaxation which is very beneficial to the body and mind. Hundreds of clinical tests in
recent years have demonstrated that these are some of the medical conditions that can SHOW IMPROVEMENT with regular meditation:
High blood pressure
Cardiovascular disease
Diabetes
Asthma
Allergies
Migraines and Headaches
Backache and Muscular Tension
Arthritis
Immune System illnesses e.g. M.E.
PMS
Insomnia
Emotional and Mental Benefits include:
Relief from anxiety
Inner calm and balance
Greater energy
Better focus and concentration
Improved relations with others
Greater creativity
For many years I worked within a corporate environment, rising to the level of managing director. I fully understand the stress of a demanding lifestyle, whilst having a busy home life as a parent.
Ten years ago, I decided to change work direction, to devote my time to a more holistic way of life. I now teach meditation and stress management from beginner to advanced level and from individuals to large groups. I have assisted as an adviser for a number of national magazines. I work primarily from home but have also worked with corporate groups leading workshops; as a tutor at the Earthlife holistic centre; with local G.P’s at their surgery and with local schools.
For further details, please click on "Practitioner Information".
Meditation is all about living in the present moment, in a focused, concentrated and mindful way; the practise of meditation can quite quickly bring significant changes to how we feel emotionally and physically. However for many people, getting started can seem daunting particularly as most feel that they have busy, ever chattering brains that are impossible to switch off. The following short exercises are designed to get you started in a comfortable way, boost your confidence and provide you with insights into how you breathe and how to recognise your thoughts. Later when you are meditating on a regular basis, many of these short exercises can be used as the starting block for a meditation or as a “mini meditation” when you have an opportunity during the day to seize the moment and “slow focus” things down. Before you start these exercises, make sure that you are in a comfortable position with your spine straight and supported by the lower half of your body.
When you are tense and anxious, the shoulders, upper chest and neck muscles are usually tight. Fast and shallow breathing often accompanies this physical tension. A sigh will often break the rhythm of this tight breathing and therefore release some physical tension; in fact it is the fastest way to initiate the relaxation process. For this exercise, breath in deeply, feeling the expansion of your lower ribs and diaphragm as well as your upper chest. As you breath out completely, release a sigh softly through your lips (it doesn’t have to be exaggerated in the way that you would let out a sigh of frustration!). Feel a natural pause as your abdomen softens even more. Hold the pause until you are ready to breathe in again. Repeat this two more times. This exercise can be carried out any place, at any time, whether standing up, sitting down or with your eyes open or closed. As each out breath gets deeper than the last, you will send messages to the brain that you are feeling relaxed and calm.
We know instinctively that the path to being more relaxed is to breath more deeply. However, so many of us have fallen into the habit of fast, shallow breathing that it is difficult for us to change. At first, the practice of breathing deep into the diaphragm can leave us feeling panicky and as though we are fighting for breath. It helps to stop thinking of breathing in and out in a vertical way; instead visualize each breath as expanding our belly horizontally (just like filling a concertina opening out with air) whilst each out- breath contracts our belly like the concertina expelling air and closing again. By concentrating on this visual image, we naturally fall into deeper, more rhythmic breathing without worrying about it.
All too often when we start learning to meditate, one of the problems we experience is an inability to recognise that we are thinking until we are deep into the process. This is hardly surprising as for most of our lives we have fallen into the habit of letting our thoughts dictate and set the pace. Meditation is all about letting go of our thoughts in order to focus on a given subject whilst being completely in the present.
This exercise is therefore a useful one for us to start recognising, naming and letting thoughts go. For the next 5 minutes sit quietly and wait for your thoughts to occur; as they do so put a name or category to them (without judgement) – it could be as simple as “work”, “past “, “future”, “food” and then gently let them go and wait for the next thought . It is often illuminating and empowering to recognise your thoughts in this way.
For this exercise simply focus on taking in a nice, easy breath and then releasing the out-breath, through your mouth, with a slight sigh. This naturally elongates the breath and lets go of physical tensions. Do this for about 10 times and then say very deliberately “let go” on each exhalation again for about another 10 times. Follow this up with saying “Relax” on each out-breath for a few minutes followed by the affirmation “Calm” on each exhalation. You should complete this exercise feeling balanced and focused.
Systematically focus on each muscle area of your body, starting with your scalp and continuing down your face to your forehead, temples, eyes, jaw, mouth. Continue through to your neck and shoulders, upper, middle and lower back and now through your arms to your hands. Extend your focus through your chest, abdomen, pelvic area, thighs, knees, calves and feet. If you feel tension at any point during your scan take an easy, slow breath in and then as your breathe out visualise the muscles in the particular area relaxing and releasing tension. On places of significant tension you may have to carry out the breathing and visualisation technique 2 or 3 times. This is also a wonderful exercise for listening to your body, since we all too often ignore it.
Frequently we have very little awareness of our breath; we have no idea whether we are breathing in a shallow, deep, fast, slow, relaxed or anxious way. We ignore the fact that our breathing changes in different situations and that it provides us with important messages about our emotions. This exercise is the first step to “mindfulness”, an awareness of yourself within the present moment. Sit quietly and comfortably and just observe your breath. Are you breathing through your mouth or your nose? Are you breathing quickly or slowly? Is there a natural pause between each breath or are you snatching the next in-breath? Does your breathing seem to stop around the upper chest or go deep into your diaphragm? As you sit and observe objectively and without judgement you will almost naturally fall into a slower, deeper breath at times (but it may also return to shallower breathing for a while - don’t worry about that as forcing your breath into a pattern is not what this exercise is about). You may also start enjoying the gentle movement of your body as you breathe in and out. Carry out this exercise for about 5 minutes.
Spend a minute placing all your focus on this raisin; looking at it, smelling it and feeling it. When you are ready, place it in your mouth and explore the texture with your tongue. When you finally bite into the raisin, savour the rush of flavour and saliva. Chew slowly, indulgently and then swallow. Of course, you can replace the raisin with any other item of food or drink if you wish, but always take your time and use all your senses. Try the same exercise with a small piece of intensely dark chocolate!
Put a drop of your favourite essential oil onto a tissue. Close your eyes and focus on observing your breath for a moment or two, to calm and still your mind. When thoughts crowd in, gently let them drift away. When you are ready, bring the tissue to your nose and inhale naturally and spontaneously 4 or 5 times. Let the aroma fill your nose and travel up to the limbic system in your brain. Be open to getting images or colours as you do this. Take the tissue away from your nose and carry out another minute or so of observing your breath, then repeat the process.
TEL: 0208 742 0643
Email:email:karendekowski@hotmail.com
