Keep Stress from Managing You in the New Year
Keep Stress from Managing You in the New Year
Northwestern Integrative Medicine offers mindful meditation course
Chicago - The hustle and bustle of the holidays can be an exciting, yet often hectic time for people. Stress associated with busier than usual schedules and competing engagements can easily mount, making it difficult for people to find time to unwind, relax and regroup. Northwestern Integrative Medicine experts warn that over time, stress has a significant impact on health and well-being, making it important to find ways to manage tension before it manages you.
“Stress can lead to sleep loss, chronic pain and feeling distracted,” said Maggie Crowley, PsyD, health psychologist at Northwestern Integrative Medicine. “We all need to find ways to decompress both body and mind to regain a sense of ease and well-being.”
Crowley will lead a course called Guided Mindful Meditation beginning January 11 designed to help people alleviate anxietyand stress and cultivate a sense of well-being. Through guided meditation, participants will learn the concepts of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, which includes elements of meditation and yoga. By becoming more aware of their stress, as well as the connection between the mind and body, participants can achieve balance in their lives.
Research has shown that meditation can have a favorable impact on physical symptoms of stress including headache, fatigue and high blood pressure.
“Our goal is to create a calm environment where people can experience the relaxing benefits of meditation,” said Crowley.
Each one hour class will include guided meditation, movement and discussion about what people are experiencing. The six-week course is open to adults of all ages who may be experiencing stress, chronic pain or illness, as well as those generally looking to improve their health. Participants will receive a meditation mat and cushion as part of their registration fee.
Penny Boyle, a library technical services manager who suffers from arthritis and insomnia, participated in the course’s fall session and credits the mindful meditation techniques she learned for relieving her symptoms and overall stress.
“Because of the class, I’ve begun to believe in the value of meditation. It inspired me to seek recordings for meditation that I’ve used to fight my insomnia,” said Boyle. “Now, when I’m stressing about something, I refocus my mind away from the problem or future worry to be mindful of my surroundings and I can feel the tension leave.”
Additional information about the Guided Mindful Meditation course can be found online or by calling 312-926-8400.
For more information about Northwestern Integrative Medicine or complementary approaches to stress reduction visit NMPG online or call 312-926-DOCS.
###
About Northwestern Memorial HealthCare
Northwestern Memorial HealthCare is the parent corporation of Chicago’s Northwestern Memorial Hospital, an 894-bed academic medical center hospital and Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital, a 205-bed community hospital located in Lake Forest, Illinois.
About Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Northwestern Memorial is one of the country’s premier academic medical center hospitals and is the primary teaching hospital of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Along with its Prentice Women’s Hospital and Stone Institute of Psychiatry, the hospital comprises 894 beds, 1,603 affiliated physicians and 7,144 employees. Northwestern Memorial is recognized for providing exemplary patient care and state-of-the art advancements in the areas of cardiovascular care; women’s health; oncology; neurology and neurosurgery; solid organ and soft tissue transplants and orthopaedics.
Northwestern Memorial possesses nursing Magnet Status, the nation’s highest recognition for patient care and nursing excellence. It is also listed in 13 clinical specialties in U.S. News & World Report’s 2011 “America’s Best Hospitals” guide and ranks No. 1 in Chicago in the 2011 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals metro area rankings. For 12 years running, Northwestern Memorial has been rated among the “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” guide by Working Mother magazine. The hospital is a recipient of the prestigious National Quality Health Care Award and has been chosen by Chicagoans as the Consumer Choice according to the National Research Corporation’s annual survey for 11 years.