Concentrative and Active Meditation
Meditation has benefits for everyone. It can be a potent weapon in the fight to battle mental health disorders. It also enables practitioners to think positively, which is often not the brain’s state of being.
Meditation has benefits for everyone. According to Psychology Today Cathy Malchiodi, PhD several studies using Magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs) have shown that meditation can cause physical changes in the brain that help people conquer negative feelings such as anger and fear and mental health disorders including depression and anxiety.
Speaking at a National Alliance on Mental Illness workshop, University of Pennsylvania therapist Dr. Mark Robert Waldman, stated that there are two main types of meditation: concentrative and active. Concentrative meditation focuses the attention on the breath, an image, or a sound (mantra), in order to still the mind and allow a greater awareness and clarity to emerge.
The simplest form of concentrative meditation is to sit quietly and focus the attention on the breath. Meditation experts believe that there is a direct correlation between one's breath and one's state of the mind. For example, when a person is anxious, frightened, agitated, or distracted, the breath will tend to be shallow,
When the mind is calm, focused, and composed, the breath will tend to be slow, deep, and regular. Focusing the mind on the continuous rhythm of inhalation and exhalation creates a more tranquil and aware state.
Concentrative meditation originated in the Eastern hemisphere and its techniques are often incompatible with the hectic pace of Western lifestyles. Many people can’t sit long enough to achieve a meditative state. They have a difficult time pushing the worries of the day out of their minds and begin to focus on work or family life.
For these individuals there is a form of the practice known as active meditation, which is easier to learn and achieve than concentrative meditation. Active meditation focuses attention on simple tasks that require repetitive motion. Concentrating this way replaces negative thoughts and creates an inner state of peace.
Coloring as Therapy
One of the most effective forms of active meditation is coloring. According to Michelle Normand, an active mediation instructor, the choosing of colors and the gentle, repetitive movement of coloring focuses the brain on the current moment, thereby blocking fleeting thoughts. In addition, many colors, such as blue and green, can be very calming.
While many adults are reluctant to pick up an activity usually associated with grade schoolers, once they try it they find it easy and fun. Normand notes that coloring enables people to tap their creative side, something adults rarely do. It also generates a rewarding sense of accomplishment and positive feelings, which release endorphins, the brain’s “feel-good” chemicals.
Coloring is most beneficial when people pay attention to each pencil or crayon stroke and use color combinations that complement each other.
Mandalas and Their Benefits for Brain Health
Especially fun and rewarding are the complex designs know as mandalas. A mandala, which is Sanskrit for “circle” or “completion,” is an intricate, circular picture designed to be painted or colored. Mandalas have been a part of many cultures for centuries. Dr. Waldman noted that most mandalas use symmetry to create a sense of balance that is very beneficial for the brain.
According to Cathy Wong, licensed naturopathic doctor and alternative medicine writer, researchers at the University of California at Irvine Center and the University of Pennsylvania have used mandalas to help cancer patients ward off the anxiety and depression that often accompany a life-threatening or terminal illness. In addition, mandalas have been used to help smokers quit the habit. Coloring occupies the hands much like knitting, which many smokers take up when they’re quitting
Most book stores now carry mandala coloring books made especially for adults. To learn more about mandalas, a good place to start is mandalaofthemonth.com, which offers free downloadable mandalas. A Suite101.com article on creating mandalas from scratch can be found here.
Sources
Mandala artwork courtesy of Maureen Frank, the mandala lady. www.mandalaofthemonth.com
Malchiodi, Cathy. “Color Art Therapy Intervention #6: Mandala drawing”, March 17th, 2010, psychologytoday.com
Notes from National Alliance for the Mentally Ill seminar on meditation by Dr. Mark Robert Walden, April 14th, 2009.
Normand, Michelle. 30minutemandalas.com, accessed April 22nd, 2010
Wong, Cathy. “Coloring Mandalas as a Meditation Technique,” February 7th, 2006, altmedicine.about.com
Hazard, Howard, Program Coordinator, “Jo’s Place,” South County Mental Health Center, Delray Beach, FL
John Fixmer - My name is John Fixmer and I currently work at a large health complex north of Miami, Florida. My background is in psychology and ...
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