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Meditation for Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson's is a neurological condition that causes problems in the brain and gets progressively worse over time. There are around 150,000 people currently living with Parkinson’s in the UK. Nobody knows what causes it, but stress appears to play a significant role in its long-term development. Beeja meditation helps ease the burden of living with Parkinson’s, and slow down its rate of advance, by radically reducing stress.
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The problem
Nobody yet knows what causes Parkinson’s. Whatever the cause, or causes, stress appears to play a significant role in its long-term development, either as a source, or a catalyst. Major stress events such as the death of a loved one can often usher in its onset almost overnight.
Parkinson’s is a complex condition and may affect each of us very differently.
However, the main motor symptoms include: shaking tremors, slowness of movement, muscle stiffness, slurred speech.
There are many other non motor symptoms too, including trouble sleeping, problems with memory and mental health issues.
The fact that Parkinson’s is a degenerative disease can be extremely stressful in itself for those who’ve been diagnosed, which unfortunately only goes to make symptoms worse.
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How it affects you
People with Parkinson's are not able to produce enough of the chemical dopamine because some of the nerve cells that make it have died.
It’s thought that these changes are brought about by a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
Dopamine is essential for movement, as it allows messages to be sent to the parts of the brain that coordinates our body.
Without sufficient dopamine, these parts of the brain stop working normally and symptoms of Parkinson’s appear. The dopamine levels continue slowly falling, causing symptoms to worsen over time.
Cognitive functioning may also become impaired.
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How can Beeja help?
Meditation can help to treat Parkinson’s on a number of levels.
MRI scans have shown that meditation activates the region in the brain responsible for autonomic functioning, and brings balance to the autonomic nervous system (the part of the nervous system responsible for control of the bodily functions not consciously directed, such as breathing, digestion and so on). This enables it to function at its best.
Beeja meditation also helps cleanse us of harmful toxins that have been stored up in the cells of our body.
Meditation is also a powerful stress management tool, which prevents the unravelling of chromosomes, and minimises the progress of degenerative conditions that may be caused by stress. It may also facilitate repair of the cells of the nervous system by enabling our bodies rest and repair at such a profoundly deep level.
There is also a great deal of enhanced cognitive activity and functioning when we meditate, which helps us to maintain cognitive capabilities in the face of degenerative forces.
Meditation also tends to increase our production of and sensitivity to dopamine. As a result, cases of depression tend to lift. It’s likely that the loss of motor skills will greatly improve, making life with Parkinson’s disease significantly easier.
Meditation also provides something uplifting and edifying, so even when our bodies may be inhibited by the confines of a degenerative condition, our internal sense of well-being is greatly enhanced.
This simple physical therapy for Parkinson’s requires no effort physically or mentally, and helps us feel a sense of peace, freedom and satisfaction.
Anecdotally, many sufferers who have tried mantra-based meditation have minimised disease development or reported a partial reversal of symptoms. And a few have experienced all but complete recoveries.
We would like very much to contribute to further research in this area. If you are a medical researcher or practitioner who is keen to undertake a study into the effects of meditation on Parkinson’s, we would be very happy to participate
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Upcoming courses
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Reviews
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“The only way I don’t move, in even the subtlest ways, is when I’m sleeping... I’m the same way when I do meditation. If I do it sincerely, then my brain slows down enough that my body gets still.”
Michael J Fox, Actor & founder Michael J Fox Foundation
"..I managed to switch off for long enough to get that floaty feeling people from Brighton swear by."
"I have a lifelong tool that has brought me calm, clarity and increased creativity"
"I've noticed that I’m no longer ruled by emotions – I can see when I’m angry or frustrated without being in that feeling.”
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