By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. In today’s Research News article “From contemplation to serenity: how yoga meditation improves the mental health of female college students” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11931514/ ) Liu and colleagues studied the effects of yoga meditation on the mental health of […]
Combined Meditation, Yoga, and Ethical Education have Additive Effects on Well-Being By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “When practiced together, yoga and meditation strengthen the connection between mind and body, thereby improving overall fitness and wellbeing.” – Peaceful Dragon Mindfulness training has been shown to improve health and well-being in healthy individuals and those with medical and psychiatric conditions, Similarly, yoga […]
Meditation Alters the Brain in Conjunction with Alterations of Awareness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “meditation nurtures the parts of the brain that contribute to well-being. Furthermore, it seems that a regular practice deprives the stress and anxiety-related parts of the brain of their nourishment.” – Mindworks Mindfulness training has been […]
What’s Wrong with Meditation 1 – Expectations By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “When you meditate, whether you know it or not, you unconsciously setup expectations or conditions. This starts off simple enough. You expect to relax, you expect to release tension from your muscles or core, you expect to find some relief […]
Reduce Stress and Improve Well-Being in Nursing Students with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “mindfulness meditation has a positive impact on nurses’ and nursing students’ stress, anxiety, depression, burnout, sense of well-being and empathy.” – Pamela van der Riet Stress is epidemic in the western workplace with almost two thirds […]
Improve Well-Being in Nurses with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “For nurses, many of them went into the field because of their ability to connect with people and make a difference in their lives. Mindfulness is a path to help us reconnect with what brings meaning to the profession. It brings […]
The Noble Eightfold Path – Right Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Buddhism began by encouraging its practitioners to engage in smrti (sati) or mindfulness, that is, developing a full consciousness of all about you and within you — whether seated in a special posture, or simply going about one’s life. This […]
The Noble Eightfold Path: Right Effort By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “The Fourfold Right Diligence is nourished by joy and interest. If your practice does not bring you joy, you are not practicing correctly.” – Thich Nhat Hahn In order to progress on the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path, effort must be […]
Let the Dharma Do You! By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “To truly be in the moment, to not be defined by expectation, requires mindful clarity; a heart conditioned by love, compassion, and empathetic joy for others; and equanimity that allows you to receive life however it unfolds. This can inspire and orient […]
Improve Emotional Well-Being with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Mindfulness is about offering a warm, kind, friendly, accepting awareness to your moment-by-moment experience (all positive emotions), whatever that may be. For this reason, any practice of mindfulness, in the long term, develops your ability to generate positive feeling towards your inner […]