Change Gene Expression to Lessen the Effects of Chronic Stress with Mind-Body Practices By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Millions of people around the world already enjoy the health benefits of mind-body interventions like yoga or meditation, but what they perhaps don’t realise is that these benefits begin at a molecular level and […]
Ease Medical Student Stress with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “I realized that the majority of my stress was self-generated. I put an inordinate amount of pressure on myself to succeed and get work done. Luckily, through mindfulness techniques, I gained some serious insight as to what makes me tick. I […]
Reduce Insomnia with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Dr. Benson recommends practicing mindfulness during the day, ideally for 20 minutes, the same amount suggested in the new study. “The idea is to create a reflex to more easily bring forth a sense of relaxation,” he says. That way, it’s easier to […]
Improve Health in the Elderly with Yoga By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Yoga, especially restorative yoga, can also offer a wide array of health benefits—working physical and psychological wonders. Seniors, who often struggle with pain, joint stress, imbalance, osteoarthritis, and other physical limitations, can benefit from incorporating a yoga practice into their daily […]
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 […]
Improve Adolescent Mental Health and School Performance with Yoga By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “school-based yoga cultivates competencies in mind-body awareness, self-regulation, and physical fitness. And classroom teachers benefit as well. Taken together, these competencies may lead to improvements in students’ behavior, mental state, health, and performance, as well as teacher resilience, […]
Reduce Negative Emotions and Stress Sensitivity with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Mindfulness training teaches people to be fully attentive to their present experience in a nonjudgmental way, which is believed to help reduce the rumination common to mood disorders. A mindful perspective teaches people how to apply a brake between […]
Reduce Prison Recidivism with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Mindfulness training helps youth consider more adaptive alternatives. It creates a gap between triggers for offending behavior and their responses. They learn to not immediately act out on impulse, but to pause and consider the consequences of a potential offending and high […]
Improve Fatigue and Multiple Sclerosis Psychological Symptoms with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “mindfulness may help people better respond to stress by fostering healthier coping strategies. For example, study participants who reported higher levels of mindfulness were less likely to rely on coping strategies, such as denial, disengagement and self-blame. They […]
Improve Mental Health in the Elderly with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “The interconnectedness of mind and body lies at the heart of mindfulness and this makes it highly relevant to older people who are more likely to experience physical health problems with associated psychological issues such as reduced mobility and depression. It […]