Adding to the list of conditions that can be improved by meditation, researchers at the University of Missouri say that breast cancer survivors can use a meditation-based technique to improve their emotional and physical well-being.
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a program design to instill in patients a sense of hope and of control over their own lives—something cancer survivors often lack. Despite survival rates being higher than ever before, women with breast cancer continue to face challenges both physical and emotional during treatment and long after treatment ends. Depression, one ailment MBSR aims to address, is experienced by nearly 50 percent of cancer survivors, according to some research.
A group therapy, MBSR typically lasts eight to ten weeks and consists of sessions where participants discuss the effects of stress on the body and learn a variety of coping techniques. Central to the program is group meditation practice, giving each participant a chance to learn and teach the skills that seem to work for her.
Among the benefits of MBSR are lowered heart rate and blood pressure, improved mood, and a heightened sense of mindfulness, which would often last long after the classes ended.
While pleased with the success of MBSR, The team at the University of Missouri is quick to add that cancer patients should seek out a variety of depression-reducing options and choose the one that works best for them. The team was just glad to be able to provide another potential tool. MBSR is best administered side-by-side traditional treatments like chemotherapy and radiation.
Source: Medical News Today
Photo by John Nyboer
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