Monthly Archives: April 2012
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Posted: April 27, 2012Read more »
I listened to your guided imagery program for Caregiver Stress for months as I walked an arduous path with my dearest love of 40 years, as she contended with the stresses and strains of chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. It was not easy. She is now thankfully in remission.
Voice, music and words provided exactly what I needed, and therefore what we needed. The intense fear, doubt, suffering, emotional exhaustion etc etc of the care partner is unacknowledged, ignored, swept under the rug. -
Posted: April 27, 2012Read more »
Researchers from the Puget Sound Health Care System in Seattle, Washington conducted a meta-analysis on whether cognitive behavioral therapy is more efficacious than medication for depressive disorders vs. anxiety disorders.
The investigators selected randomized controlled studies comparing CBT and pharmacotherapy, with or without placebo, in adults with major depressive or anxiety disorders. -
Posted: April 27, 2012Read more »
A woman who has been on chemo for cancer is now facing surgery, then more chemo. She was given a stack of CDs but wonders when to use what, and if it’s a mistake to listen to everything at once. Here is her question.
Question:
I have been on chemotherapy for breast cancer for the last 7 weeks. A few days ago I found the chemo imagery that was given to me when I started. (I wasn't exactly keeping up with everything.) Surgery is in 5 days. I was wondering, is it wasteful to incorporate several CDs at once into the process (e.g. the Cancer, the Surgery, and the Chemotherapy CD) or should I just stick with the Chemo tape? I'm going back on the Chemo immediately after.
Debbie -
Posted: April 27, 2012Categories: Update from Health JourneysRead more »
This has been a year of many, many interruptions, and I apologize for my sluggishness in delivering the goods on the promised TBI imagery. The writing is almost done and I’ll be recording that ‘ere long. Sorry!
We’re almost ready to add our newest improvement on the Sleep App – the timer function that allows you to program it to shut off after a chosen amount of playing time – or just have it play forever. So stay tuned for that.
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Posted: April 22, 2012Read more »
Hi Belleruth,
Do you do custom-recordings (guided imagery, etc.)?
I have some teeth roots damaged in a bicycle accident a year ago and suffered panic attacks in the dentist chair, so the roots were then just left un-worked… Then and there I got temporary acrylic teeth installed, but in a partially broken status.
My panic story has been a whole other thing to deal with, appearing at different times in my life, always having to do with physical restrictions, as in the dentist’s chair. I also purchased your panic attack recording.
At this point, I am looking for visual imagery meditations on my teeth roots in order to recover them naturally.
I made a very long story very short with respect to your time. As you can imagine, this is an extremely intense issue for me (in fact so big that it has taken me on a soul-path along with other major things happening in my life).
I will be deeply grateful for your reply.
Many thanks and blessings,
Sander -
Posted: April 22, 2012Read more »
Researchers from Bright Path Yoga in Plano, Texas looked at the efficacy of an 8-week strategy of using yoga and meditation to help manage fibromyalgia symptoms, which typically consist of widespread pain, sleep disturbance, stiffness, fatigue, headache, and mood disorders.
The small pilot study looked at the impact of this program on 11 participants.
Results revealed significant improvement in the overall health status of the participants and in symptoms of stiffness, anxiety, and depression. Significant improvements were also seen in the reported number of days "felt good" and number of days "missed work" because of fibromyalgia. -
Posted: April 22, 2012Categories: Inspiring StoryRead more »
We were all delighted to get this exuberant news from Melissa H, who delivered her beautiful baby girl after a dicey pregnancy. We first heard about this from her doula, Robin Younger, CD, PCD (DONA).
But we’ll let her speak for herself. Here she is:I was Robin Younger's client as mentioned prior. I did in fact listen to your CD's several weeks prior to my delivery of my beautiful baby girl. I had been trying for seven years unsuccessfully with three miscarriages before I had Sophia. I even tried IVF unsuccessfully.
My pregnancy at the beginning was going so smoothly until the 26th week when complication after complication arose. There was a potential that Sophia too would not make it. As you can imagine, my stress levels increased as well as my blood pressure - preclampsia became an issue along with other issues.
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Posted: April 22, 2012Categories: Update from Health JourneysRead more »
So, hello again.
Cindy tells me that our new Summer/Fall Catalog is in the mail, so unless you’ve told us you’re on a no-paper diet, you’ll be seeing it in your mailbox over the next week or so.We’re pretty happy with the new resources in it. I may as well mention a few here. Many of you already know we’re forever being asked to carry more imagery made specifically for teenagers. Last year we really scored with Shambala Self Esteem for Teens by Mellisa Dormoy – people just loved it. So now we’re adding her Shambala Stress Management for Teens CD, with its calming, empowering combination of guided meditations and affirmations that target adolescent angst with her perfect sensitivity and pitch.
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Posted: April 16, 2012Read more »
We found this inspiring testimonial to the power of guided imagery on an Amazon review, describing someone’s response to the Healing Trauma imagery. It supports our repeated observation that guided imagery that targets PTS is very effective for old and deep wounds and the painful attitudes and self-percepts that get built around them. Here’s the comment: “After a lifetime of dealing with a genetic disease that killed half my family, I didn't think any kind of meditation could make any difference at all. I had come to a point of being so depressed and angry and feeling that life is so unfair and hopeless for some people.“I grew up in fundamentalist churches in the Deep South where I was taught that my ancestors had sinned against God, and God put a curse on my family, and we would all keep dying until God was over his anger. I can't even begin to express what kind of damage this does to a child already struggling with overwhelming circumstances in a family.
“Although I grew up and realized eventually that it was nonsense, I think that kind of teaching takes hold in the subconscious and is very hard to really overcome. I went to bed and started listening to this CD--expecting nothing really, and I don't think I even made it into a full minute before I could feel tears squeezing out & rolling down my face, and before long I was just crying. It happens every time I listen, but I feel lighter afterwards and not so weighed down with pain. I also don't feel so tired. I love this meditation, find it very calm & soothing…”
A.W. from Virginia -
Posted: April 16, 2012Read more »
Researchers from Leipzig University in Germany mounted a pilot to see if treatment over the internet, with therapist support, could remediate trauma symptoms suffered by Iraqi civilians in conflict areas. (Web-based treatment is badly needed, as ongoing violence has driven many of Iraq’s physicians and mental health professionals out of the country.)
A therapist-supported cognitive-behavioral treatment manual* that has been evaluated in Western countries was translated into Arabic and culturally adapted to the population. The treatment was conducted via the Internet by Arabic-speaking therapists and was evaluated in an uncontrolled pilot study with 15 participants.
Main outcome measures were PTSD (Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale - PDS), depression, anxiety (Hopkins Symptom Check List-25 (HSCL-25)), and quality of life (EUROHIS).
