This issue is in keeping with the annual theme of April in the Northern Hemisphere—new beginnings, a time of nourishment, growth, and promise. Starting in April, our mini magazines offer a list of ways to renew ourselves and delve into richer experiences of consciousness with the programs of TM for Women.
Last month’s blog written by women for women
Articles
Courses coming up
April is called Stress Awareness Month
Q&A: How does the TM technique help women and girls engage in sports
What women say: Tamron Hall says, “I was looking for a way to find balance….”
Twice-monthly we post new articles on our blog. You can visit our blog homepage to search for any topic. If you haven’t read the March 2024 posts, the links are below.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi began his journey as a seeker of spiritual wisdom and blossomed into the status of a great spiritual leader, foremost Vedic scholar, and scientist of consciousness.
Anne-Marie Lepore PhD is a New York State licensed psychologist and neuropsychologist who specializes in treating people with neurological conditions and in trauma-informed therapy. She is also a professional coach for “helping professionals,” assisting them in balancing their self-care to achieve their personal goals and to help others in her practice.
Since 1992, April has Been Called “Stress Awareness Month”
According to such institutions as The American Institute of Stress and the National Institutes of Health, April has the dubious distinction of reminding us how stressed we are and that we ought to do something about it.
In fact, it’s impossible not to notice that stress has become a societal epidemic—a collective phenomenon rooted in the damaging behavior of high numbers of stressed individuals. Crime, the drug culture, schools-at-risk, veterans with PTSD, health care costs, and domestic violence are just a few of the social issues we face that are caused or aggravated by stress. And stress starts in the individual—with you and me.
There will undoubtedly be times when life seems stressful. Stress is caused by the way we react to various factors and it can create physiological damage if it remains unchecked. When stress accumulates, the toll we pay is in our marriage, family life, friendships, and career.
If you are unaware that you are stressed mentally, physically or emotionally, there are red flags to tip you off. For example, the Mayo Clinic lists
Anxiety
Depression
Digestive problems
Headaches
Muscle tension and pain
Heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure and stroke
Sleep problems
Weight gain
Problems remembering and focusing
Reduced creativity and productivity at work
Reduce unhealthy ways of managing stress, such as using alcohol, tobacco, drugs or excess food, as these can increase the imbalance in your health. Instead, maintain a healthy diet, exercise regime, and get sufficient sleep. Take time for hobbies, music, socializing. Organize your home and prioritize tasks. Reach out to help others. And learn the TM technique.
Transcendental Meditation has been shown by repeated published research conducted over decades to be an effortless and effective stress-buster for everyone.
TM for Women’s Upcoming Offerings
For everyone-
Starting on June 18th: Maharishi Ayurveda: Self-Care through Prevention course – This course is online, learner paced with weekly one hour instructor video conferencing for five weeks. The student learns the role that Consciousness plays in health and learns specific Maharishi Ayurveda mind/body modalities to improve health and well-being. For more information: educationdirector@tm-women.org
For TM meditators-
April 23rd-28th: five-night in-residence retreat – To be held at the Raj and Raj Manor in Fairfield, Iowa. Dive deep into experiences and knowledge of oneself and the universe with extended periods of meditation and profound knowledge on the theme of Ties to the Universe. For more information, email jhoffman@tm-women.org
Beginning the week of September 23rd: Ties to the Universe online course. Two 75-minute evening Zoom meetings each week for eight weeks. This is a beautiful course about the 16 fundamental principles operating throughout the universe. For more information, email jhoffman@tm-women.org
TM Group Meditation calls on Zoom are every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday afternoon. Each meditation session is followed by an optional short talk by a certified TM teacher. Email to educationdirector@tm-women.org to find out more about timing and to register.
Q: Will practicing Transcendental Meditation improve athletic ability?
A: Springtime beckons and outdoor sports are appealing to us once more, especially if we have kept ourselves in shape.
Athletic performance really has a foundation in genetics and environmental causes. But lifestyle and conditioning can greatly improve it. Focused professional athletes may compete and can make a career of it, but everyone can engage in sports as a hobby.
Many physical traits help determine an individual’s athletic ability, but foremost is the strength of muscles used for movement (skeletal muscles). Women who participate in sports, from biking to swimming to running to tennis, can condition their bodies and improve their capacity through proper diet and hydration, working out regularly, varying workouts, and strength training.
According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, by age 14 girls drop out of sports at two times the rate of boys for many reasons, but support for girls’ athletics is growing. Participation in sports is healthy for women—for example, the WSF cites six studies that show that High School female athletes have more positive body images than non-athletes.
Many studies agree that physical decline in sporting performance starts between the ages of 35 and 60. From 70-75 years of age, there is a sharp decline. Yet women of all ages who have learned the Transcendental Meditation technique find that their physical and mental skills can still improve.
For example,
TM’s stress-reducing effects are a big asset for performance and for recovery.
The deep relaxation during TM relieves fatigue and then energy increases.
Due to the profound rest, the body’s own healing mechanisms can repair wear-and-tear more rapidly.
Neuroscience has shown in research that TM leads to higher brain integration, which can be correlated with peak athletic performance.
Faster reaction time.
Increased self-efficacy (one’s belief in her ability to accomplish a task).
When the coaches introduced the Transcendental Meditation program to the women’s squash team at Trinity College, benefits were obvious. Team members said:
“It helped me more getting into the zone. Being in the zone is important for an athlete because that’s the point where you can perform at your best level.”
“I would definitely recommend TM for athletes. It’s just a centered place you can go when you’re competing and you’re under a lot of pressure.”
Click here to watch a video about the Trinity College Women’s Squash team’s experience with the TM program.
Tamron Hall is an Emmy-award winning television talk show host, journalist, and author. In an interview published in marie claire, she related how the TM technique is effortless, unlike many other meditation techniques:
“I do Transcendental Meditation…. I think in general meditation is something that people believe they can’t do because the first time you ever tried it or thought about it, you sat down and then your mind started to go through your grocery list and all the other distractions that enter the mind. It can leave someone feeling that they’re not capable of slowing their mind down and with Transcendental Meditation, it’s quite the opposite….
“Fifteen years ago on New Year’s Eve, my friend who was living in New York at the time said, ‘Let’s do something different.’ I was living a very chaotic life, and not in a negative way, but work was just really extreme. I felt that I was moving at this really intense pace. I was looking for a way to find balance and I found it with Transcendental Meditation.”
Editor’s note: We’d love to hear your comments on the benefits you’ve received from the TM practice. And, with your permission, we’ll publish them here for other women to enjoy. Send your comment to info@tm-women.org
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