With an epidemic of stress in schools, Transcendental Meditation may provide a solution
by Global Good News staff writer

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6 August 2013

Transcendental Meditation acts as a 'surge protector' from stress, said Norman Rosenthal, MD, clinical professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical School.

Dr Rosenthal explained to an audience of educators at a national education summit that of five different stress management techniques, Transcendental Meditation (TM) was clearly the superior method.

Dr Rosenthal spoke in support of Quiet Time, an educational programme in which students are given time morning and afternoon to practise Transcendental Meditation or to sit quietly. He showed a meta-analysis of five stress management techniques and their effect on blood pressure. Most techniques led to a decrease in stress levels, but Transcendental Meditation was the most effective by a wide margin.

'What's happening to people throughout the day, children and adults alike,' explained Dr Rosenthal, 'is that we're being bombarded with these stressors. They're causing our blood pressure and our hormones and our neurotransmitters to surge in an unhealthy way.'

However, peer-reviewed research suggests that practising Transcendental Meditation safeguards against such high levels of stress.

Dr Rosenthal continued, 'I would suggest that Transcendental Meditation is acting as a surge protector. And truly these data in the cardiovascular area are unique. There is no other form of meditation that has this kind of long-term data associated with it, which indicates the very direct, potent, and consequential effects of stress reduction from TM.'

But is a stress-reduction technique really needed in schools?

The retired superintendent of a west coast school district in the USA says yes.

'I've been a principal, elementary, middle, and high school teacher. I've worked all levels. . . . I know what happens in the classroom,' he began.

He spoke of kids in every classroom in the United States who have their heads down, who are distracted. 'They are just ''out of it'' while you're trying to teach. Why? Because of their life; because of their stress.'

The superintendent added that, through Quiet Time, the students in his district gained a method of stress relief that improved their quality of education and quality of life.

See related articles:
∙ Quiet Time works in schools regardless of religion, background, or belief
∙ Russell Simmons: If you want your kids to learn, teach them to meditate
∙ New David Lynch Foundation video shows power of Quiet Time in schools

* Dr Rosenthal is also the author of several books, including the New York Times bestseller Transcendence, and the newly published The Gift of Adversity.

Copyright © 2013 Global Good News Service



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