Meditation…….It’s not what you think.

by Steve O'Sullivan

I’ve been practicing meditation for over 10 years now, the keyword there being practice. I’m certainly no Guru or Buddhist monk that has sat in quite contemplation for those 10 years. I’m just your average guy seeking some spiritual connection.

So, here’s the short version of my experience in tapping into the Divine.

The first time I “attempted” to meditate was with a group of my peers and it was a 5 minute quiet meditation. I thought my head was going to catch on fire or maybe even explode! Five minutes might as well have been 5 hours. The “committee” inside my head would not shut up. My brain shouted “You will never be able to meditate!”

Thus began my quest for an easy way to quiet my mind and get into a meditative state.
I ran out and bought several books on meditation and some guided meditation CD’s. My first great success was with one of these simple guided meditations. WOW! I actually “left my body” and connected to my higher power, it was so…….well, POWERFUL.

I continued to experiment with various forms of meditation and sought out as many teachers as I could find. There were so many I can’t cover them all here, but I’ll tell you more in future articles. After some years I found several methods that worked well for me. Here are a few of them.

• Sound based meditation CD’s


• Chanting


• Short (3 to 5 minute) meditations focused on feeling good.

Before I explain these techniques I use, I want you to understand what the benefits of meditation are and what you can expect when you practice regularly.

5 Physiological Benefits of Meditation

• A decreased metabolic rate and lower heart rate.
• Lowered levels of cortisol and lactate (stress related chemicals).
• Lowering of high blood pressure.
• Drop in cholesterol levels.
• Decreases the aging process.

5 Psychological Benefits of Meditation

• Decreased anxiety and depression.
• Decreased irritability and moodiness
• Improved learning ability and memory.
• Increased feelings of vitality and rejuvenation.
• Increased happiness and better outlook on life.

5 Spiritual Benefits of Mediation

• Experience an inner sense of knowing
• Ability to connect with Universal Love
• Ability to release negative feelings from the past
• Overall experience of well being and abundance
• Deeper understanding and fulfillment of purpose

Not bad, huh? So here is a little bit about my favorite forms of meditation. The sound based meditations work by inducing brainwaves that mimic the meditative state. It sounds kind of scary, but I promise you it doesn’t hurt! I won’t discuss the whole technology behind this, just know that it works. You can read more about this and listen to a sample of The Chi of Love Meditation CD at http://www.thechioflovecd.com/ .

Wayne Dyer has a fantastic CD called “Meditations for Manifesting” that contains the OM and the AH meditation chants. I used to think chanting was sort of freaky and foreign until I tried it, it’s actually awesome! My personal favorite is the AH meditation. Dr. Dyer explains that AH is the sound of God, and goes on the explain how to do this meditation and offers some affirmative statements to contemplate while chanting. After 20 minutes of chanting AHHHHHH, my whole body vibrates and I feel incredible. I can’t tell you how amazing this is, I highly recommend it!

The short feeling meditations I do are based on the teachings of Abraham as channeled through Esther Hicks. I had some pre-conceived notions about this kind of far out spiritual stuff (channeling, non-physical entities, etc), but I found that prejudice and spirituality don’t mix. Remember, your mind is like a parachute, it works best when open. So anyway, you simply sit and concentrate on how you would feel if you had certain things that you want such as more money, the perfect relationship or a great job. Quick, easy and effective.


Here are 5 keys to remember about meditation.

1. Anyone can meditate - If I can do it, you can do it.
2. There’s really no wrong way - Whatever works for you is the right way.
3. It takes practice - Schedule some time everyday, just do it, but don’t judge the quality of your experience. It really is “all good”.
4. You don’t have to sit for hours - 3 to 5 minutes can be enough to make huge changes in your life and health.
5. Meditation will make your life better - You can improve your physical, mental and spiritual well being with one simple activity.

So my friends, give meditation a whirl. Try some of the techniques I’ve mentioned above or try some of your own. I’ll be offering up more methods and insights to this worthwhile activity in the near future. In the mean time, Namaste.

© Copyright 2007 - Steve O'Sullivan

Author, speaker, and teacher Steve O’Sullivan has been studying and practicing meditation for over ten years and is the creator of The Chi of Love Meditation CD.

Health and Healing from Within

By Dr. Suzanne M. Lowe, D.C.

Essential Care Chiropractic

The chiropractic profession believes the human body has the ability to heal itself but there is a caveat to that belief. Chiropractic teaches that the body’s nerves are the key to overall health and the spine is the nervous system’s conduit or protective housing. It that conduit is out of alignment – what is known as a subluxation – nerves may become impinged upon causing pain but more significantly, a potential interference to organs and body systems that rely on unobstructed nerve pathways to function properly. It is this relationship that allows our profession to say “the structure of your spine, impacts the function of your body”.

I graduated from Life Chiropractic College West in Hayward, CA in June of 2000 as class Valedictorian. My continuing education is in the specialty field of family care which enables me to provide the latest in chiropractic care to my patients who have ranged in age from 24 HOURS old to 88 years old. My passion lies in the special chiropractic concerns of children, including special needs children and prenatal/postnatal care. (Although I do have a lot of Dads who want to experience chiropractic with the rest of their family! )

I most often hear the question “Chiropractic for kids - why?” Hopefully over the next series of articles I will make it clearer as to why this is so important but the idea is quite simple really. Since I spend a good portion of my day working with a “munchkin” crowd, I have found that simple explanations work the best. Like many of us who have moved to this area, we often are the first landscapers of our yards. We pick the trees we want to have majestically towering over and shading our backyards some day. We spend considerable time choosing the right one and a great deal of time making sure that the little seedling is planted well and staked to grow big, strong and straight. If we have paid attention, made minor adjustments along the way, we can someday remove those stakes and watch out trees thrive. The concept is a bit the same in chiropractic but the benefits for our children can be HUGE! As parents we will do ANYTHING to help our kids grow up to be happy, healthy and strong.

The majority of chiropractic patients arrive in our offices in their 40’s, in pain and in trouble. It might be because of a particular event – a fall, an accident, etc. But most often it is because after years of neglect and the repetition of certain motions with a spine that is misaligned, these patients’ spines can no longer endure what they have been asked to do and just stop usually accompanied with pain. The correction and care phase for these adults can be long and tedious – after all we are trying to “undo” years of neglect. So what if you could save your child from that experience? Think of my analogy of the little seedling…My favorite thing to tell parents is “As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.” Think about that.

With a little preventative care, you could be offering your child a huge advantage as she/he grows. The benefits are so many I cannot possibly begin to list them all here. Chiropractic care for children is gentle, they typically respond much faster than any adult I have ever seen in my office and inherently, they know that it is good for them. I have had many children who arrive hesitant to begin care and very soon are racing in the door, running down the hall trying to beat their sister or brother to the table! We have contests to see who goes first for their adjustments. Ultimately, you are giving your child a gift – a spine that is free of misalignments which allows their nervous systems to function free of any potential interference and will help them to “show up” in their world at their very best!

I look forward to sharing more about chiropractic and my practice with you. Until next time, Live Your Best Life! Namaste…..

Dr. Suzanne Lowe is a practicing chiropractor in Brentwood, California, where she works with the young and old alike. Reach her at (925) 516-8211.

Energy Medicine – Healing that is Immediate and Permanent

by Chris Krohn and Dani Burling

The alternative medicine industry in the United States has been growing by more than 10% per year, surpassing $1 billion in the past year. No surprise. As people become more disenchanted with traditional medicine – physicians who prescribe medications for even minor physical and emotional problems, and psychologists who promote years-long treatments – they are taking back their power. The power to live and heal in natural ways that create independence. Many are seeking this through energy medicine. So what is that and how does it work?

In addition to our physical and emotional aspects, each of us has an energy field that surrounds us. This energy field connects to seven “energy centers”, or chakras, that run from the base of the spine to the top of the head.

When we experience a painful event – physical injury, loss of a loved one or relationship, or any other trauma – a tear or imprint occurs in our energy field. If this imprint is not healed in the energy field, it will move into our emotional reality, then our physical reality.

Once it has manifested in the physical and emotional self, it is nearly impossible to clear by working on the physical body (medicine) or the emotional self (psychotherapy or counseling) because the imprint remains in the energy field, creating patterns in our emotional and physical lives.

This is why so many people struggle to improve their lives and fail, despite the best of intentions. “I just can’t seem to create abundance, though I work harder than anyone”. “I can’t seem to find the kind of relationship I want, though I’m trying and trying”. “I just can’t lose weight or stop smoking”, etc, etc. These imprints will continue to control our
emotional and physical realities until they are removed.
This is where energy medicine comes in.

We work with the patterns that you wish to change, trace them to the imprints in your energy field, and clear them. We clean heavy energies from your chakras and energy field, as well as toxic energies that may be in your body.

Though one or two sessions with us can erase these imprints, there is also an important role that you play in your own healing. As part of our sessions and follow-up with you, we will guide you to write a new “map” for your life. After all, even with the imprints removed, you still have existing habits, thought patterns and, perhaps, unhealthy relationships that are part of your life. We will work with you to shift beyond these, to fully create the life you dream of!


Dani Burling is a mother and grandmother who chose her path through a desire to help her mother heal from cancer. She is a graduate of The Four Winds Society, is certified in Thetahealing™, is a Master Reiki practitioner, Herbalist, Registered Nutritionist, Iridologist and practicing Inca Shaman.

An intuitive healer by birth, Chris Krohn had a 16-year career leading manufacturing organizations before answering her call to serve others through energy medicine. She is a mother, a graduate of the Four Winds Healing the Light Body School, Reiki Master, Thetahealing™ Practitioner, Holistic Life and Business Coach, and a Certified Holistic Massage Therapist.

http://www.theemergingsoul.com/