Just Unplug It!

​Like many of us, I have several technology gadgets: a smart TV, computer, routers, iPads, Sonos sound system, etc. Most of the time, everything works well, but then for no clear reason a glitch occurs, and my device is rendered useless. After pushing buttons, trying my best, I give up and call my son, Tony. It’s become a family joke; he laughs at me, comes to the house, and fixes my problem. Most of the time he simply just unplugs the unit in question, and everything starts to work again just fine.
 
Worry and fear are the main source of the fifty to eighty thousand thoughts we have daily. We worry about money, our children, relationships, health, our country, the world, the environment, our job, and the long list of obstacles that we encounter every day.
 
Anxiety and depression are all too often the results of so much worry. As it turns out, our brains are programmed to worry. Our brain has evolved with a built-in fear center known as the Amygdala: an almond shaped group of nuclei buried deep within the temporal lobes of the brain. It is also referred to as “the negative bias,” our brains constantly analyze the negatives, watching out for danger. Our very survival as a species has relied on this ability for thousands of years but it is also the cause of why we worry so much, it’s in our DNA.
 
The human brain seems to crave negative information and the news organizations have recognized that. A study by Media Research Center found that upwards of 85% of the stories aired were negative on the major networks ABC, NBC, and CBS. I suspect the percentage would be even greater with cable news. More viewers mean higher ratings and more dollars in advertising revenues.
 
Meditation is the way I “unplug” my brain and just like my computer issues, my brain returns to normal. In fact, the science tells us meditation deactivates the Amygdala. Research from Boston University, Harvard Medical School, and the Chopra Center have been conducted in recent years using fMRI brain scanner tests with meditators. They found that after only 8 weeks of meditating, the fear center’s electrical activity was quiet, and the amygdala physically reduced in size.
 
Meditation has absolutely reduced my fear, anxiety, and stress. My advice to you is to meditate! Daily!
 
Two easy ways to start tune into the Chopra Centers 21 day meditation program for FREE. There is also a fantastic on-line program course from Chopra Center which I have taken called primordial sound meditation. It can be completed in about a week part time.
 
Meditate!
 
Namaste