Another blog post from Ann Arbor chiropractor Mike Tannenbaum, D.C.: Meditate to Relieve Stress

Is stress causing you anxiety? Or your mind won't “quit,” causing you to feel stressed? Stressors – things causing you to experience stress – can result in unhappiness and ill health. One way to curb your stress and anxiety, and quiet your mind, is to meditate. There are a number of ways to meditate and here is one way that we recommend at our Ann Arbor chiropractic office, which we think is pretty easy to perform.

Using a mat, bed or floor, lie flat on your back with your feet in line and with your shoulders and palms down. (If not in a space where you can lie down, you can do this meditation in a sitting position; just make sure your feet are flat on the floor and your spine is straight.)

Breathe deeply a few times so to get comfortable, then close your eyes.

Focusing on the top of your head, feel, very specifically, in a lot of detail and not rushing how the top of your head feels at that moment. Is your head resting against a pillow, do you have a headache, does your head feel hot or cold, etc? Again, do this without rushing; there should be no time limit.

Once you have identified all the sensations at the top of your head, you move on. Slowly, but steadily, progress down your body, to your face, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, hips, and then legs ... For each body part, scan for different sensations as you did with the top of your head. As you do this, stay in the moment. Don't let your thoughts wander, if at all possible.

When you have reached the soles of your feet, spend a few moments just focusing on your breathing. Feel the breath going in, going out.

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This process will take practice to get right, so don't worry if it takes a bit of time to nail down. Try to enjoy/appreciate the process.

If you have any questions about this blog post, chiropractic, back pain, neck pain, or headaches, I can be reached at my Ann Arbor chiropractic office at [email protected].