New therapy for chronic illness - Extra Health - Brief Article

Muscle & Fitness/Hers, Feb-March, 2002

Meditation training may offer new hope for patients with chronic illnesses ranging from AIDS to sleeping disorders, helping to reduce their symptoms and improve their quality of life, researchers report in General Hospital Psychiatry. Based at the Center for Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, they found that daily functioning as well as both psychological and physical symptoms improved in patients participating in the mindfulness-based stress-reduction (MBSR) program, which consisted of eight weekly group sessions plus a full-day intensive meditation retreat.

The patients -- whose most common chronic illnesses included anxiety/panic disorder, asthma/allergies, cancer, depression, gastrointestinal problems, hypertension, chronic pain, sleep disorders and stress -- also reported dramatically improved ability to cope with stress, improved sense of well-being, reduced body tension and increased mental clarity after following the program.