Stress is recognised to be the major cause of today's health problems. Illnesses which have a stress component include: nervous tension and fatigue, migraine, insomnia, high blood pressure, skin problems, bronchial asthma, and also more serious complaints such as heart attacks, strokes, and cancers.
Many doctors recommend Transcendental Meditation as an effective remedy for the prevention of stress, and alleviation of stress-related illnesses. This may be because of their own experience of practising TM, or the health improvements they see in their patients, but perhaps the principal reason is their knowledge of the impressive body of scientific research on TM.
So why is Transcendental Meditation so effective at relieving stress?
The best way to eliminate stress - as any doctor will tell you - is deep rest. The deeper the rest, the more effective the elimination of stress. But in order to remove really deep stresses and tensions such as those caused by prolonged overwork or long-standing stressful situations, we need a level of rest deeper than that gained during a night's sleep.
Many scientific research studies have clearly shown that the level of rest gained during Transcendental Meditation is deeper than sleep or any other form of relaxation, including hypnotism. This is why the most common benefits that people report after learning TM include better sleep, more energy, clearer thinking and improved well-being. These all indicate an increased ability to deal with the effects of stress. And this is not due to just an improvement in mood - regular practise of Transcendental Meditation actually eliminates stress physiologically. So once dissolved, stresses are permanently removed.
The proven mental benefits of Transcendental Meditation include: