Mindfulness Meditation

What it is- How it Works- What are the Benefits

A​t Young Cancer Survivors’ January meeting, local meditation instructor, Carol Teare, led us through a beginner’s practice of mindfulness meditation.

What it is

Mindfulness meditation is based on being mindful or having an increased awareness and acceptance of living in the present moment. In mindfulness meditation, you broaden your conscious awareness. You focus on what you experience during meditation, such as the flow of your breath. You can observe your thoughts and emotions but let them pass without judgment.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction studies have shown many mindfulness techniques improve common psychological problems such as anxiety, stress and depression in cancer survivors and improve overall quality of life.

According to the National Cancer Institute, up to half of cancer patients have trouble sleeping. Insomnia is the most common sleep disturbance, affecting up to eighty percent of patients. Emotional distress, side effects from medications, and pain all contribute to difficulty falling asleep. But insomnia is not mere inconvenience. Getting adequate deep sleep lowers stress hormones like cortisol, boosts immune function, reduces inflammation, and promotes the body’s healing mechanisms.

Dr. Linda Carlson* teaches her patients a breathing exercise that has been successful in helping them relax and fall asleep. Based on what she calls “2 to 1 breathing,” this exercise is best done while in bed, in a dark room, in preparation for sleep.

How it Works

Begin by lying on your back. Breathe in for a count of 4, exhale for 8. Do this 8 times.

Turn to your left side. Breathe in for 4, out for 8. Do this 16 times.

Turn to your right side. Breathe in for 4, out for 8. Do this 32 times.

The Benefits 

• Reduced insomnia

• Increased relaxation

• Less anxiety

• Decreased feeling of being overwhelmed

Why it Works

This 2:1 breathing exercise combines gentle, diaphragmatic breathing with an extended exhalation, which shifts the autonomic nervous system from sympathetic “fight-flight” response to the body’s “rest-and-digest” parasympathetic response. Switching sides mimics alternate nostril breathing in yoga. You always end on your right side because that compresses the right nostril which forces you to breathe more through the left nostril which stimulates the right brain for more relaxation and prepares people for sleep. The other reason it works is it keeps your mind really busy with all the counting, and people usually fall asleep before they’re done!

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*Dr. Linda Carlson holds the Enbridge Research Chair in Psychosocial Oncology, is an Alberta Innovates-Health Solutions Health Scholar, Full Professor in Psychosocial Oncology in the Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary, and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychology. She is the Director of Research and works as a Clinical Psychologist at the Department of Psychosocial Resources at the Tom Baker Cancer Centre.