Have you ever worried about getting into an accident, losing money or being attacked? Stressful thoughts such as these can be combated through relaxation techniques such as praying the Our Father, Hail Mary or the Rosary.
Dr. Herbert Benson, director of the Mind/Body Medical Institute in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts and a Harvard University associate professor of medicine, suggested daily relaxation techniques for about 10 to 20 minutes to combat stress. Stress occurs when people are in a situation that requires them to change behavior patterns. “Stress evokes a flight response. It prepares you for running or fighting,” explained Dr. Benson.
A repetition technique “allows us to tap into the inborn capacity we have to combat stress,” said Dr. Benson. “For a religious person, this is contact with God.” These techniques decrease metabolism, lower the heartbeat and “quiet down the brain,” he added.
According to Dr. Benson, stress releases a hormone, norepinephrine that can cause or worsen existing diseases, while relaxation techniques release nitric oxide, which counteracts the stress hormone.
“I can’t overemphasize the importance of the early training of Catholics in prayer,” said Dr. Benson, a Jew. “In the West, for Catholics nothing beats the Rosary,” he added.
Dr. Herbert Benson, director of the Mind/Body Medical Institute in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts and a Harvard University associate professor of medicine, suggested daily relaxation techniques for about 10 to 20 minutes to combat stress. Stress occurs when people are in a situation that requires them to change behavior patterns. “Stress evokes a flight response. It prepares you for running or fighting,” explained Dr. Benson.
A repetition technique “allows us to tap into the inborn capacity we have to combat stress,” said Dr. Benson. “For a religious person, this is contact with God.” These techniques decrease metabolism, lower the heartbeat and “quiet down the brain,” he added.
According to Dr. Benson, stress releases a hormone, norepinephrine that can cause or worsen existing diseases, while relaxation techniques release nitric oxide, which counteracts the stress hormone.
“I can’t overemphasize the importance of the early training of Catholics in prayer,” said Dr. Benson, a Jew. “In the West, for Catholics nothing beats the Rosary,” he added.
(catholics.org)
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