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The Heart of Resilience

Lisa Wilhelm is a certified Heart Rhythm Meditation Teacher and Mentor located in the Harrisburg, PA area.

Cultivating stress resilience is critical to self-care, health, and well-being, especially for those with chronic conditions such as lupus and also as we continue to endure the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are four domains of stress resilience: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.

It is important to incorporate strategies from all four domains. Some examples include: eating healthy, getting enough exercise, stimulating our minds, sharing our thoughts and emotions, maintaining meaningful connections with others, and being true to our values.

Wouldn’t it be great to find a strategy that impacts all 4 domains of stress resilience?

Meditation is one strategy that can!

The National Institutes of Health defines meditation “as a mind and body practice that has a long history of use for increasing calmness and physical relaxation, improving psychological balance, coping with illness, and enhancing overall health and well-being. Mind and body practices focus on the interactions among the brain, mind, body, and behavior”.

Meditation has many proven health benefits especially related to reducing and managing stress. Chronic stress has several negative effects on the body such as causing inflammation which contributes to many common diseases. Therefore meditation is perfect too add to your personal self-care toolbox!

There are many different styles and types of meditation. In the past 50 years in particular, meditation in general has become quite mainstream and secularized. All forms of meditation have their roots in spiritual traditions. It is individual preference whether or not to make meditation spiritual. And one can practice meditation within their own belief system if they so choose.

One form of meditation that incorporates all 4 domains of stress resilience is Heart Rhythm Meditation (HRM). HRM causes a shift in attention and breath rhythm to create a physiologic connection between the nervous, endocrine, respiratory, and circulatory systems, literally uniting the heart, mind and body.

If you have never tried meditation, it is easy and anyone and everyone can do it. It only take a few minutes each day to begin to feel the benefits. Just like with exercise, a consistent practice yields the most benefit.

How do you start? There are unlimited options and resources on the Internet, in books, on tv, apps for your phone or device and in your local area. You can try different types until you find the right one for you.

The basic steps of Heart Rhythm Meditation are listed below. Each step builds upon the other. Try the first two or three steps to start then add to them over time. It is like learning a new dance. The steps will flow easily with practice.

Remember meditation is a practice. Be gentle with yourself, no judgment. Try to maintain a sense of openness and calm.

First find a space where you can meditate. One that is quiet, comfortable and without distractions.

Set an intention for your meditation, e.g., self-love, compassion, patience, forgiveness, wisdom, insight, openness.

1. Settle into an upright posture

Sit upright yet comfortable and relaxed
Feet flat on the ground

2. Notice your breath

Place your attention on your breath, e.g., inhale and exhale and breath naturally
Breathe at your own pace and rhythm
Breathing too fast or shallow can make you feel lightheaded
Your breath should be fine and almost silent
Close your eyes or soften your gaze on an object
Our minds tends to want to wander ALOT, gently redirect your attention back to your breath
Remember it is a practice
Be gentle and patient with yourself
Just be in the moment, be aware of your body and breath – no judgment or criticism
Try to do this for a few minutes or longer if you can

3. Make your breath full

Placing our attention on our breath causes it to naturally slow and deepen
Gently deepen your breath more to your own comfort level without straining or discomfort
Breathe with your belly – this helps to activate your body’s natural relaxation response
Breathe slowly and deeply at your own pace and rhythm
Breathing too fast or shallow can make you feel lightheaded
Try to do this for a few minutes or longer if you can

4. Connect to your heart

After you settle into your own full breath rhythm, place one hand over the center of your chest and connect to your heart. Use your imagination. Your heart is not just the organ beating in your chest but think of your metaphorical heart as well.
Notice how that feels, can you feel your heart beat or pulse? Use your imagination if you don’t.
Remember it is a practice
Be gentle and patient with yourself
Just be in the moment, be aware of your breath and heart
Remember your intention
Try to do this for a few minutes or longer if you can

5. Balance your breath

Once you are comfortable with the previous steps you can advance to a balanced breath
This is where we make our inhale and exhale of equal length
You can count or use your heartbeat or pulse
Settle into a balanced breath
This incorporates all the previous steps into one
Remember it is a practice
Be gentle and patient with yourself
Just be in the moment, be aware of your breath and heart
Try to do this for a few minutes or longer if you can

For your first time, try 3-5 minutes once a day until that becomes easy, then try twice a day. Although you can meditate anytime during the day, morning and evening are generally recommended. Over time you can increase your meditation time up to 10, 15, then 20 minutes. Expert meditators may go much longer, but don’t be intimidated by that. Start small and work up to what works best for you and your schedule. Again, just like exercise, even a little physical activity is better than none, so even a little meditation is better than none.

Meditation is an ancient practice with many well established benefits. Give it try and see how it feels for you!

For more information on Heart Rhythm Meditation visit www.iamheart.org or contact Lisa at batinlhw777@outlook.com.

More heart resources

Lupus and heart health FAQ
How lupus affects the heart and circulation
Ask the Experts teleconferences: Scroll down to "Listen to a past session" for Lupus and Your Heart (February 2019), Cardiovascular Disease and Lupus (September 2017), and Eating Smart for & Healthy Heart (February 2017)