A Complementary Treatment for Relieving Secondary Symptoms in Cancer Patients

Human touch and therapeutic massage have long been noted for producing significant improvements in physical and emotional well-being. Indeed, massage has a long history of use and effectiveness that dates back to the first time that an early human received an injury and instinctively rubbed the affected area to unconsciously stimulate circulation and release pain-fighting chemicals in the brain. Massage therapists combine this instinctual premise with specific professional training to provide relief of symptoms for their clients.

Benefits of Massage

Massage increases the flow of both blood and lymph within the circulatory system, driving out toxins and oxygenating the body. It may contribute to improved flexibility and suppleness within the muscle fibers and joints. Massage also stimulates the release of potent hormones within the brain that signal a reduction in stress, increased pain tolerance, and an overall sense of well-being. It is believed that the majority of these results are produced by the autonomic nervous system in conjunction with the hypothalamus and pituitary glands. These systems allow a cascade of chemical messengers, or hormones, to promote stress reduction and positive feelings. In particular, massage decreases the “stress hormone” cortisol and increases the “bonding hormone” oxytocin while releasing pain-relieving endorphins.

Professional Research Supports Cancer-Specific Massage

Patients who are undergoing cancer treatment are particularly prone to physical and emotional manifestations of stress. MD Anderson, a leading facility in the fight against cancer, asserts that oncology massage, under the hands of a trained therapist, can reduce the pain, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and nausea that may accompany traditional cancer treatment. The American Cancer Society agrees that, while massage does not treat the cancer itself, massage may assist patients in tolerating the stress and discomfort that many experience during cancer treatment.

Indeed, doctors and scientists concur that, when applied by a professional massage therapist with specific training in oncology massage, this complementary treatment may result in a decrease in negative secondary symptoms by up to 50%. While this improvement is noted to be short-term, many cancer centers recommend a massage therapy regiment to produce these benefits repeatedly over time. Indeed, researchers have found that these results are so impressive that they have deemed them clinically significant and called for further study into the specific mechanisms of action.

Special Considerations for Cancer Patients

Individuals who are using massage to cope with the physical and emotional stresses of mesothelioma and other cancers should pay particular attention to the qualifications of the massage therapist. It is wise to seek a therapist who is licensed in massage and trained in specific oncology massage protocols. This training can ensure that the massage provides the best outcomes possible in terms of pain management and symptom relief.

Massage is a beneficial and scientifically proven complementary treatment option for anyone suffering with chronic or specific pain that is physical or emotional in origin. In particular, massage therapy may be particularly effective for assisting individuals undergoing cancer treatment manage discomfort, reduce symptoms of stress, and maintain a high quality of life while coping with a cancer diagnosis.

When practising meditation, yoga and other Eastern traditions, Mudras (Sanskrit word for ‘seal’) are used to generate energy and develop the consciousness of the practitioner. Mudras are simply hand postures and creating different postures using your your fingers, thumb and palm of hand can have significant benefits.

Mudras can be used to improve health and vitality, improve intelligence, improve the immune system, aid healing and rebalnce the body and mind.

Abhayaprada Mudra	Akash Mudra	Apana Mudra
Bhudy Mudra	Gyan Mudra	Prana Mudra
Mantangi Mudra	Mahasirs Mudra	Mushti Mudra

Trataka is a Sanskrit word meaning to gaze. In meditation terms it includes staring at an object for long enough so that the practitioner can see the object when they close their eyes to develop concentration, stimulate the eyes and open up the Ajna Chakra.

 • It aids healing to eye disorders and strengthens the muscles of the eyes
• Develops concentration
• Because of the focus on a particular object, the mind is less easily distracted by the environment and one’s own mind
• Opens up the third eye

Trataka Exercises

Begin both exercises in a comfortable meditation pose.

Exercise 1
Attention is focused on a particular symbol, any thoughts that enter the mind whilst concentrating on the symbol should be fleeting; acknowledge the thought and simply let it pass and bring the focus back to the symbol. Maintain focus without blinking until your eyes become strained and start to water, as soon as this occurs close your eyes.

Exercise 2

Gaze at a candle flame approximately two feet in front of you, again until your eyes begin to water and again at this point, close your eyes. You should see an afterimage of the flame. It is important to try and maintain the afterimage as long as possible. If the afterimage begins to move in your mind’s eye, being it back to the centre.

This is a very powerful technique to develop one’s concentration. After regular and consistent practice, the flame will be visible in the mind’s eye without the need to gaze at the flame of a candle.

Current research in Transcendental Meditation (TM) has shown that regular practice of meditation can significantlyreduce the risk of heart disease and other heart related problems.

TM made its way into western cultures in the latter part of the 20th century but has been used in the east for thousands of years. Initially used within religious contexts, it is now practiced as a way to reduce stress, anxiety, depression and also to maintain and improve one’s health.

Learning the techniques of TM is a seven step process to aid relaxation and create calm within the body and mind.

The research was carried out on a select group of 201 African American recipients that suffer with coronary heart disease or CHD. It was found that African Americans are more susceptible to developing heart problems and researchers predicted stress reducing techniques such as meditation would reduce the risk of developing CHD and related issues.

The research itself was spread over a period of nine years from 1998 to 2007. One group would meditate 2 times per day for 20 minutes and the control group would engage in other activities ‘that were taught in a cardiovascular health education program’.

On completion of the research, it was found that there was a reduced risk of a heart attack or stroke and that there was a general reduction in blood pressure and overall stress but there was no significant improvement in peripheral factors of CHD such as depression, and isolation. These benefits outweighed the benefits of activities undertaken by the control group.

The overall conclusion of the study stated that although TM is not a cure for CHD there were positive benefits to the practice.

Visit healthnews.com for more information on reducing the risk of stress and heart disease with meditation.

 

For the majority of people, especially those living in western cultures, our lives have become a juggling act between work and family. We have adopted or possibly adapted to, a lifestyle that is fast and furious. We are born into a culture where speed is everything and everything else is not worth at look at, fast food, fast cars, high speed broadband, getting to work, hoping the day goes fast etc. We are consumed by that momentary quick fix before moving on to something else that occupies our mind but needs to be done. Incorporating relaxation techniques into our daily routines will help you think more clearly, become more positive, maintain focus and enjoy a more fulfilled life.

The following techniques can be used separately or in conjunction with each other.

• Find some quiet time

Rather than switching on the television as soon as you get home from work, try to spend some time in a quiet environment; your mind will still be busy from thoughts of the day’s events but this is the ideal time to sit quietly, breathe deeply and disengage stress and turmoil encountered during the day.

• Listen to music

Listening to music is excellent relaxation therapy. It can transport you away and fill your mind with positive images and thoughts of other times in your life. Different types of music specifically designed for relaxation can alter our brainwaves and putting us into a more relaxed state. When we awake and alert our brains are in delta state (15-30 waves per second), listening to relaxing music can change our brainwaves to delta or theta waves (1-8 waves per second), a more relaxed state.

Listen to the video for a simple guided relaxation session.

  
• Commit to regular practice

Regular practice of relaxation techniques will help eradicate the stresses and strains of day to day activities. Learning and understanding just the basics of relaxation and meditation techniques, yoga, tai chi and practicing for just a few minutes per day will have a positive effect on your lifestyle.

• Create a relaxing environment

Low level lighting, candles and aromatherapy oils automatically create a sense of relaxation.

• Meditation

There is an abundance of mediation techniques, try different techniques and find one that you are comfortable with. These can be quite simple, incorporating breathing techniques and mantras but again commitment is the key and simply practising for just a few minutes per day can have a positive impact on your life.

There are functional differences between the left hemisphere of the brain and the right hemisphere of the brain. The left side is responsible for logical thinking and the right side responsible for creative thinking.

Each side of the brain functions best at different rates with the left side at 15-18 pulses per second and the right side at 12-15 pulses per second.

The video below, although an optical illusion determines which side of the brain is more dominant. If you see the dancer in the video moving anti-clockwise then the left side of the brain is being use, alternatively if you see the dancer moving clockwise then the right side of the brain is being used.

Alternate nostril breathing is the process of breathing alternatively between each nostril. Please watch the video for a demonstration.

 

Alternate Nostril Breathing

Alternate nostril breathing, practised regularly has many benefits such as quick transition into a more relaxed state, slowing down of your body’s metabolism, deeper and more relaxed sleep, benefits to your nervous system all leading to improved health.

When breathing in through your left nostril, this affects the right hemisphere of the brain; when breathing in through your right nostril, this affects the left hemisphere of the brain, ultimately synchronising the brain making function more effectively.

I first learnt this breathing exercise whilst studying Kundalini Maha Yoga and proved very beneficial pre meditation. In the class it was practised fro up to 10 minutes but I generally practice this technique daily for between 10 and 30 minutes.

This technique should not be practised if you have form of blockage in the nasal passages. It is also important to ensure the practice is slow and steady.

Dr Herbert Benson is a Professor of Medicine at the Harvard Medical School and has been looking at the effects of meditation on the human body. Founder of the Benson Henry Institute, Dr Benson is a frontrunner in the field of mind and body medicine.

 

‘The Relaxation Response’

His ‘Relaxation Response’ concept is widely published and lays claim that the ‘Relaxation’ Response’ is the opposite of stress and the ‘fight or flight’ response. Although we have the ability to get stressed, we also have the ability to overcome the stress and decrease the risk of harmful effects on the body that stress creates. Dr Benson states that any condition caused by stress such as depression, anxiety and high blood pressure can be treated by the regular practice of meditation.

The research conducted looked at how the mind can alter the functioning of the body. His subjects are Buddhists Monks from a Tibetan Monastery who practice meditation as a way of life.Tests showed a maximum decrease of 64% in the metabolic rate when simple meditation was used.The Buddhist monks could increase their skin temperature in an environment of between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. When placed in a colder environment of 40 degrees Fahrenheit, the monks were wrapped in cold wet sheets and their skin temperature increased to a point where the sheets began to steam and eventually dried. The monks explained it was a case of simply focusing and breathing. During meditation they would visualise air as fire being breathed in and out of their bodies.

Dr Benson concluded that anybody that practiced meditation, even simple meditation could significantly improve their health and general well-being.

Herbert Benson’s lifetime work has triggered lots of other studies in the field of meditation. When the research began 40 years ago the concept of meditation and the fact that the mind can affect the body was ‘swept under the carpet’. Through his work, commitment and belief, Dr Benson has bridged the gap between medical science and the concept of healing the body through the mind.

A guided meditation is a concept whereby the practitioner is lead during the process of meditation. This can be done in a classroom environment with guidance from a meditation teacher or via CD/MP3.

Guided meditations are an ideal way to begin your journey into meditation; your mind will be focused on the teachers voice, the gentle music playing in the background and the visualisations put to you by the teacher; this method dissipates somewhat, the annoyance of distractions when practising other forms of meditation where we practice to try and quieten the mind.

At the beginning of the session you will be asked to find a comfortable position for meditating whether that is sat in the lotus position, on a chair or laid down, the choice is yours. Your teacher will then begin the process of guiding you into a state of relaxation and calm.

There are many different types of guided meditation. These include:-

• Stress Relief and Relaxation
• Balancing your chakras
• Guided Meditations for Sleep
• Guided Healing Meditations
• Guided Mindfulness Meditations

Choose one that is based around your own needs.

At the end of the session you will be gradually brought out of a state of deep relaxation and you will feel alert, relaxed and rejuvenated.

Because the music is recorded at different frequencies you will find that your brainwaves change from beta (awake and alert) to alpha (early stages of meditation) and then to theta (deep meditation) as you progress through the session. Very advanced practitioners may go beyond theta into delta waves (deepest state of meditation).