"We camouflage our true being before others to protect ourselves against criticism or rejection.  This protection comes at a steep price.  When we are not truly known by the other people in our lives, we are misunderstood.  When we are misunderstood, especially by family and friends, we join the "lonely crowd."  Worse, when we succeed in hiding our being from others, we tend to lose touch with our real selves.  This loss of self contributes to illness in its myriad forms. "

Sidney Jourard

Posts tagged with 'breathing'

Meditation - why bother?

5th February 2026

I've been feeling for a while that my meditation practice has become a bit 'routine'. I sit 'meditating' with Catero, my wife, most mornings for about 15 minutes and then, over the course of the day, I typically 'sprinkle in' another three or so brief walking meditation practices. It's fine. …

mindfulness meditation relaxation autogenics imagery breathing

Breathing

15th June 2022

"As you breathe in, cherish yourself. As you breathe out, cherish all beings." Dalai Lama "When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive, to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love." Marcus Aurelius I'm a member of a Book Group. We …

mindfulness meditation relaxation breathing

Recent research: two studies on panic, two on attention training for anxiety disorders, and three on the effects of child abuse

19th November 2009

Here are seven recent papers on panic, attention training, and the effects of childhood sexual abuse (all details & abstracts to these studies are listed further down this blog post). Pfaltz & colleagues report on a novel ambulatory respiratory monitoring system that seems to demonstrate that panic sufferers are not …

research psychoneuroimmunology mind-body suicide panic anxiety self-harm cardiovascular trauma meaning generalized anxiety act goals sexual abuse child abuse gastrointestinal diseases social anxiety breathing attention catastrophizing