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Meditation Guide The benefits of meditation for emergency services workers and volunteers We’ve got your back Meditation Guide The benefits of meditation The health benefits of meditation are well known – and the great thing is, they’ll be different for for emergency services everyone. While some people might become more self-aware, others will find they’re less stressed and workers and volunteers anxious. But what’s common is, across the board, long-term practitioners of relaxation methods have shown there are far more ‘disease-fighting genes’ – Enough physical health. Let’s talk according to researchers at Harvard Medical School. mental health. They found genes that protect against pain, infertility, Volunteers are special type of people. They give their high blood pressure and even rheumatoid arthritis free time, and moments with their loved ones, to help were switched on. This ‘relaxation effect’, researchers strangers. believe, can be just as powerful as any medical drug, but without the side effects. Volunteers come in many forms. Yes, you can run into burning buildings or swim out into dangerous More encouraging still, the benefits of the relaxation surf to be a volunteer. But it’s also as simple as effect were found to increase with regular practice: taking time to help a new employee. However, for the more people practised relaxation methods such this guide, we’re talking community volunteers – as meditation or deep breathing, the greater their firefighters (paid and unpaid), CFS, recovery workers, chances of remaining free of arthritis and joint pain, surf lifesavers, paramedics, ambulance officers, and along with stronger immunity, healthier hormone nurses. levels and lower blood pressure. If that’s you, grab a coffee, put your feet up, This is proof that your state of mind affects the body and read on. on physical and genetic levels. Being an emergency service worker takes guts. You While there are many physical and mental benefits of face tragedy and experience miracles, every day. meditation, here are some good ones; The magic of mindfulness Research shows that mindfulness enhances the Emergencies happen anytime of the day or night. You emotion regulation, empathy, cognitive performance • A MIND FREE OF STRESS always have to be on the ball. When was the last time Meditation and mindfulness is the quality or ‘state’ of and working memory. Combined, these are you were truly relaxed? • Reduces ‘agEING’ being conscious or aware of something. It involves ingredients of a healthy, empathetic and motivated • HELPS YOU APPRECIatE LIFE achieving a mental state by focusing on your emergency service worker. But how can you help others when you’re tired, • HELPS YOU FEEL CONNECTED awareness of the present moment, while calmly distracted, and disconnected? Emotional wellbeing acknowledging and accepting your feelings, thoughts Resilience isn’t part of the job description, but it’s one is crucial, and one of the most effective ways to gain • MAKES YOU HAPPIER and bodily sensations. of the most important qualities for emergency service • IMPROVES YOUR BRAIN FUNCTIONALITY this naturally is with meditation. workers. The more you can build your resilience, the • HELPS YOU SLEEP Achieving mindfulness is the act of observing, better you can perform at work. Mindfulness training • IMPROVES YOUR MEtaBOLISM & AIDS IN describing and acting with awareness of the present is the bridge to nurturing our body, mind and spirit. How meditation can help volunteers WEIGHT LOSS moment – without judgement or reaction. According to Loren Christensen in his book • BOOSTS IMMUNITY & HELPS FIGHT DISEASE Let’s go east for a moment, where meditation started. Mindfulness is all about feeling. Once you feel it, ‘Meditation for Warriors: Practical Meditation for Some of the earliest written records of meditation • INCREASES YOUR attENTION SPAN. you can heal it. It’s a great tool to help you become Cops, Soldiers & Martial Artists’, you don’t need to come from around 1500 BCE. The Vedas discuss the aware of thoughts that are stressing you – stresses follow a particular religion, belief or guru. You don’t meditative traditions of ancient India. Around the As you can see, meditation can heal the body and you might not even be aware of. By practicing need to believe in a higher being. Meditating, in its 6th to 5th centuries BCE, other forms of meditation mind. A mind that always has to be ‘on’, in order to mindfulness, you can start to pay attention to what’s simplest form, is about making you a better ‘warrior’. developed in Taoist China and Buddhist India. save lives. going on in the present moment, instead of drawing Christensen shows his readers how to meditate your thoughts back to the past or into the future. whenever and wherever you want – and without More recently, it’s been embraced by the western You start to live, because life only exists right here anyone knowing. world as a way of combating stress, anxiety and and now. improving overall health, peacefulness and wellbeing. Guided meditations are a good place to start. It’s said that the practice of meditation comes from an instinctive and primal need to connect to the There are many free tools available for beginners. universe and one’s inner self. A few great apps to try include Take a Break, Headspace, Mindbody Connect, Buddhify and Calm. Meditation Guide Poor work-life balance is an ongoing issue in Australia, they know not to wake you if you’re sleeping during and around the world. A major cause is poor sleep. the afternoon or early at night. According to the Lifetime Stress Poll, more than two thirds of Australians lost sleep due to stress. This This is critical for anyone working odd shifts. You evidence was backed up in the ABS Census, which only need a couple of bad nights sleep to start showed that nearly 1.7 million Australian workers experiencing the side effects. Depression and anxiety worked more than 49 hours a week. arise, relationships start to suffer, and we’re less focused, making it hard to think quickly. More than half were managers and professionals, representing the biggest proportion of people And then there’s the long-term issues. A lack of working more than the standard 40-hour week. sleep causes melatonin production to decrease. Compared to other OECD countries, Australians This causes the risk of cancer to increase, as well as are working longer hours, but devoting less time impairing the immune system, potentially leading to to eating, sleeping and leisure activities, including issues such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity. socialising with family and friends. The production of cortisol also increases, too. Use meditation to relax your mind. Think of them In our line of work, it’s easy to put ‘others’ first. It’s as mini, power naps. And do what you can do make our job to keep our communities safe, but you can’t if sleep a priority. Communicate this with your family so you don’t look after yourself first. Meditate, whenever you want Worried about finding the time to sit down and meditate? There’s a common Remember, mindfulness takes practice. 15 The science of sleeping misconception that you have to literally sit still to meditate. Active meditation is minutes a day, every day. Try one of these four a style that embraces movement, followed by silence. Activities such as walking meditations: Volunteers don’t just have to deal with shifts. We can get called at any hour of the day or night. We meditation, or turning a daily activity like cooking, cleaning, or your daily commute The body scan don’t have the luxury of routine and regular sleeping into meditation. Starting with your head and working down to your patterns. For this reason, we need to take it into our arms and feet, notice how you feel in your body. own hands to find what works for each of us. Sensing your head and neck, simply notice if you feel This is especially of value for volunteers and emergency service workers. tense, relaxed, calm or anxious. See how far you can Getting a good night’s sleep is important for spread any sensations of softness and relaxation to everyone, but especially emergency workers. We’re You can do it anywhere, for short or long periods of time. It’s just another way of areas of your body that feel tense. Once your reach dealing with human lives every day. This pressure can reviewing the tasks you do every day. Instead of being a burden, or another thing your feet, work back up your body. get to us. But sometimes it’s better to keep things simple. Get a good night’s sleep. Eat well. Exercise to check-off, it can be an opportunity to be mindful. Focused breathing often. Meditate to clear our minds. But, sleep - let’s We all go out for walks or exercise every day. And one of the most effective ways Sit comfortably. Tune into your breathing, follow the focus on this for a moment. to ground our body (and mind) is through the practice of walking meditation. We sensation of inhaling from your nose, into abdomen Australian Health Fund, Allianz and Warwick and out again. Let any tension go with each Medical School in the UK teamed up to conduct a use this time to focus and become mindful of our surroundings. Obviously with a exhalation. When you notice your mind wandering, study looking into the connection between sleep walking meditation, you keep your eyes open. This means we’re not turning our return to your breath. and disease. attention away from the outside world, but rather making a conscious effort to be Repeat a mantra The results indicated that people reporting sleep aware of it – the sun, wind, grass, birds, music, cars, and other people.

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