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The Manual Touch Physical Therapy

Whole Body Approach

Reclaim movement, function and life
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How to Start Practicing Mindfulness and Meditation

May 16, 2018 By Denise Schwartz Leave a Comment

Mindfulness and Meditation

Mindfulness and meditation is a very popular concept these days. But do you really know what it is? How to do it? Or how it can benefit you?

Let me tell you a little bit about my own experience with mindfulness and meditation.

When I began studying IMT (Integrative Manual Therapy) 20 years ago, I was required to receive Integrative Manual Therapy in order to be as healthy as possible. If I was going to help others, it was very important for me to be healthy myself. Part of the treatment I received was learning how to get into a deep state of relaxation to calm my nervous system.

Once the nervous system is calmer, exercises are given to integrate your nervous system with your body to move better, decrease pain and return to joyful activities.

About two years ago, I decided to start meditating on a regular basis, in order to better deal with the stress of running a business and life. I was able to draw on those skills I learned years before.

What Happened When I Starting Meditating

My first meditation day, I rolled out my yoga mat on the floor, sat down cross legged, opened up the Calm app, and set the timer for 5 minutes. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sounds of nature. Within a week or so I was able to increase my meditation time to 10 minutes. After 2 weeks of consistent meditation, some interesting things began to happen.

  • I accepted the monkey mind of thoughts jumping around in my head and just observed where they traveled to as a completely quiet mind is not always possible.
  • Each day it became easier for me to sit still for longer time periods.
  • I was less reactive to loved ones annoyances.
  • My business started to thrive.
  • I fell down twice–once on the wet kitchen floor and once stepping onto a paver stone that I didn’t know was there.

What Does Falling Have to Do With Meditation?

Remember how I said meditation will help calm your nervous system? Well, I believe I had calmed my nervous system but had not integrated my nervous system with my body yet, so my body didn’t know how to react when I got into a precarious situation. Instead of ruminating over how clumsy I was, I understood those falls to be a positive sign that my nervous system was changing and the meditation was working!

The lesson I learned was that integrating mindfulness together with movement is an important part of improving and maintaining physical health. You can read more about this concept in my eBook: Mindful Tips for Pain Free Daily Movement.

Practicing Meditation

Throughout the past 2 years I have meditated fairly regularly anywhere from 1-7 days per week. I now use an app called Insight Timer, which my friend and meditation teacher, Judy Craven, recommended.

Insight Timer offers many music, guided, or nature sound options of various time lengths to listen to when meditating or just relaxing. I like to listen to ambient music coupled with nature sounds and meditate anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, usually first thing in the morning, while sitting on the couch with my feet on the floor, instead of sitting cross legged on the floor (not so comfortable anymore). Sometimes, before meditating, I think about an issue I want to work on. Other times, I don’t put any intention into the meditation session other than to just enjoy it. I now find it easier to work through challenging issues, as I have a deeper understanding and compassion for myself and others.

Taking A Meditation Class

When it comes to learning mindfulness and meditation, it can be difficult to know where to start. There is a lot of information out there, which can be overwhelming. Sometimes taking a class with an expert can be very beneficial to get you started-off on the right foot.

Filed Under: Health & Wellness Tagged With: Integrative Manual Therapy, Meditation, mindfulness

About Denise Schwartz

Denise Schwartz, PT, IMT, C is the owner of The Manual Touch Physical Therapy. For over 30 years, she has been helping patients reduce pain and improve quality of life using a whole body approach. Denise specializes in chronic pain, spinal conditions, running/triathlon injuries and prevention, balance/vestibular disorders, functional exercise, kinesiotaping, and various non-traditional and traditional & manual therapies. Contact Denise at denise@themanualtouch.com

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I saw Denise at The Manual Touch recently for sciatic pain, that only the day before I saw Denise kept me from walking; I could only hobble for short distances before I would sit down and collapse. After some tissue work and gentle exercise with Denise, she put Kinesiotape around the affected area. I immediately noticed stability and pain improvement and could walk so much better that I was able to complete shopping trips to 4 stores I had been planning but did not think I could do. To me, the t… Read more
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I was in Florida for vacation and developed an upper respiratory infection. I had annoying coughing and congestion in my chest. This went on for several days, and it was not getting better. It felt like I had a mucous plug stuck in my chest that would not break up. One night I remembered the self-treatment that Denise taught me at The Manual Touch where I had received PT, putting one hand over the afflicted area, and one hand near my abdomen where mucous could drain out. After about 5-10 minutes… Read more
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The best physical therapist I’ve ever experienced is Denise Schwartz in Wheeling at the Manual Touch. I have seen Denise twice for over 6 months to treat 2 bouts of frozen shoulder that occurred 8 years apart. In addition to my shoulder, she has also helped with my back, exercise regimen, and overall health. She is a holistic practitioner expert in PT techniques and knows how to teach her clients how to fit her techniques easily into their lives. She relates with her clients about as well as any… Read more
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As a young elite athlete I was involved in numerous accidents resulting in scar tissue causing loss of flexibility and restrictions as an adult. After each treatment I feel so much less restriction and experience greater range of motion.
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The physical therapy I received at The Manual Touch PT helped reduce my sciatica pain to a manageable level in just a few sessions.  The exercises I was given strengthened and trained my muscles to prevent further back problems allowing me to return to playing basketball.
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Just a note to thank you for the time you spent with me Saturday in evaluating my running technique and body alignment.  Your suggestions are already making sense and having an early impact.  After our meeting, I went out for a 5K run and found your suggestions “to shorten my stride” and “being conscious of not overlapping my steps” to be helpful. Thanks Denise  
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I have been receiving PT therapy for pain and autoimmune disorders for over 18 months at The Manual Touch.  This also affects my kidneys and my lungs and other organs as I swell with fluid that my lymph system doesn’t seem to handle well.  I depend on the regular IMT tissue therapy I receive from Denise to help me function as normally as possible.  This therapy seems to work synergistically with the acupuncture and medication I also receive.  There are no cures for these disorders and as n… Read more
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Excellent, professional assessment and treatment for an older woman who’s had lots of failed therapy. Kind and compassionate and caring! Thanks.
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I can honestly say that Denise was the first physical therapist to listen to my story.   She has demonstrated more patience and compassion than any other therapist that I’ve ever met. For the past 8 years, I have been symptomatic with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a rare genetic condition which affects the connective tissue throughout my body. As a result of this disorder I deal with ongoing severe acute and chronic pain and a variety of other rare overlapping conditions such as thoracic outl… Read more
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We believe all body systems and mental/emotional health are connected. We take a whole body approach to discover why patients are not healing and what were the initial causes of their current symptoms. 

Our mission is to use this whole body approach to help patients heal and overcome pain and limitations, resulting in improved quality of life. We also aim to promote wellness in our communities through ongoing education. 
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Testimonials

I saw Denise at The Manual Touch recently for sciatic pain, that only the day before I saw Denise kept me from walking; I could only hobble for short distances before I would sit down and collapse. After some tissue work and gentle exercise with Deni… Read more
https://themanualtouch.com/wp/testimonial/m-d-evanston-il
I was in Florida for vacation and developed an upper respiratory infection. I had annoying coughing and congestion in my chest. This went on for several days, and it was not getting better. It felt like I had a mucous plug stuck in my chest that woul… Read more
https://themanualtouch.com/wp/testimonial/a-b-riverwoods
The best physical therapist I’ve ever experienced is Denise Schwartz in Wheeling at the Manual Touch. I have seen Denise twice for over 6 months to treat 2 bouts of frozen shoulder that occurred 8 years apart. In addition to my shoulder, she has also… Read more
https://themanualtouch.com/wp/testimonial/b-h-elmhurst-il
As a young elite athlete I was involved in numerous accidents resulting in scar tissue causing loss of flexibility and restrictions as an adult. After each treatment I feel so much less restriction and experience greater range of motion.
https://themanualtouch.com/wp/testimonial/s-northbrook-il
Last winter our daughter Maddie had had several eye and ear infections, and all required topical and oral antibiotics.  These were instigated by a plugged tear duct.  A pediatric ophthalmologist said there was little chance the duct would open up o… Read more
The physical therapy I received at The Manual Touch PT helped reduce my sciatica pain to a manageable level in just a few sessions.  The exercises I was given strengthened and trained my muscles to prevent further back problems allowing me to return… Read more
Just a note to thank you for the time you spent with me Saturday in evaluating my running technique and body alignment.  Your suggestions are already making sense and having an early impact.  After our meeting, I went out for a 5K run and found you… Read more
I have been receiving PT therapy for pain and autoimmune disorders for over 18 months at The Manual Touch.  This also affects my kidneys and my lungs and other organs as I swell with fluid that my lymph system doesn’t seem to handle well.  I depe… Read more
Excellent, professional assessment and treatment for an older woman who’s had lots of failed therapy. Kind and compassionate and caring! Thanks.
I can honestly say that Denise was the first physical therapist to listen to my story.   She has demonstrated more patience and compassion than any other therapist that I’ve ever met. For the past 8 years, I have been symptomatic with Ehlers Danlo… Read more
Read More

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