Saturday, June 21, 2014
Linda Ronstadt on Parkinson's Diagnosis: Life Is 'Different'
This comes as a shock to me, having followed her career for many years. I was listening to her on YouTube and came across this year old news.
Link: http://youtu.be/sBHJL_splYg
Friday, June 20, 2014
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Dr. Ken Walker, aka W. Gifford-Jones MD and controversy
W. Gifford-Jones, M.D.
published 2013
read outline
http://www.docgiff.com/books/
I bought this 2013 book recently and started reading it today. He keeps it simple but it is filled with good info, like 290 people die in America everyday from prescription medications and nobody dies from natural products that can be used instead of the powerful medical solutions.
His newspaper articles appeared in the local Free Press a few times. He talks about a treatment for clogged arteries/atherosclerosis, that interested me: Med-C Plus that is vitamin C and lysine in powder form. It is something I intend to buy because he claims it can prevent and reverse coronary heart disease and much of his argument on the findings of Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling and other noted medical figures, including British researcher Dr. Sydney Bush. Dr. Sydney Bush has shown that diabetes patients and the rest of us, can restore normal blood flow by taking high concentrations of Vitamin C and lysine. Perfect for sedentary people like me.
Dr. Ken Walker, aka W. Gifford-Jones MD, admits opposition to his vitamin C advocacy might stem from his controversial stands on touch medical subjects
By Jeffrey Ougler, Sault Star
SAULT STE. MARIE - Given his enviable Ivy League credentials and half-century of experience as a physician and surgeon, one might think Dr. Ken Walker’s views on vitamin C and what he trumpets as its profound power to curb cardiovascular disease would be lapped up by the medical community.
Especially considering the fact he banks much of his argument on the findings of Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling and other noted medical figures, including British researcher Dr. Sydney Bush.
Perhaps surprisingly, few in the field seem to share his diagnosis...even within the hallowed halls of his alma mater, The Harvard Medical School.
“The point is, 99% of the doctors disagree with me,” Walker said in a recent telephone interview from his Toronto home. “There’s no doubt about that. That’s a gimme.”
Walker has even lent his name to the product Medi-C plus (vitamin C and lysine), with a portion of proceeds directed to help support the Gifford-Jones Professorship in Pain Control and Palliative Care at the University of Toronto.
“Hopefully, some doctors will listen,” Walker said.
“I don’t think there is any really easy way to (spread the message) except go around and talk about it.”
“Go around” he does. In fact, the day following this interview, Walker was slated to give two out-of-town addresses on this topic so close to his heart – a busy schedule for anyone, especially someone who recently rang in his 90th birthday.
It's a milestone, Walker argues, he might not have reached had he subscribed to cholesterol-lowering drugs following his own coronary 16 years ago. Instead, he opted for high vitamin C volumes, plus lysine, a choice cardiologists branded at the time as “sheer madness.”
“I bet my life on it and, as it turned out, it was a good, educated guess at the time,” Walker said.
Denial within the medical community stems, in part, from the billions pharmaceutical companies have tied up in medicine, Walker contends.
But the veteran physician freely admits his candor on some of society’s most touchy subjects, from women’s reproductive rights to his advocacy of euthanasia and assisted suicide, makes many others wary.
W. Gifford-Jones MD, bears his soul in his regular syndicated newspaper column, The Doctor Game, a practice launched in 1975 in The Globe and Mail and continues to this day in publications across North America and Europe.
Walker’s belief in a woman’s right to legal abortion and his battle to have heroin legalized to ease the agony of terminally ill cancer patients, are the stuff of legend. And all documented in numerous columns as well as a 2000 memoir, “You’re Going to Do What?”
Who: Dr. Ken Walker, aka W. Gifford-Jones MD;
Link: http://www.saultstar.com/2014/05/20/dr-ken-walker-aka-w-gifford-jones-md-admits-opposition-to-his-vitamin-c-advocacy-might-stem-from-his-controversial-stands-on-touch-medical-subjects
Link: http://www.saultstar.com/2014/05/20/dr-ken-walker-aka-w-gifford-jones-md-admits-opposition-to-his-vitamin-c-advocacy-might-stem-from-his-controversial-stands-on-touch-medical-subjects
Myelin Research
The Myelin Project | Funding Myelin Research since 1989
"Mission:
- Fund Medical Research for Myelin Repair
- Raise awareness of ALD and AMN
- Promote international scientific collaboration
- Advocate for newborn screening of ALD
- Find a cure for demyelinating illnesses"
Demyelinating Diseases
A demyelinating disease is any disease of the nervous system in which the myelin sheath of neurons is damaged. This impairs the conduction of signals in the affected nerves, causing impairment in sensation, movement, cognition, or other functions depending on which nerves are involved.
The term describes the effect of the disease, rather than its cause; some demyelinating diseases are caused by genetics, some by infectious agents, some by autoimmune reactions, and some by unknown factors.
Multiple Sclerosis is perhaps the most common demyelinating illness.
Myelin is the insulating sheath surrounding nerve cells; like the rubber coating on a wire. It is the white matter coating our nerves, enabling them to conduct impuxlses between the brain and other parts of the body. It consists of a layer of proteins packed between two layers of lipids.
Myelin is produced by specialized cells: oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system, and Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system. Myelin sheaths wrap themselves around axons, the threadlike extensions of neurons that make up nerve fibers. Each oligodendrocyte can myelinate several axons.
Myelin can be destroyed by hereditary neurodegenerative disorders such as the leukodystrophies, and acquired diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
The Myelin Project | Funding Myelin Research since 1989:
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Myelin
| Myelin sheath |
|---|
 |
Myelin is a dielectric (electrically insulating) material that forms a layer, the myelin sheath, usually around only the axon of a neuron. It is essential for the proper functioning of the nervous system. It is an outgrowth of a type of glial cell. The production of the myelin sheath is called myelination. In humans, myelination begins in the 14th week of fetal development, although little myelin exists in the brain at the time of birth. During infancy, myelination occurs quickly and continues through the adolescent stages of life.
Myelination
Definition: Myelination is the process by which a fatty layer, called myelin, accumulates around nerve cells (neurons). Myelin particularly forms around the long shaft, or axon, of neurons. Myelination enables nerve cells to transmit information faster and allows for more complex brain processes. Thus, the process is vitally important to healthy central nervous system functioning.
Myelination begins in infancy and continues into adulthood.
Axon
Axon Definition: The hairlike extension of a nerve cell (neuron) that carries a message to the next nerve cell. The axon is covered with myelin.
In multiple sclerosis (MS), the myelin is damaged or destroyed by the immune system (demyelination), leaving a lesion, which slows the speed in which the axon transmits information. In aggressive or progressive forms of MS, the axon itself may be damaged or destroyed.
More Links:
American
Myelin Repair Foundation
The Myelin Project
Monday, June 16, 2014
Stop Diabetes Before It Starts
M.S. and Type One Diabetes have some common characteristics so maybe this research will one day benefit people living with m.s.
How Gut Bacteria Could One Day Help Stop Diabetes Before It Starts
Posted: 06/16/2014 8:26 am EDT Updated: 06/16/2014 8:59 am EDTPrint Article
How Gut Bacteria Could One Day Help Stop Diabetes Before It Starts
Posted: 06/16/2014 8:26 am EDT Updated: 06/16/2014 8:59 am EDTPrint Article
We still don't completely understand all the factors that cause someone to develop type 1 diabetes, but emerging research on gut bacteria reveals that the microorganisms may play an important role in keeping energy levels up and metabolic problems down -- major issues when it comes to diabetes care.
To examine the role of gut bacteria in type 1 diabetes further, researchers Marcus de Goffau, Ph.D., and Hermie Harmsen, Ph.D., of University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands took stool samples from very young children who had just been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (ages ranged from 1-5) and compared them to samples from children without diabetes.
They found that even though both sets of children still had a long way to go in growing a diverse and balanced gut bacteria ecosystem, there were already stark differences in bacteria levels between kids who had type 1 diabetes and kids who did not. The study, published recently in the journal Diabetologia, is noteworthy because not much is known about the gut bacteria of such young type 1 diabetes patients.
"The incidence in type 1 diabetes is especially strong and rising in the youngest age cohort -- around 1 to 5 years old," said de Goffau in an interview with HuffPost. "Another reason we wanted to look at children of such a young age is that we wanted to look at the rapid development of the gut microbiota in very young children with type 1 diabetes."
De Goffau's team collected samples from 28 European children with type 1 diabetes (the children hailed from France, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania and Finland) and matched them up by age to 27 children without diabetes (all except one were from Finland).
Researchers found lower levels of helpful bacteria like Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa in diabetic kids under three years old as compared to their age-matched healthy control group. Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa are important because they contain most of the bacteria species that produce butyrate, an acid that helps prevent and minimize inflammation, as well as prevents metabolic disorder. Butyrate is also readily absorbed by the gut and turned into energy for the body.
In kids over three years old, researchers found that the healthy controls' Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa had bacteria that produced even more butyrate than the age-matched diabetic kids.
"If you do not have enough of these butyrate-producing bacteria species, you will become more likely to develop type 1 diabetes," said de Goffau.
The diabetic kids over three years old also had "unusually high microbial diversity," similar to the unstable bacterial networks like the ones found in children with celiac disease or adults with colorectal cancer.
"In all gut microbiota, it's always about balance," explained de Goffau. "You don't simply have one bacterial group which is 'good.' You should always have a number of good bacteria groups working together."
De Goffau also offered up this advice for people with type 1 diabetes: lean harder on fruits and vegetables, and perhaps less so on starches, excessive protein and animal fat. The good bacteria that produces helpful butyrate feast on fruits and vegetables, but eating too much of the other food groups gives unhelpful bacteria a chance to thrive and overtake butyrate-producing microorganisms.
De Goffau forsees a future in which health care workers can easily and routinely monitor gut bacteria to stop a problem before it starts.
"If you see wrong bacterial patterns developing in children, you might think, ok this is the time to try to do something," said De Goffau. "In this sense, we might in fact prevent some cases of diabetes in the future."
Other researchers, like Julian Marchesi, Ph.D., of the Centre for Digestive and Gut Health at Imperial College London, have also been studying a bacterial cure for type 1 diabetes. Last April, Marchesi published a study on how transferring the gut bacteria from a specially bred diabetes-resistant mouse into normal mice successfully changed the normal mice's microbiome. The gut bacteria transfer also significantly delayed the onset of diabetes in normal mice.
Marchesi wasn't involved in de Goffau's study, but reviewed its results and praised it for possibly identifying butyrate levels as a way to predict someone's risk for developing type 1 diabetes. He also said the research provided even more support for the importance of diet in controlling type 1 diabetes, since the type of bacteria that produces butyrate thrives on fruits and vegetables.
Marchesi also called for more research with larger, controlled groups of children and urged caution when interpreting the current study's results.
"The main issue we have at the present moment is that these types of studies highlight associations and do not identify causal agents," wrote Marchesi in an email to HuffPost. "Furthermore, we must also be careful when interpreting data generated from faecal samples, since this only represents a small part of the large intestines."
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body mistakenly attacks insulin-producing cells, eventually destroying the pancreas' ability to make insulin and regulate blood sugar. It is usually diagnosed in children and young adults, although people of any age can get it.
For reasons that are still unclear, Finland has the highest rates of type 1 diabetes in the world. Every year, 58 out of 100,000 children are diagnosed with the disease in Finland, while only 24 out of 100,000 children are diagnosed in the U.S. Currently, de Goffau is working on research that compares the gut bacteria of Finnish children to the microbiota of children from around the world.
Lnk: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/16/gut-bacteria-type-1-diabetes_n_5493654.html?&ir=Green&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000048
How Gut Bacteria Could One Day Help Stop Diabetes Before It Starts:
'via Blog this'
To examine the role of gut bacteria in type 1 diabetes further, researchers Marcus de Goffau, Ph.D., and Hermie Harmsen, Ph.D., of University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands took stool samples from very young children who had just been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (ages ranged from 1-5) and compared them to samples from children without diabetes.
They found that even though both sets of children still had a long way to go in growing a diverse and balanced gut bacteria ecosystem, there were already stark differences in bacteria levels between kids who had type 1 diabetes and kids who did not. The study, published recently in the journal Diabetologia, is noteworthy because not much is known about the gut bacteria of such young type 1 diabetes patients.
"The incidence in type 1 diabetes is especially strong and rising in the youngest age cohort -- around 1 to 5 years old," said de Goffau in an interview with HuffPost. "Another reason we wanted to look at children of such a young age is that we wanted to look at the rapid development of the gut microbiota in very young children with type 1 diabetes."
De Goffau's team collected samples from 28 European children with type 1 diabetes (the children hailed from France, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania and Finland) and matched them up by age to 27 children without diabetes (all except one were from Finland).
Researchers found lower levels of helpful bacteria like Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa in diabetic kids under three years old as compared to their age-matched healthy control group. Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa are important because they contain most of the bacteria species that produce butyrate, an acid that helps prevent and minimize inflammation, as well as prevents metabolic disorder. Butyrate is also readily absorbed by the gut and turned into energy for the body.
In kids over three years old, researchers found that the healthy controls' Clostridium clusters IV and XIVa had bacteria that produced even more butyrate than the age-matched diabetic kids.
"If you do not have enough of these butyrate-producing bacteria species, you will become more likely to develop type 1 diabetes," said de Goffau.
The diabetic kids over three years old also had "unusually high microbial diversity," similar to the unstable bacterial networks like the ones found in children with celiac disease or adults with colorectal cancer.
"In all gut microbiota, it's always about balance," explained de Goffau. "You don't simply have one bacterial group which is 'good.' You should always have a number of good bacteria groups working together."
De Goffau also offered up this advice for people with type 1 diabetes: lean harder on fruits and vegetables, and perhaps less so on starches, excessive protein and animal fat. The good bacteria that produces helpful butyrate feast on fruits and vegetables, but eating too much of the other food groups gives unhelpful bacteria a chance to thrive and overtake butyrate-producing microorganisms.
De Goffau forsees a future in which health care workers can easily and routinely monitor gut bacteria to stop a problem before it starts.
"If you see wrong bacterial patterns developing in children, you might think, ok this is the time to try to do something," said De Goffau. "In this sense, we might in fact prevent some cases of diabetes in the future."
Other researchers, like Julian Marchesi, Ph.D., of the Centre for Digestive and Gut Health at Imperial College London, have also been studying a bacterial cure for type 1 diabetes. Last April, Marchesi published a study on how transferring the gut bacteria from a specially bred diabetes-resistant mouse into normal mice successfully changed the normal mice's microbiome. The gut bacteria transfer also significantly delayed the onset of diabetes in normal mice.
Marchesi wasn't involved in de Goffau's study, but reviewed its results and praised it for possibly identifying butyrate levels as a way to predict someone's risk for developing type 1 diabetes. He also said the research provided even more support for the importance of diet in controlling type 1 diabetes, since the type of bacteria that produces butyrate thrives on fruits and vegetables.
Marchesi also called for more research with larger, controlled groups of children and urged caution when interpreting the current study's results.
"The main issue we have at the present moment is that these types of studies highlight associations and do not identify causal agents," wrote Marchesi in an email to HuffPost. "Furthermore, we must also be careful when interpreting data generated from faecal samples, since this only represents a small part of the large intestines."
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body mistakenly attacks insulin-producing cells, eventually destroying the pancreas' ability to make insulin and regulate blood sugar. It is usually diagnosed in children and young adults, although people of any age can get it.
For reasons that are still unclear, Finland has the highest rates of type 1 diabetes in the world. Every year, 58 out of 100,000 children are diagnosed with the disease in Finland, while only 24 out of 100,000 children are diagnosed in the U.S. Currently, de Goffau is working on research that compares the gut bacteria of Finnish children to the microbiota of children from around the world.
Lnk: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/16/gut-bacteria-type-1-diabetes_n_5493654.html?&ir=Green&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000048
How Gut Bacteria Could One Day Help Stop Diabetes Before It Starts:
'via Blog this'
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Mallinckrodt to buy Questcor for lucrative MS drug
Mallinckrodt to buy Questcor for lucrative MS drug
(Reuters) - Specialty pharmaceuticals company Mallinckrodt Plc will buy drugmaker Questcor Pharmaceuticals Inc for about $5.6 billion to gain access to its multiple sclerosis drug, Acthar Gel, which is set to hit sales of $1 billion this year.
The acquisition is Dublin-based Mallinckrodt's second in less than two months as it pushes into the lucrative specialty drugs market, which focuses on complex and chronic diseases.
Mallinckrodt's shareholders took a dim view of the deal, however, pushing the company's shares down as much as 10 percent.
Questcor has been facing federal probes into its marketing practices related to Acthar and multiple accusations from short-seller Citron Research.
The company's shareholders will receive $30 in cash and 0.897 Mallinckrodt shares for each share held, for a total value of about $86.10 per Questcor share, the companies said in a statement on Monday.
Questcor's shares were trading at $77 on the Nasdaq on Monday afternoon. Mallinckrodt was down 6 percent at $58.50 on the New York Stock Exchange.
The deal - the latest in a series of acquisitions structured to take advantage of Ireland's low corporate tax rate - represents a 27 percent premium to Questcor's Friday close.
Acthar is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for 19 conditions, many of which are associated with autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, including multiple sclerosis and infantile spasms.
"We currently expect solid double-digit revenue growth for Acthar to continue in the future, driven by educational efforts and further expansion into indications currently on the Acthar label," Mallinckrodt Chief Executive Mark Trudeau said on a conference call.
Almost all of Questcor's revenue comes from the drug, which had annual sales of about $760 million in 2013, an increase of about 50 percent from 2012. The company acquired the drug from Aventis for $100,000 in 2001.
Questcor's stock fell to below $20 in September 2012 as U.S. government agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, launched investigations into the company's marketing practices and health insurer Aetna Inc cut reimbursement for the drug. The investigations are still on.
The company has also faced repeated accusations from short-seller Citron Research regarding the drug's high price and Acthar's composition.
The injectable drug, a formulation of pituitary hormones extracted from pigs, is priced at about $30,000 per vial.
Acthar is expected to touch $1.9 billion in sales in 2018, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Originally developed as a treatment for infantile spasms, Acthar has an orphan drug exclusivity until October 15, 2017 for the indication.
FAIR VALUE?
The deal values Questcor at 12 times forward earnings, well below the median of 18.4 for the broader pharmaceutical industry, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine data.
In the 12 months to Friday's close, Questcor's stock had risen more than 125 percent. Still, the stock trades at a strong discount to its median 10-year historical price-to-earnings ratio.
Stocks of several high-growth biotechnology companies, which led a rally in the broader market in 2013, fell on Friday, making investors anxious about how much further they may fall.
Barclays analyst Ying Huang said the recent selloff in biotech stocks puts more companies in the "sweet spot," with a market capitalization of $1 billion to $10 billion, where potential acquirers might give them a look.
Big pharmaceutical companies facing patent expirations still need to replenish pipelines, he said.
Mallinckrodt, which traces its roots back to 1840 in St. Louis, Missouri, makes drugs for pain management, cerebral and spinal spasticity, inflammatory diseases and depression. It also makes generic drugs and active pharmaceutical ingredients.
The company, which bought Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc for $1.3 billion in February, had revenue of $2.2 billion in 2013.
Mallinckrodt, which was spun off from Covidien Plc in July last year, said it expected the deal to add to adjusted earnings in 2014 and significantly boost adjusted profit in 2015.
Mallinckrodt will fund the deal through cash on hand and debt financing from Barclays, which also advised the company. The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter.
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and Arthur Cox were Mallinckrodt's legal advisers in Ireland.
Centerview Partners was Questcor's financial adviser, and Latham & Watkins LLP and Matheson were its legal advisers in Ireland.
(Additional reporting by Susan Kelly; Editing by Kirti Pandey and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
Mallinckrodt to buy Questcor for lucrative MS drug | Reuters:
Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/07/us-questcor-offer-idUSBREA360O320140407
'via Blog this'
Sunday, June 8, 2014
Turn Your Bad Day Around In An Instant
Dog Costume
guide horses
Link: http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/little-things-that-will-instantly-make-your-day-bett
26 Things That Will Turn Your Bad Day Around In An Instant:
'via Blog this'
American soldier at an Allied base in 1942 and his tiny pet kangaroo
guide horses
Just find a good sunbeam................Leopard Tortoise
Link: http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/little-things-that-will-instantly-make-your-day-bett
26 Things That Will Turn Your Bad Day Around In An Instant:
'via Blog this'
Enjoy the simple things
BLOG POST OF THE WEEK, by Hanya Gordon. Hanya says:
This is a BLOG from 'MS Connection' looking at the 'Simple Pleasure' and reminding us to take note of the simple pleasures and to take joy from them, to take pleasure from them. We are so busy living our lives, and perhaps especially living with MS, dealing with frustrations and flare-ups and everyday symptoms. It can be easy to forget to take time and take note of the simple pleasures, of those simple everyday things that make us happy and that perhaps we take for granted. A cup of tea. A cuddle with the Cat. A giggle with a friend. This reminded me of a quote by Robert BRAULT, a quote that I love: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”
What is your 'simple pleasure'?
http://www.msconnection.org/Blog/April-2014/Simple-Pleasures
This is a BLOG from 'MS Connection' looking at the 'Simple Pleasure' and reminding us to take note of the simple pleasures and to take joy from them, to take pleasure from them. We are so busy living our lives, and perhaps especially living with MS, dealing with frustrations and flare-ups and everyday symptoms. It can be easy to forget to take time and take note of the simple pleasures, of those simple everyday things that make us happy and that perhaps we take for granted. A cup of tea. A cuddle with the Cat. A giggle with a friend. This reminded me of a quote by Robert BRAULT, a quote that I love: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”
What is your 'simple pleasure'?
http://www.msconnection.org/Blog/April-2014/Simple-Pleasures
shi
ft.ms | Facebook: "BLOG POST OF THE WEEK, by Hanya Gordon.
'via Blog this'
Meditation: Getting Started
Meditation: Getting Started
So you want to start practicing meditation, but need to know the very basics—like how to sit. Mindfulness pioneer Jon Kabat-Zinn offers helpful tips for beginners from his new book.
The way to undertake the practice is as an experiment. I suggest that you give yourself at least six months to practice every day, whether you like it or not, whether you feel like it or not. While six months may sound extreme, actually it is being offered as a way for you to reconnect with and nurture the genius elements of your own being, all too easily abandoned in the pull of the seeming urgency of personal commitments, responsibilities, and unexamined lifestyle habits.
Here are a few pointers to get you started and suggestions for how to work with some of the common challenges to beginning a meditation practice:
1. Posture
The carriage of your body during formal practice is important. It helps if you adopt a posture that embodies wakefulness, even or especially if you feel sleepy. That probably means not practicing lying down, although lying down can be a wonderful way to cultivate mindfulness and wakefulness as we do in various body scans and lying-down meditations. If you set your intention at the beginning of a period of practice to “fall awake” instead of “falling asleep,” then it is fine to experiment with practicing lying down.
Aside from the fact that you can also meditate formally when standing still or while walking, a posture that embodies wakefulness usually suggests sitting, and sitting in such a way that the back is straight but relaxed, with the shoulders and arms hanging off the rib cage, the head erect, and the chin slightly tucked. You can sit either on a straight-backed chair or on a cushion on the floor. As best you can, sit in a posture that naturally and easily embodies dignity and presence for you.
If you choose a chair, try to sit with your feet uncrossed and flat on the floor, and if possible (and it may not always be possible) with your back away from the back of the chair so your posture is self-supporting, with the spine self-elevating out of the pelvis.
If you choose a cushion on the floor, you will need padding for your knees. A zabuton (a cushioned mat) underneath a zafu (round meditation cushion) is one good solution. If you choose to sit on a zafu, choose one with a height that works for your body. The idea is to sit on the forward third of the cushion, with the pelvis tilted slightly down, allowing the natural lordotic curve in the lower back to move in both a forward and an upward direction. Your knees may or may not touch the floor (or rug or zabuton), depending on how flexible your hips are. For comfort, you may want to support your knees with extra cushioning if they do not rest easy on the surface below you.
You can do various things with your legs. They can be folded into what is called the Burmese posture, with one lower leg draped in front of the other. That is the easiest, and therefore the posture that is least likely to cause increasingly unpleasant sensations with longer sitting times.
You can also do various things with your hands. I generally keep mine folded in my lap, with the fingers of the left hand lying on top of the fingers of the right hand, and the thumbs either lying one (left) on top of the other (right) or with the thumb tips touching. The latter forms what is called the 140 “cosmic mudra,” in the shape of an oval above the fingers. There are also many other mudras that you can try out, like keeping your hands on your knees, facing either up or down.
Remember that it is not so much the position of the hands that is important, but your awareness of the feeling of the hands in any position. That way your hands, like your legs and your back, will begin illuminating for you the landscape of your own body and the various embodied sensory qualities associated with the myriad of ways the body can position itself, both in formal meditation and in daily life.(Continued after image below.)
2. What to Do with Your Eyes
You can be aware with your eyes closed, and you can be aware with your eyes open. Therefore, you can meditate either with your eyes open or closed. Both have unique virtues, so you might want to experiment with both.
If you sit with your eyes open, it is good to let your gaze fall unfocused on the floor three or four feet out from you or on a wall if you are sitting facing a wall, as they do in some Zen traditions. Let the gaze be still and relaxed. It is not about staring at anything but simply an invitation to experience the chosen object of attention moment by moment, whatever it is, and resting in awareness with the eyes open.
3. Sleepiness
Obviously, if you are sleepy it is best to sit with your eyes open. But it is even better to find a time of day to practice when you are fairly awake. That is one good reason to practice early in the morning, after a good night’s sleep. You can also splash cold water on your face before practicing if you feel sleepy—or even take an invigorating cold shower. Since being awake is important to you or you wouldn’t have made it this far in the book and the practice, it makes sense to set up the conditions as best you can to be fully present.
Obviously, we have almost no control over some conditions, like how much ambient sound there may be in your location. But again, what is most important is the quality of your attention and awareness, not whether the conditions are optimal. Still, at the beginning, it is very helpful if you can minimize sleepiness and, to the degree possible, disturbances in your outer environment. There will be plenty of distractions to work with inwardly and outwardly, no matter how much you regulate the external environment.
4. Protecting This Time
It is best if the time you choose for formal practice is one in which you will not be interrupted. Shut off your cell phone, pager, computer, and the Internet. Close the door of your room and make sure that others know not to interrupt you during this time. This is another good reason for practicing early in the morning, before others have expectations of you, when you can make a time that is devoted strictly to being, a time for nurturing yourself through non-doing and the cultivation of mindfulness and heartfulness.
Excerpt from Mindfulness for Beginners: Reclaiming the Present Moment—and Your Life by Jon Kabat-Zinn (Sounds True, Jan. 2012). Click here for more information anhttp://www.mindful.org/Meditation%20in%20Action/getting-started-with-formal-practiced to purchase the book and CD.
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