Staving off Burnout with Heartfulness JayaramThimmapuram, M.D., academic hospitalist at WellSpanYork Hospital.
Burnout is a syndrome characterized by feelings of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, or cynicism and a feeling of lack of personal accomplishment, among other signs. This is often associated with workplace errors, high employee turnover, and absenteeism. Thankfully, there are various ways of tackling burnout and stress. In my opinion, the heart is the key—our own inner treasure. Through utilizing the resources of the heart, one is better equipped to handle the ups and downs of life in a more serene way.
Telomeres are shortened as we age, but telomeres can also be shortened by other factors, such as stress.
We often look for solutions to our problems outside of ourselves. If the solution—or the source of solution—is inside, one has to look for it within and explore.
Unlocking our inner qualities of the heart such as kindness, empathy, care, and tolerance is a sure way to energize oneself and equip oneself to face the emotional demands of our professional lives. Heartfulness meditation, which I find very helpful, involves gently focusing and resting the mind on the source of light within the heart. Instead of resisting the thoughts that arise, we simply ignore them.
With this background, we completed a research study at WellSpan York Hospital with residents, faculty physicians, and nurses to evaluate the effect of Heartfulness Meditation on burnout and telomere length. Telomeres are an essential part of human cells that affect how our cells age.
Telomeres are the caps at the end of each strand of DNA that protect our chromosomes, like the plastic tips at the end of shoelaces.
Meditation is a wonderful tool to open up the inner treasure of the wisdom of the heart and refine our
intellect for us to lead a life with its challenges in a state of inner equanimity.
We offered heartfulness meditation practice to our study participants for a period of 12 weeks. The results showed statistically significant improvement in all dimensions of burnout along with most attributes of emotional wellness. Also, in the younger subset of meditators, even their telomere length increased with statistical significance. There were no changes noted in those who did not participate in meditation activities. I must admit, at first, I questioned practices of meditation, but when I felt the changes myself, my opinion changed into a personal conviction.
For information about UCF, , Oxford,, , Miami, and other locations 321-348-7536
orlando@heartfulness.org 12 Central Florida Contact a Heartfulness center near you
, Jacksonville, Tampa, ,
Heartfulness Meditation Center 256 Rangeline Rd, Longwood Sundays 9:30 – 11 AM
Orlando VA Medical Center, The Chapel 13800 Veterans Way, Orlando
Thursdays 07:15 AM
Find your local Heartfulness Meditation Heartspot:
heartspots.heartfulness.org
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