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Finding a legal resolution through mediation

<p>To say legal disputes can get messy is quite an understatement. And court is the last place you want to be with someone that you were previously close with.</p> <p>The good news is that there are alternatives. We’re going to look at mediation, an effective legal process that can be used to handle complicated disputes when there’s a need to preserve the relationship. We’re going to look at the ins and outs of this process, so you can figure out whether or not it’s in your best interest for your particular dispute.</p> <p><strong>What is mediation?</strong></p> <p>In a basic sense, mediation is a structured negotiation process with a third party involved. The third, independent party is known as the mediator and is brought in to help assist the groups identify and assess the different options they have for resolving disputes.</p> <p>Mediation is useful if there is a need for parties to find a way to preserve their relationship and the possibility that a judge’s decision won’t resolve the dispute.</p> <p>It also has the following advantages:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Time</strong> – mediation tends to resolve disputes much quicker than a trial.</li> <li><strong>Cost</strong> – mediation avoids the costs of preparing and running a trial entirely.</li> <li><strong>Flexibility </strong>– mediation gives both parties more control over the outcome. </li> <li><strong>Stress</strong> – mediation is less formal, and a much more relaxed environment.</li> <li><strong>Confidentiality</strong> – mediation by its nature is private and a judge is not informed.</li> <li><strong>Satisfaction</strong> – because both parties have had an influence in the decisions it’s more likely to please everybody.</li> <li><strong>Finality</strong> – the settlement can only be modified with agreement of all parties.</li> </ul> <p><strong>How does it work?</strong></p> <p>Basically, before a mediation commences, the mediator will consult both parties with a view to figure out the best process for coming to a dispute. This will also generally involve a discussion about the background of the matter and issues involved. </p> <p>The process itself is flexible and tailored to the circumstances. Mediators may assist the flow of negotiations and offer different perspectives. In the end if the parties come to an agreement the matter is settled in full or in part or if a conclusion is unable to be reached a trial may be necessary depending on the circumstances of the dispute.</p> <p>Have you ever found yourself in a legal dispute and how did you cope? Do you think mediation is an option you might look into exploring now?</p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

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Improve your brain function with guided mediation

<p><strong><em>Tracy Adshead is a yoga teacher specialising in yoga for seniors. She is passionate about bringing healing and healthy ageing to the community.</em></strong></p> <p>In this video, Tracy will guide you through the practice of Kirtan Kriya, which is a guided meditation that helps improve brain function and mental balance. Just 12 minutes of Kirtan Kriya a day can help with mood swings, memory loss and allows for better concentration throughout the day.</p> <p>This practice is also highly recommended by the <span><a href="http://alzheimersprevention.org/research/12-minute-memory-exercise/">Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation</a></span> for improved brain function.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z821bz--tVM" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>Will you be trying out this guided meditation? Let us know in the comments below.</p>

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The science behind why mediation helps relieve stress

<p><em><strong>Michaela Pascoe is a postdoctoral research fellow in Exercise and Mental Health at Victoria University.</strong></em></p> <p>Stress is common, and ongoing stress can contribute to the onset of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23261775">a range of psychological issues</a>, such as depression and anxiety.</p> <p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3679190/">Meditation</a> and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3447533/">yoga</a> have been shown to reduce people’s self-reported levels of stress. This is likely due, at least in part, to the effects that meditation and yoga have on the brain’s stress response system.</p> <p><strong>How the brain responds to stress</strong></p> <p>The body’s automatic stress response is controlled by the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system plays a key role in stress reactivity via its two main divisions: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.</p> <p>A main function of the sympathetic nervous system is to mobilise the body to fight or flee from stressful or threatening situations, via control of internal muscles, organs and glands. This is called the “fight or flight” response.</p> <p>The parasympathetic nervous system counterbalances the sympathetic nervous system and returns the body to its natural baseline state after the systematic nervous system activates.</p> <p>In many cases the parasympathetic nervous system and sympathetic nervous system have opposing but complementary functions. For example, the sympathetic nervous system increases heart rate, blood pressure and the downstream release of stress-related hormones such as cortisol, whereas the parasympathetic nervous system decreases all of these factors.</p> <p>So by measuring these <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/c6c0/dcc3ad330cf46f84fa5cabcacead7e3d4da3.pdf">we can identify</a> if people are experiencing a homeostatic state or a more stressful state, on a physiological level.</p> <p>We <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28863392">reviewed</a> how yoga and different forms of meditation influence the brain’s stress response system by studying physiological markers of stress.</p> <p><strong>What are the different forms of meditation?</strong></p> <p>A common method of classifying meditation techniques distinguishes between <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21254062">open monitoring</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21254062">focused attention</a>, and automatic <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27816783">self-transcending</a> meditation.</p> <p>Open monitoring or mindfulness-based meditations involve the practice of observing the content of our ongoing experience in a non-reactive way, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20041276">to become reflectively aware</a> of cognitive and emotional patterns. Instead of focusing attention on a particular object, the meditator aims to pay attention to and monitor all aspects of experience as they come up, without judgement or attachment. An example would be feeling the sensation of the seat beneath you while meditating.</p> <p>In focused attention meditation, attention is focused and sustained <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16536641">on a particular object</a> and brought back to the object when the mind has wandered. In this way, the meditator is controlling their own attention. The object the person focuses on may be the breath, a mantra, visualisation, a part of the body, or an external object. Each time the meditator notices that their attention wanders, they actively bring it back to their object of attention.</p> <p>Automatic self-transcending involves the use of a mantra, usually Sanskrit sounds, which the meditator can attend to without effort or concentration. The aim is that the mantra becomes secondary and ultimately disappears as self-awareness increases. In automatic self-transcending meditation, the mind should be <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20167507">free from focus</a> and mental effort. It is practised for 15–20 minutes twice a day while sitting with closed eyes.</p> <p><strong>What the evidence says</strong></p> <p>We found that meditation and yoga reduce diastolic blood pressure (the lower range) by 3-8 millimetres of mercury (mmHg), compared with people who engaged in another activity, such as aerobic exercise or relaxation.</p> <p>Both focused attention and automatic self-transcending meditation styles, as well as yoga, reduced systolic blood pressure (the upper range) by 4-5mmHg, compared with people who were not practising any kind of meditation or yoga. This is important because reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure of as little as two mmHg can <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24585007">reduce the incidence</a> of heart disease and stroke.</p> <p>Open monitoring and focused attention meditation and yoga reduced heart rate by three to four beats per minute. This is similar to the effects of aerobic exercise, which <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2094526/">reduced heart rate</a> by five beats per minute in one study.</p> <p>Focused attention meditations and yoga both decreased measures of cortisol.</p> <p>Our findings indicate that all forms of meditation studied reduce physiological stress markers in one way or another, and therefore, all forms are likely beneficial in managing stress.</p> <p>In terms of deciding what form is best for reducing stress, we would suggest practising a form that is enjoyable and therefore you will practise regularly and in an ongoing manner.</p> <p>While understanding the different types of meditation is useful, meditation classifications <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20167507">should not be considered</a> to be mutually exclusive, either within a single meditation session or over a lifetime of practice. Most meditative techniques lie <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2001-16215-001">somewhere on a continuum</a> between open monitoring and focused attention types.</p> <p><em>Written by Michaela Pascoe. Republished with permission of <a href="http://theconversation.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">The Conversation.</span><img width="1" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97777/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;"/></strong></a></em></p>

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