The Care and Feeding of Your Mind... With Help From MidPointe

It may be the first month of a new year in the 21st century. But we still look to ancient practices to improve our lives. 

Books for all ages regarding mindfulness and meditation.

Take “yoga,” “mindfulness” and “meditation” for example. Doubters may consider the trio as the residue of a free-wheeling, 1960’s counter-culture. They may not be aware that to this day some of the most established, highly respected medical authorities promote these centuries-old practices to calm the mind and ease physical tension. 

Don’t take our word for it. Heed the words of the esteemed Mayo Clinic, which describes “Mind-Body Interventions” in the fifth edition of its “Family Health Book” (*): 

 “Your mind and body are inextricably linked, so your thoughts and emotions affect your body...Traditional medicine has long concentrated on the biology of the body and brain...Over the past few decades, researchers and doctors have focused more attention on the effects the mind has on the body, particularly for diseases that appear to be brought on or exacerbated by stress, such as cancer, heart disease and asthma... Practitioners of mind-body therapies believe that negative thoughts and feelings may produce bodily symptoms. They use a number of relaxation techniques aimed at calming the mind.” 

Try not to let the tome’s nearly 1400 pages deter you from absorbing its valuable information! Presented in every-day language with instructive illustrations, the “Family Health Book” offers three steps for meditating (“You don’t have to twist your legs into a pretzel or spend your life at an ashram to learn to meditate...,”), as well as information on yoga, hypnotherapy, and the benefits of “focused attention.” 

The Mayo Clinic isn’t our only source of information about mindful practices. You’ll find a plethora of authors and their works (including e-items) in our traditional catalog: 

www.midpointelibrary.org > Catalog search 

A collection of recent magazines, offered by MidPointe, featuring healthy choices

We also offer a site of e-items only (books, audiobooks, magazines, music, movies and TV shows and research databases) at: www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary 

Check out items from either site with a free MidPointe Library card! Sign up for your card at any MidPointe location: Middletown, West Chester, Trenton, Monroe, Liberty Township (2nd floor, Liberty Center) and onboard our “Library On Wheels” bookmobile. In the meantime... 

May you and yours enjoy the best of health this year and those to come! 

Source: (*) “The Mayo Clinic Family Health Book” (Fifth edition), published in 2018 by the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). Available for checkout at MidPointe Library. 

Attend free yoga classes at MidPointe Library! Go to www.midpointelibrary.org  > Events. Type in “Yoga” to find a class near you!