One of the most common reasons that people cite for wanting to learn meditation is to reduce stress. Life is always going to be full of challenges, and a life without some turmoil is not only impossible but is also undesirable.

A considerable amount of research has shown that meditation has benefits on mental & physical health, including a reduction in proneness to depression, an increase in emotional positivity, and an increased ability to deal with life’s inevitable stresses.

People often think of meditation as being nothing more than relaxation. Meditation, however, not only involves relaxation (the cessation of unnecessary effort) but promotes mindfulness, which helps the stress-sufferer to recognize unhelpful patterns of thought that give rise to the stress response, and also involves the active cultivation of positive mental states such as loving-kindness, compassion, patience, and energy.

Each meditation group session is geared towards the needs of the individuals of the group itself.

"Meditation, It's not what you think!"

© 2009 All Rights Reserved. May not be printed, reproduced or published without author's permission. This information is for general educational uses only. It may not apply to you and your specific medical needs. This information should not be used in place of a visit, call, consultation with or the advice of your physician or health care professional. Communicate promptly with your physician or other health care professional with any health-related questions or concerns. This article does not share the opinions of MedSpa New England. Be sure to follow specific instructions given to you by your physician or health care professional.

Author's Bio: 

Laura Bonetzky-Joseph, Managing Director and Holistic Practitioner at MedSpa New England, LLC located in Hingham, Ma.

Laura believes that no matter what you are seeking, balance is key - mind, body or spirit. If any of those three areas are out of balance, your whole system will be out of balance. She has found this to be true in all aspects of the services provided at MedSpa New England. She strives to provide the very best services, classes, workshops, & events. Laura also customizes services to meet her client’s individual needs.

Fortunately, Laura was raised in a medical family where she learned hands on about various alternative holistic therapies & general health for the past 20 years.

Laura's father has been a holistic osteopathic physician and surgeon with a focus on general health, wellness & dermatology for over 30+ years servicing the south shore, who is currently the medical director overseeing MedSpa New England, LLC.
Laura’s mother is a retired registered nurse and a nurse administrator with 20+ yrs experience. All of Laura’s life has been engulfed in the field of health & wellness. She assisted in the office management of her father’s medical practice since the age of 18 and over the coarse of the past 20 years, she has learned about general health care, alternative holistic therapies, dermatology, challenges with the heath care system, assisting in office procedures, phlebotomy, EKG, administration, and more.

Laura is very compassionate and passionate about what she does. She is always studying and looking for ways to improve and better serve her clients, and works on implementing services that she or someone close to her has personally had a positive experience. Laura has studied under Rita Berkowitz, LeRoy Malouf, Rachelle Croteau, Mary D'Alba and Britain's own Brenda Lawrence and is always taking holistic, spiritual, & medical courses to better serve her clients. She is a certified medical assistant and an Usui Reiki Master Teacher & Practitioner and a facilitator for various workshops, groups, events & classes such as Meditation, Stress Reduction, Reiki, and Food Sensitivities. Laura is also certified in PPx Therapies, and practices alternative therapies to modern medicine working in conjunction with other medical professionals. Laura's goal is to attain her Nurse Practitioner's License within the next couple years.

She's the moderator for various online health & wellness groups including Myspace & LinkedIn & volunteers her time helping those healing from abuse.

Laura's mission is to find the best of both worlds in the traditional and holistic world. Having overcome health challenges herself as well as her family, Laura implements she has learned, studied, experienced and found to help her own family's health and wellness. Her goal is to have a positive impact in this world, make a difference in people's lives and find simple preventative cures for complex problems.

Her desire to help others stems from her daughter born with a variety of health challenges including a food sensitivity to almost everything. Fortunately, it was with Laura’s training and mother's instinct that pushed her forward and with help of family in the medical field, she discovered her daughter had a serious internal birth defect that required urgent surgery at the age of 3 months. The experience changed her family’s lives forever and led Laura to become interested in food sensitivities and what she calls "an under-diagnosed and unrecognized field heading towards epidemic levels due to all the chemically and genetically modified foods, over-processing, over-vaccinating, and the overuse of anti-bacterial soaps." (New England Business Bulletin; Pamela Berard; Nov 2010)

She has volunteered her time to Old Colony Hospice and has served as a past Fall Gala Committee Member in 2006-2007 raising nearly $10,000. She is also a past member of ADD-In, Local Chapter support group for ADD/ADHD & StepUp4Kids, support group for Bipolar, ADD/ADHD, Asbergers, & Autism.

Laura was recognized in 2009 & 2010 as one of the top professionals under the age of 40 by New England Business Bulletin. She was one of the featured recipients in the article “Sixteen honorees were selected for innovation, leadership, and community service;” by Pamela Berard, a New England Business Bulletin correspondent on November 24, 2010. She was also the 2008, 2009, 2010 recipient for the Healthy Living Award given by Healthy Living Magazine for her contributions to the health and wellness communities.

Laura has published articles on topics such as Vitamin D, Stress, and Meditation on sites such as SelfGrowth.com and Take5.com. You may view a sampling of her work on her website.

For more information on Laura or MedSpa New England, LLC, go to her website or call 781-422-2294.