Stress Management and Meditation at Work
by Steven W. Pollack, B.A.

Steve Pollack, a Miami Chapter ASTD member, was the featured guest on "Straight Talk," a 30-minute radio interview program on WLRN 91.3 FM, hosted by Audrey Finkelstein on August 8th. He was introduced as a stress management consultant who specializes in demystifying the topic of meditation. The interview began with Steve's educational background in the field of Communication, as well as his professional experience in freelance advertising and public relations, and then moved to his training in meditation. More specifically, Finkelstein asked about his work as a stress management consultant, and his speciality of demystifying the topic of meditation.

Discussing how meditation relates to the work place, Steve added, "Not too long ago, meditation was not considered to be mainstream enough to utilize as a tool in the work place. But all of that is beginning to change rather rapidly. Corporate downsizing and 'reengineering' have left many workers and managers in high-pressure situations where they have to work much more quickly and efficiently than they used to. The drastic increase in stress can be debilitating, sometimes costing companies through expensive illness-related absences, higher insurance costs, etc. Anywhere from 60% to 90% of visits to doctors are in the mind-body, stress-related realm*.

"Through meditation, workers become more, efficient, rational, and level-headed about their work. Problems can be seen as logical problems with solutions that are often surprisingly creative. Meditation has long been known as a tool for enhancement of creative problem solving.

"A large part of the problem of stress is caused by the mind's natural tendency to race under stress, processing a dizzying 60,000 thoughts per day according to some scientists' estimates. That comes to a thought every second or two. Meditation is a process which slows the scattering tendency of the mind, and helps it to focus more clearly on selected thoughts which are relevant to the immediate problem at hand.

Steve also pointed out that in scientific studies of people using simple meditation techniques on a regular basis, 75% of insomniacs began to sleep normally. 34% of chronic pain sufferers reduced their use of pain-killing drugs*. There were observably diminished effects of epinephrine and other stress-related hormones, and reductions in blood pressure*. Other studies showed long-term meditators to have better overall coping abilities than nonmeditators**. The Journal of Behavioral Medicine even quoted a study in which as little as 10 minutes of meditation per day caused increased levels of DHEA-S, the age-related "youth hormone," to appear in females of all ages, and in males over age 40.

Steve is a stress management consultant and founder of Meditation Unlimited. He also teaches public courses in meditation which are offered in association with the Yoga Institute of Miami, and the Hollywood Beach Culture & Community Center. He also conducts private therapeutic sessions at Natural Health 2000, Inc., of Aventura, and his latest enterprise is the 7-day Meditation/Yoga Cruise aboard the Norway, Norwegian Cruise Line's grandest ship, scheduled for November 8-15, 1997

Steve was also profiled in an article in the Sept./Oct. 1996 issue of New Age Journal as one of a number of professionals who underwent an interesting career change due to corporate downsizing. The article's title is: "Downsized but not Out." He is currently working on a book based on his public meditation courses, entitled "The Gift of Meditation." For further information, please email him at SWPollack@aol.com, or call Meditation Unlimited at (305) 947-9115.

* Time Magazine cover story, June 24, 1996, pp 60-61 ** Quantum Healing, by Deepok Chopra, MD.