The word meditation is used to described a multitude of different practices however the goal is to turn your attention inward and get closer to your spiritual core. Meditation originated from Vedic Hinduism and is generally regarded as an aspect of Eastern religions. It focuses on the spiritual and its main focus is on relaxation, peace and the activities of the mind, seeking to slow the mind down to a different state of consciousness. Some folks choose meditation for stress management and stress relief while at the same time searching for a greater feeling of peace and tranquility.

There is both positive and negative stress in life but many times the balance of the two is thrown off when something traumatic or painful happens and we end up with stress overload. The expression, "If a little is good then a lot must be better" does not apply to stress.

Trying to get the bottom of what are the biggest causes of stress in our lives can be a very difficult proposition since it could be just about anything that varies greatly from one person to the next. There is certainly no shortage of initiators that can cause stress in any of us. Amongst the more obvious causes are being made redundant from a job, the ending of a marriage or relationship or finding out about a health problem.