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Dr. Daniel Amen in his book Making A Good Brain Great recommends using a form of meditation known as Kirtan Kriya, also known as the SA TA NA MA meditation.

The 12 minute format of Kirtan Kriya that Dr. Amen recommends is a very easy form of meditation for busy people to practice.

The SA TA NA MA meditation is based on the five primal sounds:

• Saa,
• Taa,
• Naa,
• Maa and
• Aa

I have found this to be a wonderful meditation.

I have struggled to meditate on a regular daily basis for decades. And while there is no doubt that the gabapentin medication is helping me to stay on track, as shown in my second SPECT Scan, I am finding that when I get up in the morning, and before goingto bed at night, I really look forward to doing Kirtin Kriya. It seems that the combination of sound (mantra) and movement (Mudra) makes a difference for me.

Dr. Amen says “I teamed with Drs. Dharma Singh Khalsa and Nisha Money to study the impact of meditation on the brain. We chose a simple 12 minute form of meditation, Kriya Kirtan, that is easy for busy people to practice. It is based on the five primal sounds: Saa, Taa, Naa, Maa (aa being the fifth sound). Meditators say each sound as they consecutively touch their thumb to fingers two, three, four and five. The sounds and fingering are repeated for two minutes out loud, two minutes whispering, four minutes silently, two minutes whispering and two minutes out loud.

“We performed SPECT scans at rest one day and then after meditation the next day. We saw marked decreases in the left parietal lobes (decreasing awareness of time and space) and significant increases in the prefrontal cortex (which showed that meditation helped to tune people in, not out). We also saw increased activity in the right temporal lobe, an area that has been associated with spirituality.

Alzheimer’s Research & Prevention Foundation & Kirtan Kriya

Alzheimer’s Research & Prevention Foundation conducted a study at the Amen Clinic in Newport Beach, California in 2003. It was a joint project between the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation and the Amen Clinic of Newport Beach, California, affiliated with the University of California at Irvine.

What did the SPECT scan from the study show before doing Kirtan Kriya?

In one of the brain scans, we saw that the dimples in the front of the brain show a lack of complete blood flow. The area located on the back region of the brain is lumpy and asymmetrical, also due to a lack of blood flow. In the center of the brain, no thalamus is visible.

What did a SPECT scan of the same brain described above show after doing Kirtan Kriya?

A SPECT scan of the same brain showed that the dimples had disappeared, showing an increase in blood flow. The back of the brain is fuller and more symmetrical. The thalamus is now visible in the center of the brain. The thalamus controls appetite and sleep cycles, sets the emotional tone of the mind, and promotes bonding.

SPECT Scans courtesy of the Alzheimer’s Research & Prevention Foundation.

So I am looking forward to my next SPECT Scan to see what other changes we see to my brain.

When you do the Kirtin Kriya meditation you say each sound as you consecutively touch your thumb to fingers two, three, four and five. Each time you close a mudra by joining the thumb with a finger, your ego “seals” its effect in your consciousness.

Visualize or feel each individual sound come in the crown chakra at the top of the head, down through the middle of the head and out to infinity through the third eye. This is very important and must be done with each sound. It is an essential part of the cleansing process. If this part of the meditation is not done, you may experience a headache.

Kirtan Kriya 12 Minute Meditation Instructions :

• Sit with a straight spine.
• Bring your mental focus to the brow point.
• 2 minutes OUTLOUD - SA TA NA MA
• 2 minutes in an audible WHISPER - SA TA NA MA
• 4 minutes chant SILENTLY. Keep the hands and tongue moving - SA TA NA MA.
• 2 minutes WHISPER - SA TA NA MA.
• 2 minutes OUTLOUD - SA TA NA MA.
• 30 seconds: sit quietly and listen inside, hear the mantra and experience the energy flowing in throw your Crown Chakra and out through your brow (Third Eye).
• Do not do the finger movements.
• 30 seconds: inhale deeply, raise the arms up in the air and vigorously shake the arms and fingers. You can involve the whole body and spine. Exhale. Repeat 1 or 2 more time if you desire. This is an important part of the meditation as it helps move and release the energy in the body.

Relax for a few minutes before going about your day. Or relax on your back. If it is before bed time, simply go to sleep.

While doing the meditation, you may experience pictures of the past come up like on a movie screen in your mind. Let them dance in front of your eyes and release them with the mantra. This is part of the cleansing of the subconscious mind.

If emotions come up, you can also incorporate them in the chanting, i.e. if you feel anger then chant out the anger. Whatever you experience is OK. Do not try to avoid or control your experiences. Simply be with what is going on and go through it. It is all part of the cleansing process.

The bottom line is that this meditation works. All you have to do is do it. You can trust the process and the technology.

Technorati Tags: Daniel Amen, Kirtan Kriya, Meditation, SA TA NA MA

The written review of my second SPECT Scan came back and the results were very, very exciting.

I have been feeling better emotionally and cognitively but the review talks about the physical, measurable, seeable results of why I have been feeling better and why my cognitve abilties are growing since I began to take a very small dose of Gabapentin.

I didn’t take a copy with me so I’ll have to wait for next visit to get a copy. I’ll write more about the results then.

Technorati Tags: gabapentin, SPECT Scan, Traumatic Brain Injury

A SPECT scan is properly called a Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography scan.

A Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) scan is a type of nuclear imaging test that shows how blood flows to tissues and organs and in my case we were interested in seeing how the blood was flowing in my brain.

Why did I have a SPECT scan?

The reason we wanted to see how the blood was flowing in my brain was due to the fact that I had suffered from Subtle Traumatic Brain Injury affects since a car accident in March 2000. After the accident I couldn’t remember people when I met them, forgot most technical terms that I had worked with for decades, looked at a resume and didn’t know what do with it (and I was a recruiter) and so on and so on. My life was a mess. And, over the years, I had suffered various head traumas that had resulted in me losing consciousness more than 11 times. hehehehe there are a few stories there.

How did my SPECT scan work?

A SPECT scan integrates two technologies to view my brain body: computed tomography (CT) and a radioactive material (tracer). The tracer is what allows doctors to see how blood flows to tissues and organs.

Before the SPECT scan, I was injected with a chemical that is radiolabled, meaning it emits gamma rays that can be detected by the scanner.

The SPECT scan differs from a PET scan in that the chemical stayed in my blood stream rather than being absorbed by surrounding tissues, thereby limiting the images to areas where blood flows. SPECT scans are cheaper and more readily available than higher resolution PET scans.

The computer collected the information emitted by the gamma rays and translated them into two-dimensional cross-sections. These cross-sections were then added back together to form a 3D image of your brain.

What did my SPECT scan show?

My SPECT scan was used to view how blood flows through arteries and veins in my brain. Over the years various tests have shown that a SPECT scan can be more sensitive to brain injury than either MRI or CT scanning because it can detect reduced blood flow to injured sites. And seeing the reduced blood flow is what this was all about.

How did the tracer work?

The radioisotopes used in the SPECT to label tracers are iodine-123, technetium-99m, xenon-133, thallium-201, and fluorine-18. These radioactive forms of natural elements will passed safely through my body and could be detected by the scanner. Various drugs and other chemicals can be labeled with these isotopes with­out changing their properties.

Who performed my SPECT scan?

My SPECT scan was performed by the very friendly folks in Nuclear Medicine at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre here in Toronto, Ontario. A specially trained nuclear medicine technologist performed the test. A nuclear medicine doctor reviewed the images and wrote a report of the findings and this was then provided to my doctors.

How did I prepare for the SPECT scan?

There was really nothing to do except turn up at my appointment on time wearing comfortable clothing especially a short sleeve shirt. There was no need to fast or avoid certain foods or beverages. I was there for a couple of hours.

What happened during the SPECT scan?

There were a number of steps.

First I was given an injection of a small amount of radioactive tracer while I was standing in front of an x-ray. I forgot to ask what the x-ray was being for because I was more focused on the guy getting ready to inject the tracer into me. Yikes! A needle. And he was in training so I’m not sure who was more nervous.

I was then asked to wait in the waiting area for about 20 minutes until the tracer reached my brain.

After 20 minutes I was taken into the room with the SPECT scan and asked to lie on the scanner table. A special camera with 3 lens was position around my head. The camera was positioned very close to my head and then rotated around my head. I had to remain as still as possible – for 20 minutes - so that the machine could get accurate pictures.

Once the scan was complete, I got up and left. That was it. I was told to drink plenty of fluids to flush out any tracer left in my body.

Were there any risks?

Of course but minimal. The amount of radiation your body is exposed to is less than you receive during a chest X-ray or CT scan. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not undergo a SPECT scan.

What about my results?

The nuclear medicine doctor reviewed my images in a few days, wrote a short report and then my referring doctor picked them up. We reviewed the results and mapped out a course of action. I’ll talk write about that later.

Useful SPECT Scan links

If you are interested in learning more about SPECT - Single Photon Emission Computed - scan I recommend the following websites:

www.radiologyinfo.org: is a website designed to answer your questions related to the many radiologic procedures and therapies available to you and your family. The Web site provides you with information whether you’re preparing for a baseline mammogram, learning more about your child’s x-ray, or researching radiation oncology (cancer therapy) procedures.

www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diagnosticimaging.html: Diagnostic Imaging at MedlinePlus provides a wealth of information. MedlinePlus brings together authoritative information from NLM, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other US government agencies and health-related organizations.

Technorati Tags: My SPECT scan, nuclear imaging, PET, positron emission tomography, radiolabel, Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography, tracer, traumatuc brain injury