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Abused women and girls can heal and empower themselves through the twice-daily practice of the simple, effortless, evidence-based Transcendental Meditation technique—according to a panel of distinguished women doctors and advocates who gathered for the first annual public forum on “Women, Violence, and Meditation” held on March 31st at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.
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The Forum was attended by 175 government, philanthropic, and community leaders along with members of the general public. View event program (PDF)
CNN anchorwoman Soledad O’Brien opened the event with a videotaped message: “I’m speaking today in support of the good works of the David Lynch Foundation because it provides something that’s missing in the lives of women and girls: a tool to help them, in their own terms, overcome and heal those terrible traumas and abuse that can grip their lives. And that tool is Transcendental Meditation.” Watch video
Pamela Shifman, Director of Initiatives for Girls and Women at the NoVo Foundation, followed Ms. O’Brien, with a call to action to aid at-risk women and girls, and painted a picture of the outcome: “When girls and women are safe and are able to thrive, and not merely survive, we can turn ourselves to the task of creating a more just, more fair, more loving world that we would all like to be a part of.” Watch video
Tara Wise Jones, Executive Director of the National Women Veterans Association of America, described the struggles of women veterans who have been victims of military sexual assault and praised Transcendental Meditation for helping her through her rough times: “Transcendental Meditation helps relax and process and relieve your mind from all the complexities that are embedded in your brain.” Watch video
Dr. Pamela Peeke, host of the nationally acclaimed television show “Could You Survive” of Discovery Health TV, outlined the research on TM, which shows it produces a marked and sustainable impact in the treatment of PTSD: “I’m a physician and a scientist. I’ve dedicated my life to good science. And this research on Transcendental Meditation is excellent: There is a very strong connection between what happens in Transcendental Meditation and the reduction of symptoms of everything from depression to PTSD to ADD… The list just goes on and on.” Watch video
Dr. Lois Lee, Founder and Director of Children of the Night, an organization which has saved thousands of teens from a life of prostitution on the streets of America's cities, credited the David Lynch Foundation for changing her approach to helping girls caught in the nightmare of sex trafficking: “The David Lynch Foundation showed me that children can be taught Transcendental Meditation and change their lives—that these children can be reached, children that most people believe are unreachable and unchangeable. And, for that I will always be grateful.” Watch video
Dr. Sarina Grosswald, George Washington University–trained cognitive learning specialist and research investigator at the National Institutes of Health–funded Center for Natural Health and Prevention, presented new research showing TM reduces symptoms of PTSD by 50 percent and discussed the impact the technique has on improving brain functioning. The result, she said, is that a woman or girl is empowered to heal herself: “The Transcendental Meditation technique helps from the inside out. It gives a woman or a girl the internal foundation to take control of her life and to start to begin anew.” Watch video
Rita Cosby, Emmy Award–winning TV anchor, daughter of a WWII POW and forum moderator, cited the benefits the TM technique has provided in her own life—and what it can do for victims of PTSD and their caregivers: “There’s an incredible inner peace, an incredible courage that we all have within ourselves. We just have to find it, and TM is a wonderful way to do so.” Watch video
Joni Kimberlin, award-winning producer and director with Third Fire Films, concluded the panel discussion with a call to action, committing herself to working with other women to support the David Lynch Foundation Women’s Initiative: “I personally don’t know of a better way to ensure the future of our girls and young women than to give them the gift of Transcendental Meditation.” Watch video
Britten Chroman, the Director of the David Lynch Foundation Women’s Initiative, said that the Forum inspired and mobilized the participants to take immediate action. She said that follow-up meetings are now under way in New York City to raise the funds and implement TM-based programs as soon as possible in partnership with local, national and international women veterans groups; shelters for abused women and girls; and crime victim treatment centers.
“The Forum made all of us at the David Lynch Foundation Women’s Initiative even more committed to helping women and girls who suffer from the debilitating effects of trauma and abuse,” Ms. Chroman said. “I invite everyone to join us in meeting our goal of raising $300,000 over the next 12 months. This will help us bring the profound mental and physical benefits of Transcendental Meditation to more than 10,000 women and girls at treatment sites, homeless shelters, and community projects in New York City, throughout America, and around the world.”
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Become a founding donor of the DLF Women’s Initiative (all funds go directly to bringing TM to at-risk women and girls). DONATE
