City of Hope patients and their caregivers are invited to attend breathing and meditation classes offered through the Sheri & Les Biller Patient and Family Resource Center twice a month. The classes are free, but registration in advance is required.

Meditation can help ease worry and improve sleep. (Photo by Walter Urie)

Participants will learn simple meditation and breathing techniques to relieve stress, enhance health and well-being, and promote a good night’s sleep. Classes are held the first and third Thursday of each month from 1 to 2 p.m. in the Hope and Parson Village Activity Room. No prior experience with meditation is required.

The classes will be led by Greta Ronningen, C.D.L., who has practiced and taught yoga — with an emphasis on breathing and meditation — for 34 years. She co-founded Yoga Works in Los Angeles and Yoga Zone in New York.

Research shows that meditation seems to improve anxiety symptoms. In a controlled study of 90 cancer patients who meditated for seven weeks, nearly a third had fewer symptoms of stress and nearly two-thirds had fewer episodes of mood disturbance than those who did not meditate, according to the American Cancer Society.

To register and for more information, call the Biller Patient and Family Resource Center at 626-256-4673, ext. 3CARE (32273).

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