What comes to mind when you hear the word meditation? Do you have visions of someone sitting cross-legged and chanting or munching on a granola bar? I must admit, I wasn’t quite sure about it myself, but that was before I discovered the many benefits of starting a meditation practice.
Generally speaking, the term meditation is used to describe a technique used to achieve mental awareness and a calm state of being. Finding the right type of meditation practice is the first step in this journey since there are so many to choose from. But, whether it’s mindfulness or spiritual-based, movement, mantra or visualization meditation, they all prove to be advantageous. Once you find what resonates with you, start your practice slowly, and watch for these results.
The benefits of meditation
Stress reduction & anxiety control
Meditation is extremely useful in quieting the day-to-day “chatter” that goes on inside our heads. Chatter is that voice that is always speaking to you about what you need to do next, what is bothering you, etc. This steady flow of thought is the chatter of the brain, and it is so constant that we may not even realize that it is producing symptoms of stress and anxiety. Try checking out the book "Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It" by Ethan Kross for more about how to quiet chatter.
You will find that when we take the time to meditate, we practice observing these thoughts rather than experiencing them. By focusing our attention, we can slow or eliminate this steady stream of chatter. And with practice, we can reduce the stress and anxiety that comes with this constant stream of jumbled thoughts.
Improved focus
Another benefit of meditation is improved focus. By learning to stay present and focus on our breathing, we lengthen our attention span. Even a few minutes of daily meditation can greatly improve our ability to stay engaged in our tasks.
Better relationships & mood
When you start meditating, don’t be surprised if you see improvement in your relationships. Meditation teaches us gratitude and appreciation. When we feel grateful, we appreciate others more. We become more respectful toward others’ opinions in both our personal and professional lives.
By continuing to practice meditation, you will typically see your overall mood improve as well. You become attuned to how you feel and how you react in different situations. We tend to be more relaxed and less apt to overreact to external stressors. You gain a better sense of yourself, your values, and what is important to you. This new understanding of who you are tends to make you feel better and generally improves your mood.
General health benefits
Meditation has been shown to improve a myriad of health concerns. From lowering blood pressure, better sleep, help with depression, and even a healthier overall aging process.
We all know that excess stress can raise our blood pressure to unhealthy levels. Some studies have shown that meditation may be a promising approach for lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressure and may even reduce levels of stress hormones. Other studies have shown that people with insomnia who practice mindfulness-based meditation may improve their quality of sleep. Mindfulness-based meditation has also been reported to have positive effects for those suffering from depression.
As we start to age, we naturally begin to see a decline in cognition, however, there is a growing amount of research that suggests that meditation can actually enhance cognitive functions, including our attention and memory. By positively affecting our brain functions we will see an increase in our quality of life.
Better than a facial
There is a definite link between meditation and skin health. On the Newbeauty website, Dr. Shari Auth is quoted as saying, “Since meditation lowers stress levels, it can prevent and manage the detrimental effects of stress on the skin. In addition, it helps relax muscular tension in the face, improving the muscles that can cause wrinkles."
These are just a few of the benefits of meditation. There are many others, yet people still seem to be resistant to it. Why? They may cite things such as: it is just a fad; it’s too hard; too boring; or takes too much of their time. There are many excuses when it comes to starting a meditation practice, however, let me debunk a few of them.
Meditation practices have been around for centuries so even though they may sound like a fad, they will most likely last for centuries to come.
It should never be hard or boring to start a meditation practice . Possibly people think this because they go into meditation with the wrong attitude or the notion that they need to fight or force something. Meditation is about gently refocusing the mind and calming down. It is about leaving your expectations behind as much as possible and starting with an open mind and optimistic attitude.
And last, but not least, if you think you don’t have time to meditate, try keeping track of all the unproductive activities that you participate in for one week (watching TV, scrolling through social media, etc.) and then allocate a small percentage of that time to meditation. You might be surprised by how much time you have. You will make time for meditation if you make it important to you. Remember, just a few minutes a day can be beneficial.
Hopefully, you are now ready to start your own meditation practice and start enjoying the many benefits that come with it.
Enjoy your calmer mind!
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Photo courtesy pixabay/Renan_Brun
Barbara Bauer is a Georgia-based blogger obsessed with inspiring others in the pursuit of self-development. She enjoys exploring the outdoors, drinking way too much coffee, and speaking with a British accent whenever possible.
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