Do you ever wonder what benefits meditation can have in your life? Do you think meditation can affect our physical and emotional health when practiced consistently?
Lets findout.
Research proves that meditation can help individuals overcome stress, anxiety, chronic illness, addiction, and pain.
Since meditation is a practice of the mind and body that has a history of promoting calmness and physical relaxation, enhancing psychological equilibrium, dealing with sickness, and improving general health and well-being.
This mind and body practice concentrates on relationships between brain, mind, body, and behaviour.
Want to learn more about how meditation can benefit you? Then read on.
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The Effects of Meditation on The brain
In a study, researchers compared brain images from adults who meditated and adults who did not meditate. The findings showed that there are more folds in the outer layer of the brain in people who have practiced meditation for many years.
This process will increase the capacity of the brain to process data. Studies also show that even with normal ageing, meditation can delay, stall, or even reverse changes that take place in the brain.
Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza discusses more how meditation affects the brain and how you can use meditation to change your life.
This book is definitely a must-read. I have implemented the strategies from the book and it has changed my life completely. I am certain this book will be beneficial for you, too.
Watch this video, it is incredible. Listen to it with your undivided attention to understand the message completely.
7 Meditation Benefits that can improve your life
People have been practicing meditation for many years. But during recent years, more people are beginning to understanding the benefits of being mindful, and of connecting your mind and body through meditation.
There are many benefits and forms of meditation to choose from.
Listed below are the meditation benefits and 7 common meditation types.
1| Meditation Can Reduce Stress
Our body experiences the fight and flight response during stressful situations where our heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing increase, and increased blood flow to our muscles.
But, in the relaxation response, a state of deep relaxation, there is a reduction in our heart rate, blood pressure, breathing and metabolism.
This relaxation response is designed to trigger the opposite body reaction from the fight and flight response. The relaxation response can also ease depression, pain, and sleep disorder.
Training our bodies regularly to achieve this state of relaxation will lead to increased mood, lower blood pressure, better digestion, and decreased daily stress.
Consistent meditation is key to helping us achieve this state of deep relaxation.
2| can Meditation Reduce Anxiety?
Social anxiety disorder is a frequent and often disabling condition characterized by a severe fear of evaluation in social situations. Social anxiety can prevent you from living a full and productive life if you don’t overcome it.
I have struggled with social anxiety for years and since I started meditating, I am less anxious and able to soothe my mind and body when in social situations.
Researchers claim that mindfulness meditation can help benefit those with social anxiety.
A study, involving participants with a social anxiety disorder reported decreased anxiety, improved self-esteem and increase positive self-endorsement after 2 months of meditating.
3| Mindfulness Promotes Resilience
Another amazing benefit of meditation is that it reduces stress and boosts overall well-being. Research shows that individuals with higher mindfulness have greater resilience, thus enhancing their life satisfaction.
Mindfulness teaches you how to calm your mind and body, to slow down racing thoughts and let go of negativity.
Researchers note that resilience can be an important source of well-being. Mindful people can cope better with emotions and difficult thoughts without becoming overwhelmed.
Meditation enables us to be mindful which prevents people from obsessing about their problems or failures and focus on the present.
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4| Meditation Enable Mental Clarity
The practice of meditation improves your ability to be in the present by allowing your mind to shift away from distractions and unwanted thoughts.
As it helps you to remain calm and comfortable, you develop clarity and consciousness of what’s going on around you.
I believe that it’s meditating consistently along with other mental health practices that we can overcome some deep-rooted emotional issues. Like childhood trauma, limited mindset, and money blocks…
But still, many people are unaware of the benefits of meditation and how it can help them overcome a limited mindset.
Since I included meditation in my morning routine it has completely changed my life. I am more conscious of my thoughts, I feel at peace and have more clarity.
A Study analyzed how mindfulness meditation affects the brain and found a link between the processing of information and mindfulness. During this meditation research program, they examined the brains of individuals prior to and after the study.
The results showed a positive change in the area of the brain responsible for memory, learning, and emotional regulation.
Therefore, we can train our brains through meditation to change our lives and become the best versions of ourselves.
5| Meditation and Pain Management
So meditation can help you overcome disorders and help you find peace, but can it help relieve pain?
Researchers have shown mindfulness meditation can reduce chronic pain by 57% in clinical trials. Accomplished meditators showed a reduction in pain by more than 90%.
The research also shows that mindfulness meditation soothes the underlying pain patterns of the brain and, eventually, these changes take hold and change the structure of the brain itself.
Therefore, patients no longer experience the same intensity of pain.
Imagine a world where more people meditate consistently, this could reduce the likely hood of depression, anxiety, and frequent narcotics use for pain, etc..
6| Meditation Effects on Premenstrual Syndrome
Premenstrual syndrome is the worst, the back pain, bloating, emotional highs and lows. You name it, I have experienced it.
Sometimes I just want to pack my bags and get a hotel room until it’s over to escape lashing out at my family.
A meta-analysis exploring the medical effects of meditation, primarily looking at mindfulness meditation. One of their results showed that meditation, meditative prayer, and yoga helped to improve the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome and menopause.
7| Mindfulness Meditation Helps With Insomnia
Have you ever lay in bed with a million thoughts running through your mind and just can’t sleep?
Another meditation benefits include relieving insomnia. Meditation is great for those nights where you feel stressed or excited and just can’t get to sleep.
This is where mindful meditation comes in, it is a mind-calming exercise where you focus on the present moment and your breathing.
In a study that included adults with sleep difficulties, one group did mindful meditation, the other group practiced other ways to help improve sleep.
The results showed individuals practicing mindfulness had less insomnia, depression, and fatigue.
This is because mindfulness meditation elicits the relaxation response, making you feel relaxed. So try meditating before going to bed.
5 Common Meditation Types
There are multiple types of meditation out there, but we will focus on 5 common ones. Not all meditation types work for everyone. Hopefully, you find what works for your lifestyle.
1| Mindfulness Meditation
The first meditation is mindfulness meditation, which is the most popular.
It includes concentrating on your breathing, and then taking your mind’s attention to the moment, without wandering into the past or future issues.
It allows you to focus on the present moment. Your sensation, thoughts, and feelings. It helps you break the train of your daily thoughts to elicit a relaxation response and helps you to live in the present moment.
2| Transcendental Meditation
The second meditation is transcendental meditation. It is a natural method in which you unconsciously repeat the mantra they have given you specifically, such as a name, sound, or phrases.
This type of meditation allows your body to settle into a state of deep rest and relaxation, and your mind to achieve a state of inner peace.
3| Chakra Meditation
Chakras describe the centers of energy and spiritual power in the body. Believed to be seven chakras. Each chakra has a matching color and at a unique part of the body.
Chakra meditation includes relaxation techniques focused on creating balance and well-being to the chakras.
Some of these techniques include visualizing each chakra in the body and its matching color.
Some people may light incense or use crystals, color coded for each chakra to help them focus during the meditation.
This type of meditation is best for people with rich imagination.
4| Vipassana Meditation
Most forms of meditation focus on concentration or balance. Vipassana meditation focus on having awareness and being in tune with what is going on around you, with the goal of having freedom.
This form of mediation helps you become a better human through self-observation and self-transformation.
Done through discipline and awareness of physical sensations in the body and mind. This is a gradual process of slowly spreading your consciousness of reality.
5| Loving Kindness Meditation or Metta meditation
The last meditation is loving Kindness meditation or metta meditation is the practice that allows you to focus energy towards kindness, love, and well wishes toward others.
People who partake recite phrases or words to arouse kindness, warmth, and compassionate feelings. This meditation allows you to have a deeper level of love and positive feelings.
After a period of directing this loving-kindness toward yourself, you may include other people you want to wish well or to visualize people with whom you have difficulty.
Final thoughts on meditation benefits and meditation types
There are many types of meditation practices that may be ideal for your lifestyle. Meditation has truly made a difference in my life since I incorporated it into my morning routine.
And I know it will add value to your life, too. Just give it try.
