The earliest records of meditation practice date from approximately 1500 years BCE (Before Common Era) and indicate it to have been an integral part of the earliest forms of the Vedic, or early Hindu, schools in India. Since then meditation has been practiced in many different cultures around the world and now it is more popular than ever. Benefits of mindful meditation are endless and go beyond the physical. In fact meditation helps in the physical, mental and emotional aspects of life and these benefits can collectively improve the quality of life in so many ways.
Many people think that meditation is mainly about having a calmer mind and less stress, but it offers us much more than just that. Here are some of the benefits of mindful meditation.
#1 Meditation can help you relax and sleep better
Do you sometimes struggle to get to sleep?
Meditation is often recommended as a relaxation technique for people who have trouble sleeping or suffer from insomnia. It helps improve the quality of your sleep by helping you calm down and stop focussing on the worries of the day.
It can also give your sleep a more solid and restful quality – there’s nothing worse than tossing and turning all night, trying to get some Zs!
#2 Meditation helps reduce stress and anxiety
Meditation is a great way to relieve stress. It can make your brain more resilient to stress and reduce the amount of stress hormones released during stressful situations.
It can also help you calm down when faced with a situation that would typically lead to an anxiety attack. Meditation has been shown to both increase positive emotions, while reducing negative ones.
#3 Meditation improves focus
Meditation helps us focus on the present moment instead of worrying about what happened yesterday or what might happen tomorrow. If you find that your concentration is poor, meditation can help improve it.
People who meditate regularly report being able to focus and concentrate better on other tasks too, not just during the meditation itself.
#4 Meditation helps fight symptoms of depression
For those who have been diagnosed with depression or an anxiety disorder, meditation may help you find relief from the symptoms. It can help you learn how to let go of stress and anxiety, which in turn may lead to a reduction in depressive symptoms.
In addition, studies have shown that meditating has an impact on brain activity, resulting in more positive emotions.
#5 Meditation improves physical health
Regular practise of meditation has been shown to improve physical health in different ways.
From lowering your blood pressure and heart rate, to improving blood circulation, studies have shown that meditation has a useful role in improving physical health. While more research is needed, some research has shown that meditation can also be a powerful way of managing chronic pain or illness. Regular practise of mediation has also been linked to boosting the immune system.
By helping you to relax, meditating can improve various body functions that function poorly when we are stressed. The digestive system is one such function. If you suffer from digestion problems – from acid reflux, ulcers and gas to allergies and inflammation – meditation could be the very tool to alleviate the symptoms.
Meditating for just a few minutes each day is enough to reap the benefits of this practice and make you feel more relaxed and positive, as well as feeling better physically. There are many other benefits that one can experience from practicing meditation on a regular basis – meditating for just 10 minutes a day will help improve your life in many ways.
Do you meditate?
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