Benefits of Meditating
Meditation can be a few intentional breaths or a multi-hour journey into yourself. You can meditate while walking, eating, sitting, lying down… There are many ways to reconnect with yourself and disconnect from the busyness of the world.
Meditation Is Simple.
Many people overcomplicate meditation. In its base form, meditation can be as simple as observing your breath as it flows in and out of your body. It doesn’t require a lot of concentration, or tons of effort. Over time and with practice, your mind will be able to meditate for longer periods of time.
Guided meditations are another way to help your “monkey mind” stay focused on one task at a time. Practice mindful breathing and listen to our guided meditations accompanied with gentle music to help you sink into that deep meditative state.
Who meditates?
The most successful people in the world meditate, and each has their own reason why. From professional sports athletes to TV show producers, world-renowned singers, and famous actors, meditation is an essential part of many peoples’ lives.
People like Michael Jordan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Eva Mendez, and countless others use meditation as a daily practice.
Why Meditate?
With just a simple moment of intentional breathing and bringing your mind back into the present, you can begin to feel the change brought forth by meditation in your body and mind. From managing emotions to preparing for a stressful or challenging presentation, meditation has countless benefits.
How Meditation Rewires Your Brain
Meditation Reduces Stress.
Through meditation, we give ourselves space to gain clarity and insight. Often when we are stressed, we fail to decipher between what is important and what is not. Imagine if we had the ability to see what mattered most – it would make life a lot less stressful.
“The other key element is increasing our resources, the supply side. Science has shown that brain plasticity, the brain’s ability to change throughout life is extraordinary; therefore by training our minds through meditation techniques we can increase our mental resources and become more capable.”
(Read more on how meditation reduces stress here.)
Meditation Promotes Emotional Health.
Meditating even just 10 minutes a day helps you stay in the present moment. When you let go of the past and future and live in the now, you will feel more at ease and present in your work, home life, and relationships. Meditating helps you understand yourself.
Meditation has been shown to increase compassion and decrease depression.
(Read the article on Psychology Today here.)
Meditation Improves Focus.
By quieting our minds and silencing the thousands of thoughts, impulses, opinions, and digital input from the busy external world, we are able to refocus on the current moment. Having a consistent meditation practice improves our ability to easily return to a focused, meditative state when we are stressed, nervous, or overwhelmed.
“People who regularly practice meditation may improve their mental focus by altering brain function. Compared to non-meditators,
they may be better equipped to quiet brain activity related to mind-wandering,
a new study in the Journal of Neuroscience suggests.”
(Read an article that shows how meditation improves mental focus on Psychology Today here.)
Meditation Encourages Creativity.
The creative process often begins from refection of the self and the greater connection with the world. Some of the best creative work in the world has come from places of inner focus and disengagement from the outer world.
“Intuition arises from unconscious, or spontaneous, information-processing systems, and it plays an important role in how we think or reason. It also plays a big role in creativity. If you are constantly questioning yourself rather than trusting your instinct, it’s impossible to be spontaneous which is deeply attached to creative freedom.”
(Read an article about 5 ways meditation improves creativity here.)
Meditation Improves Memory.
Along with being able to maintain focus, meditating regularly has been shown to improve memory by thickening the cerebral cortex and increasing blood vessels within the brain, which impact mental functions such as learning, memory, and concentration.
“As we age, our mental capacity peaks and then begins to deteriorate. Using your mind to reach high levels of
concentration & laser-like focus is central to meditation. When you do this, you are
strengthening & exercising your mind, to keep it in incredible shape. When we meditate we work our mental muscle,
prolonging the life of our brain, keeping us from suffering memory loss.”
(Read 5 ways meditation improves your memory here.)
Meditation Increases Cardio-Vascular Health.
Relieving stress and anxiety through meditation lower blood pressure, reducing the risk of a heart attack or stroke. Meditation can lower your heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, and decrease the level of cortisone released into your body (a hormone released in response to stress).
“There’s more to heart attack and stroke prevention than medications, exercise, and diet. The latest research confirms that people who practice meditation are significantly less likely to have a heart attack or stroke or die within five years.”
(Read the heart benefits of meditation here.)
The Dalai Lama’s Secrets to Happiness
Do you need a little mood-booster?
A little help to get out of the hole from which you feel you can’t escape?
You won’t regret listening to the Dalai Lama’s guide to happiness.
Need More Reasons to Meditate?
Below, you will find a few articles with more benefits of meditations, as well as scientific studies giving proof that a consistent meditation practice can do wonders for your body and mind.
Neuroscientists and the Dalai Lama Swap Insights on Meditation
14 Benefits of Meditation that Rewire Your Brain for Happiness & Success
Harvard Study Uncovers What Meditation Does to Your Brain
12 Science-Based Benefits of Meditation
