Meditation’s popularity is constantly growing and it is very easy to understand why since there are numerous health benefits gained. The practice can be used to gain awareness, develop concentration, and reduce stress, just to mention a few options.
While many health benefits were proven through scientific studies, some do stand out, according to Boris Dzhingarov. These are the ones highlighted in the following paragraphs.
Reduced Stress
This is the most common reason why people try meditation in the first place.
Physical and mental stress hurt us because they increase cortisol levels. This leads to what we know as stress side effects, like cytokines, which are inflammatory chemicals that can be released in our bodies.
Stress can promote anxiety, depression, lead to fatigue, cloudy thinking, increase our blood pressure, and drastically disrupt sleep.
Now we know that mindfulness meditation can reduce the inflammation that appears as a response to stress.
Higher Control Of Anxiety
This is connected to the health benefits mentioned before. As stress levels are reduced, we experience less anxiety. In a study conducted on 1,300 people, it was actually shown that those that experience high levels of anxiety reap the strongest benefits.
Improved Emotional Health
There are some types of meditation capable of improving your self-image. This gives you a much more positive outlook on your life.
In a study conducted on 3,500 people, mindfulness meditation managed to improve depression symptoms. In other studies, it was shown that those who practice meditation are experienced fewer negative thoughts.
Enhanced Self-Awareness
There are some meditation forms that could help you to develop a much stronger understanding of who you are. This can help you grow and become the best version of yourself. As an example, you can use self-inquiry meditation as it has the main aim of developing exactly that understanding of yourself you might lack.
Other meditation forms can help with recognizing the negative thoughts you have. Basically, you obtain a higher awareness of how you think. This can be used to steer thoughts towards constructive patterns.
Increased Attention Span
The simple act of listening to meditation tapes can improve accuracy as you complete tasks. Also, you will perform better on visual tasks and you will have a much higher attention span when compared with those that do not practice meditation.
Even if you meditate only for a few minutes daily, you can still gain important attention-related benefits. In as little as under 15 minutes per day, your memory and attention can be enhanced after just 2 months.
Becoming Kinder
With some meditation types, you might notice increased positive feelings. You may even end up being more positive towards other people. For instance, with Metta meditation, your practice is all about developing very kind feelings and thoughts toward yourself.
As you practice meditation, you learn how to extend forgiveness and kindness. You first do it with friends. Then, you move on to acquaintances. You can even end up being kind to your enemies. All this happens as your compassion is increased and you feel better about everything that happens in your life.