For over a year or so I have been studying and practicing meditation. I know that for better or for worse there are a lot of preconceived ideas about meditation. Frequently people envision Buddhist monks with shaved heads humming softly in unison, hippies beating on drums, incense and candles or some similar type of scene when thinking about meditation. Despite what some may think, meditation really isn't weird or outlandish. Meditation can be described in very clear, concise, scientific terms. I think it can be hard in our western culture to embrace and incorporate practices like meditation primarily because of some of these different notions that may cause us to keep it, and things like it at an arms distance. The truth is that meditation is quite honestly, amazing! It is backed by a ton of research showing it to be effective for helping with a lot of different health problems. If you haven't started incorporating meditating into your daily routine, consider some of these incredible benefits, and maybe you might find yourself learning more about it and doing it for yourself.
Want more self-control? Want to be able to think more clearly? Want to be able to make important decisions faster? Want to feel (and be) smarter all around? Well, meditation can help in you in all these ways. One of the core benefits of meditation is that it improved prefrontal cortex function. For those who aren't aware, the prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain (at the front) that helps with executive functions. It is the part of the brain that influences will power and self-discipline, and our ability to make critical and complex decisions.
It is the in essence the part of our brain that makes us human. It is the higher region of thought, or better, forethought in our brain. When we have a more effective, engaged prefrontal cortex, we make better decisions. Science has shown that when we have dysfunction within our prefrontal cortex, we have difficulty integrating socially, we are more easily distractible, we have difficulty concentrating on important, complex tasks, and we have trouble following through on things. I am confident that all of us could benefit from greater self-control and all the other wonderful benefits of a healthier functioning prefrontal cortex. Meditation is an amazing tool for boosting prefrontal cortex function!
We often hear all sorts of things claiming to be "heart healthy". Meditation has been shown to improve heart function in a very real, very measurable way. Meditation increases heart rate variability. Ever heard of this before? Heart rate variability is one measure of how effective or efficient your heart is at handling the various stresses or demands that are placed on it on a day-to-day, moment by moment basis. The greater the heart rate variability, the more effective and thus healthier the heart. Research has clearly shown that meditation can be extremely effective at improving heart rate variability.
When we undergo stress, especially prolonged stress, our bodies release a wide range of hormones to assist in adapting to it. Among these hormones is one known as cortisol. Cortisol is one of the primary stress hormones and over time increased cortisol levels can lead to a lot of different health problems including excess weight gain, fatigue, digestive problems, blood sugar regulation problems and more. Meditation has been shown to help reduce cortisol levels and other stress hormones like it.
After reading above how meditation helps improve brain function, this should make total sense. Meditation has been shown to help people suffering anxiety and depression. Considering the fact that over 10% of our population is currently prescribed some type of antidepressant medication this should be very welcome news indeed! If you suffer from anxiety or depression, meditation may just be an effective solution for you.
So if nothing else, here is something that costs you absolutely nothing, can be done anywhere and will ultimately end up saving you money. This isn't even mentioning all of the other health benefits listed above. Believe me when I say that these 5 benefits are merely a handful of so many other huge benefits that come from doing meditation. Not sure where to start? I totally understand. I recommend starting by reading the book "Get Some Head Space" by Andy Piddicombe. It provides a very straight forward, no non-sense approach to beginning the practice of meditation. It is an incredibly insightful book and will help you as your begin incorporating this practice into your life. For those of you who begin incorporating meditation into your daily routine, please send me a message and let me know how it goes, I know just how much it has benefited me and my family and I would love to hear your stories too!