7 Benefits of Meditation

Did you see Kung Fu Panda and wonder how does this ‘inner peace’ thing work?

Meditation is as closely tied to human history as religion itself. It wipes away your stresses, calms the mind, makes you more appreciative of your existence, and enjoy life. This digital age has brought countless advantages to humans, but it has also brought a plethora of mental problems with it. Meditation is a healthier alternative to mental health than guzzling a fist full of drugs every morning.                         

1. Exercising more and enjoying more

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology found that athletes practicing meditation techniques (mindful yoga, sitting meditation, and walking medication) had more motivation to work out. They were also more satisfied with the workouts when compared to those that didn’t practice mindfulness techniques.

The study involved 21 golfers and 11 archers, and they were put in a Mindful Sport Performance Enhancement program that ran for four weeks. This was done to see the effects of flow (the mental state where athletes are fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, enjoyment, and full involvement in their sport). 

Those who took part reported feeling less anxiety, thought disruption, and pressure to achieve perfectionism. In addition, they had better flow, mindfulness, and confidence.

2. Better sleep

Most likely, you have experienced those nights when you get in bed feeling exhausted and ready to sleep, but you start having a lot of thoughts about your life or work as soon as you close your eyes. Or maybe you experience such nights frequently and suffer from insomnia. If you have this problem, give meditation a chance before you turn to pills. It is a good idea to talk with your doctor about this problem first.

A study that appeared in JAMA Internal Medicine looked at 50 middle-aged men and older adults with sleeping problems. 25 of them went through the mindfulness program that taught them to focus on their current thoughts, experiences, and emotions. The remaining 25 did a sleep education class, learning alternate ways of improving sleep habits. Both of the groups had two-hour sessions once a week, six times.

The study found that the ones who completed the mindfulness program experienced less insomnia, depression, and fatigue.

For more information on meditation, contact the New York Meditation Center.

The good thing is you don’t have to go through the program to get these benefits. Set aside 20 minutes a day for practicing mindfulness. The goal here is to create a reflex of serenity to more easily bring a sense of relaxation. When it is night, and you can sleep, you can easily evoke a relaxation response.

3. More game-changing ideas

According to research published in Frontiers in Cognition, meditation can improve your creative thinking.

Creativity that follows the flow of idea generation is known as divergent thinking. This is measured through the “Alternate Uses Task” method that involves participants being asked to think about the many possible uses of a given object, e.g., a pen.

Men and women taking part in the study participated in the “Open Monitoring” meditation (they are encouraged to be receptive to all sensation and thoughts without focusing on a particular object or concept) and “Focused Attention” meditation (they focus on a particular object or thought and nothing else). 

The “Focused Attention” meditation did not have much impact. On the other hand, the “Open Monitoring” session resulted in the participants performing better in divergent thinking and also generating more ideas than before. 

4. Getting sick less often

Moderate exercise and mindfulness meditation share one unlikely benefit: protection against colds and flu. This claim is made by the research published in the Annals of Family Medicine.

This study looked at 149 men and women who had an average age of 59. Some participants were given training sessions for eight weeks. 51 of the participants went to the mindfulness meditation sessions, 47 were assigned moderate exercise (running or biking), while the remaining 51 were the control group. 

The ones that went for the mindfulness sessions had 27 episodes of flu or cold symptoms. The group that exercised had 26 total episodes, while the control had 40. Even better is when the groups doing meditation and exercise got sick, the symptoms were less severe and lasted for a shorter time than the control group. The meditation group saw a 40 to 50 percent drop in cold and flu symptoms. The exercise group saw a 30 to 40 percent drop in cold and flu symptoms.

5. Reducing chronic pain

Meditation is a natural and effective alternative to pain killers when it comes to reducing chronic pain, the distress and depression associated with it. This claim is made in a research published in American Pain Society research.

A study published in The Journal of Pain involved 89 patients who had chronic neck pain. They were randomly placed into exercise and meditation program groups for eight weeks. While both exercise and meditation helped in reducing pain during movement and improved quality of life, meditation was way better when it came to the ability to cope with discomfort and maximum pain relief.

6. Reduced risk of stroke, heart attack, and death

The most researched form of meditation is known as Transcendental Meditation (TM). This method is very popular and has a celebrity following: Matt Bomer, Hugh Jackman, and Joe Manganiello. This method of meditation involves getting trained by a teacher, but it is painless. It doesn’t take a lot of time, just 20 minutes twice a day. It is mantra-based meditation, which means you just have to sit and close your eyes and repeat the mantra. 

Since the benefits of Transcendental Meditation included their impact on health, researchers wanted to see if they could help in reducing the risk of heart disease. American Heart Association did the research. The study had 201 participants. They were randomly assigned to take part in TM stress-reducing program or a class about exercise and diet. Those in the TM group sat for 20 minutes with their eyes closed twice a day. They had to allow their bodies and minds to rest as they remained alert and present deeply. The health education group was advised to spend 20 minutes every day practicing healthy habits, like eating healthy meals, exercising, and relaxing. 

TM helped African Americans suffering from heart disease by reducing their risk of stroke, heart attack, and death. (Black adults have a 50 percent higher death rate from heart disease when compared to the white people in the US, which is why the study focused on this population.) Even the healthy participants saw lower blood pressure, anger, and stress when compared to the group that went for health education classes.

7. Relieving stress

Everyone likes to have less stress. According to Carnegie Mellon University research, you can do it through brief mindfulness meditation practice.

They did a three-day experiment involving two groups of 33 healthy men and women aged between 18 and 30. The first group meditated 25 minutes every day; they were provided with breathing exercises to remain focused and present. The second group took a three-day cognitive training program that involved analyzing poetry to improve their problem-solving skills.

After the three days, the participants completed math and speech tasks in front of evaluators. They reported their stress levels, and saliva samples were taken to note cortisol levels, which is the stress hormone.

The ones that took part in meditation sessions turned out to be more resilient when under stress.