Meditation is continuing to gain popularity. It’s know to increase awareness, decrease anxiety, and enhance coping skills. Meditation is a practice that is 1000’s of years old. Although it’s newer to the West, meditation has been practiced for centuries on the planet. Here are some ways meditation benefits daily living:
- Increases immune system. One study showed a 50% increase in the immune systems of the daily meditators vs. a control group.
- Enhance self-awareness. Meditation expands awareness. You may become more aware of a mean voice or recurring negative thoughts. Self-awareness is the first step to change.
- Decreases depression and anxiety. One study revealed a 65% reduction in depression and a 30% reduction in anxiety.
- Better cognitive skills. Meditation improves memory and decision making abilities. It increases memory and recall.
- Increased brain function. A Harvard study demonstrated an increase in grey matter in the brain. This increase learning and memory, regulating emotions, sense of self, and having perspective.
- Pain relief. One study showed meditation to be more effective at pain relief than morphine.
- Reduces stress response. Life is filled with stressors, both joyful ones like having a baby to others like job loss. Meditation decrease the physiological stress response, enabling us to be more clear and calm.
- Blood pressure reduction. After 3 months of consistent meditation, many subjects were able to reduce or eliminate blood pressure medication.
- Increases feelings of compassion. Loving kindness meditation can enhance compassion. It can enhance compassion for others, self-compassion, and receiving compassion.
- Increased attention span. Whether it’s the normal mental wanderings of checking your phone, getting distracted by a co-worker, or an ADHD diagnosis, meditation increases our ability to focus on a task for longer periods of time.
- Help fight addictions. Studies have shown that meditation practice can help redirect attention, control impulses, and reduce cravings.
- Improves sleep. Studies have shown regular meditators fall asleep quicker and sleep more soundly.
There are many daily benefits to meditation. Whether you want to sleep better, cope with a difficult boss, reduce pain, or simply feel more joy, meditation can help. Meditation can be done anywhere, anytime, although practitioners recommend a daily practice in a dedicated time and space. You can start small with 5 minutes at a time. If you are new to meditation, you may want to try guided meditations on Youtube or a meditation app. The benefits are waiting for you.
Addiction affects the whole family. Design For Change, a residential treatment facility and recovery services program in Lancaster, is a place for hope and healing for all those affected by addiction. If you are ready to start the fight for sobriety, choose a program that will help you come out victoriously. Freedom is yours. Find it today by calling us for more information on our longterm, student, and customizable treatment programs: (877) 267-3646