Meditation

Meditation is a practice where an individual uses a technique-such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity-to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state.

Our lives are stressful in many ways these days. We seem to be always busy and worrying about the next thing. Our mind needs rest once in a while and it’s not when we are sleeping. Our brains are active when we are sleeping. Meditation has been around for thousands of years and it’s now being proven to be the very thing it has always claimed to be. A time out to sit and breath that enhances our lives.

A study related in the book Stress Less, Accomplish More done by Elizabeth Hoge, M.D. says that telomere length is longer in meditators compared to non meditators. The longer a person has been meditating, the bigger the difference in length. That is huge in relationship to longevity. The more we are able to be in a calm state, the longer we should live and be more peaceful in the process.

Meditation practice also leads to awareness of thought which leads to intention. That leads to making other good, healthy habits.

Meditation is simple but not easy. Like anything else, it takes practice. The key is to make it an everyday habit. Even if you start with 5 minutes a day, that is better than, say 30 minutes once a week. Sitting and doing nothing feels very foreign at first. We never do that anymore, especially now in the age of Facebook and the Internet. We are always filling our time and distracting us from ourselves.

To learn to practice doesn’t even need a teacher. It is simply finding a space to sit, alone, undistracted by the outside world for a set period of time. You start watching your breath and concentrate on clearing your mind for that amount of time. Every time you notice you have slipped into thinking, go back to watching your breath. It’s common to feel silly, or bored or uncomfortable. But the more you make it a habit, the more you reap the benefits.

There are many kinds of meditation. You can even meditate while doing the dishes or walking. The practice in which you sit is a good place to start because you have little to no distractions so you can watch your mind better.

Other benefits of meditation found in thousands of studies show that it positively impacts mental and physical health. IT can reduce stress, improve sleep, increase focus and improve relationships.

The neurological advantages include calming the amygdala where our fight or flight and emotions live. Strengthening impulse control which allows us to self manage stress, pain, depression and addiction issues.

It is important to not get frustrated with yourself and expect to much. It is something that isn’t easy. Our minds are always busy. So be gentle with yourself and just notice when you drift away and just go back to your breath.

Buddha’s Brain (Rick Hanson, Richard Mendius

Stress Less, Accomplish More (Emily Fletcher)