The world is busy and so are we. And in today’s busy world, we are constantly doing. Whether that be working, cleaning, eating, networking, or responding to the hundreds of texts, emails and social media notifications we receive on a daily basis, we never stop…
…but we should.
Why? To find inner peace, relaxation and to better cope with stress. Unless you want to live in a stressed state… But, why would you? Why would anyone?
So, exactly how powerful is meditation? Let’s find out.
The power of meditation for happiness
Who wants to be happier? I know I do and I’m sure you do too. Regular meditation helps with just that.
Meditation prompts the pituitary gland in our brain to secrete endorphins that help elevate mood and have a positive effect on the whole body. It also alters brain activity to enhance the area associated with positive emotional experiences.
In fact, mindfulness meditation has actually been proven to help ease mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety. So much so, that some mental health professionals, are trying it as a course of treatment before turning to medication.
Believe it or not, meditating actually changes your brain structure, and with it, the way your body responds to stress. This works wonders on depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress.
The power of meditation for relaxation
Think you’re the only person in desperate need of relaxation? You’re not. Not surprisingly, stress is the most common reason people try meditation.
When we’re stressed, our levels of the stress hormone cortisol increase and this in turn produces many of the harmful effects of stress on our bodies, such as the release of inflammation promoting chemicals called cytokines.
In an eight week study, ‘mindfulness meditation’ proved to reduce the inflammation response caused by stress. Pretty awesome, right?
The power of meditation for health
Most people know that meditation relaxes you and de-stresses you, which in turn makes you happier, but what many people don’t know, is that it can also do a lot more for your health than you realise.
Experts have found that meditation can also:
- Lower your blood pressure
- Increase your circulation
- Improve sleep
- Direct more blood to the prefrontal cortex (the front part of your brain responsible for cognition, personality expression, decision making, and moderating social behaviour).
The power of meditation for business
You’re probably thinking, “I thought the whole point of meditation was not to think about work and business?” It is. However, regular meditation can actually help you in the business world.
Here’s how:
- By enhancing your executive function, working memory, concentration, and visuospatial processing
- By helping you better process information
- By allowing contemplation, intuition and creativity to thrive
You’ll be killing it at work in no time!
So, just how powerful is meditation? We’d say it’s pretty powerful!
Need a little help getting started on your meditation journey, or someone to hold you accountable throughout? I can help. Book a complimentary coaching call to find out how.