“Just meditate!”
I’m sure you’ve heard this from plenty of self-help gurus who have good intentions but fall flat in their explanations.
Meditation is one of the oldest forms of therapy that humanity has kept in practice and for good reason. Don’t just jump into meditation, you’ll want to acknowledge the various methods and benefits and find what works for you.
The abstract nature of meditation can make it difficult to understand as a beginner. Don’t get discouraged, meditation is available to anyone who practices.
The better question is why aren’t you meditating?
Benefits of Meditation
Meditation has led me into feeling free. Living without stress and being centered. It has taught me to let go of the past and forget about the future.
The best thing of all, meditation is completely free. Meditation eclipses self-help. Self-help doesn’t want you to get better, it wants you to buy its next product.
A 2014 literature review of 47 trials in 3,515 participants suggests that mindfulness meditation programs show moderate evidence of improving anxiety and depression. But the researchers found no evidence that meditation changed health-related behaviors affected by stress, such as substance abuse and sleep.
A 2012 review of 36 trials found that 25 of them reported better outcomes for symptoms of anxiety in the meditation groups compared to control groups.
In a small, NCCIH-funded study, 54 adults with chronic insomnia learned mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), a form of MBSR specially adapted to deal with insomnia (mindfulness-based therapy for insomnia, or MBTI), or a self-monitoring program. Both meditation-based programs aided sleep, with MBTI providing a significantly greater reduction in insomnia severity compared with MBSR.
https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation-in-depth
These three studies are just the tip of the iceberg. I’ve had a plethora of coaches and therapists during my lifetime, none of them were as effective as meditation.
When I don’t meditate, my life is falling apart. I lose focus and feel disconnected. Even five minutes a day is enough to maintain the benefit that meditation brings upon us.
Meditation unlocks the true potential of your presence.
With such a low barrier to entry, no cost, and an abundance of benefits, you would be hard-pressed to find a better alternative to meditation.
Importance of Meditation
What matters most in life?
It’s your happiness.
Meditation shows you the importance of flow in life. You cannot stay in a positive mood, life changes. Your location, experiences, and life events are all in a state of flux. Meditation teaches you to be still.
Between the constant shifting of events and circumstances, you learn how to flow with the outcome. Understanding that our suffering stems from attachment is vital for life without burden. You cannot hold on to anything as everything is constantly changing. The harder you latch on to something the more it grinds away at you.
A deep meditation session invites us to explore our inner being. What is it that is bothering us right in this moment?
Facing yourself is important, doing it in the way that meditation forces you is pivotal for growth. Often we find ourselves running away in an attempt to distract ourselves instead of releasing our inner turmoils. Meditation opens a window in our soul and allows for an honest conversation to happen within the mind.
Releasing these inner traumas frees you from suffering. Meditation holds up a mirror for you to take a deep look within and resolve crises. Therapy is great, combine it with meditation and you have a killer combo.
Considering most of our traumas are subconscious, it takes active work to become aware of them. Daily meditation practice is going to speed up the process.
All we have is now. There isn’t a past nor is there a future. With these lessons being engrained every session, it’s a freeing experience. It releases the traumas of the past and the anxiety about the future.
Meditation is important because it lets you live free above all else.
Why Meditate?
You can meditate right now.
Take a deep breath. Close your eyes and focus on the inhale, feel the air going into your nose, down your throat, into your lungs and then the exhale. Pay attention to what is occurring, let thought flow naturally.
Repeat this process for five minutes.
As you get more advanced you can try different types of meditation.
Find what works for you and stick with it. The beginning stages can often seem without benefits. You have to look at it like going to the gym.
You don’t expect yourself to be jacked the moment you step into the gym. It takes dedication and practice to see results.
The same goes for meditation. Your only goal should be that you stick with it. Avoid any force while meditating, only sit down for a session if you are completely at ease and ready to explore your inner being.
You’ll only need to have one good session for it to all make sense.
Meditation gives you a sense of peace that cannot be faltered. There aren’t enough words in the English language to describe the feelings that a deep meditation session invokes. You’ll have to experience it for yourself.
Take it slow and easy at the start. Stick with five minute sessions. Gradually increase the time as you see fit.
The Life Meditation Has Graced Me
As I was someone who was depressed and without purpose, meditation pushed me to find my inner being.
I no longer get hung up on minutia nor do I stay depressed for longer than a few days. I’ve learned that I cannot control how I feel or what thoughts pop up in my head. I know that I have little if any control in life and I’ve surrendered to the fact.
I’m able to stay focused for longer periods of time without any substances. I meditate when I feel the need to, I don’t use it as a crutch.
I’m able to stay centered even when my life is imploding. Everything I’ve learned has turned into subconscious habit. I no longer need to force a meditation session, it happens naturally.
Meditation made me realize that there is no better feeling in life than being present in the moment. No material belonging has the ability to produce the same fulfillment. There is no need to chase anymore, the ever-present moment is perfect.
I’ve met my past self. The self that was tortured by self-doubt and ridicule. The little boy that was bullied during school that wanted comfort. I’ve had deep conversations with myself and realized that these traumas are no longer me.
Letting go of these traumas has released shadows that I’ve held on to for years. Traumas that I wasn’t even aware of.
Without meditation? I doubt I would have been able to see them, let alone fix them.
What Meditation Will Do For You
If you give it a chance, here are some aspects of your life that will change:
- Release your inner traumas
- Give you a sense of peace
- Reduce mental noise
- Living presently
- Find out who you are underneath it all
The non-stop chatter inside of your head? It’s not normal to be thinking 24/7. Imagine what your life would look like, the clarity you could bring into your passions if you brought a clear mind into every waking minute.
Meditation will unlock your fullest potential in life. You’ll be in a state of flow, you’ll move with life rather than against it.
Your anxiety and depression will become manageable rather than burdensome. Life will throw you challenge after challenge and you’ll be like Neo in The Matrix.
OK, maybe you won’t be as cool as Neo, but I do promise that you WILL have a new found approach on life if you take up meditation and stick with it.
It’s hard to start. I get it. It was difficult for me. You have to learn how to meditate without forcing yourself to, that’s where the trick is.
How do you do something without trying to do it?
Meditation will teach you, meditation is present in this moment. The stillness is around us at all times. It only needs to be recognized that it’s there and nothing more.
The first step in helping yourself needs to be meditation. A clear mind is much more valuable than it lets on. You’ll be able to function as humans were meant to function.
As a product of our environment, we are all so busy. Text messages, Instagram, Facebook, Whatsapp, Tiktok, it never ends. The the fast paced lifestyle we have become accustomed to has left a society thinking it’s normal to feel anxiety at every moment.
It’s not. You can feel still, you can feel peace.
It’s your choice.
Conclusion
Meditate. Today. You shouldn’t be asking yourself why meditate, ask yourself why aren’t you meditating right now?
I’ve laid it all out for you. The benefits range from a clear mind to reduction of anxiety and depression. You’ll know yourself better than ever and life will feel refreshing. Best of all, you will find fulfillment in life.
I truly mean that. Meditation has taught me how to find fulfillment by doing nothing. Why do we all chase so much every day? What is our end goal?
The goal of life is to be happy. Meditation lays a foundation for you and all you need to do is listen.
So, why aren’t you meditating?
