Life is a journey full of ups and downs. Sometimes we slip and fall, get down in the dumps, and run out of energy and motivation. Stuck in rock bottom harms our mental health and vitality, making it the leading cause of sickness. What can we do to maintain our mental health when dealing with this circumstance? In recent years, meditation classes have become the way out. Lots of people anticipated that meditation would help them clear their minds and relieve stress.
According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), meditation helps us to restore calm, relax the body and improve psychological balance. It has positive influences on how people combat sickness. Besides, the NCCIH research pointed out that meditation helped lower blood pressure alleviate bowel syndrome, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
Plenty of medical research suggests that meditation appears to improve human vitality and mental health. A study from the United States National Library of Medicine indicated that meditation may reduce the risk of patients having a relapse if it was being added to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. Another study stated that when melancholic patients make meditation a habit, it has a greater chance to slow down their ill condition than temporary training. As a result, long-term meditation practitioners have more stable sentiment and psychosomatic health.
Four characteristics of meditation: Calm, Comfort, Focus and Relief
According to NCCIH, meditation has four common points: a quiet place to reduce distractions, a defined and comfortable posture (sit, lay, walk or other postures), paying attention to a specific focus(specific texts, object or the feeling of breath), and being free from a persistent mind (let things come and go).
Follow the steps of meditation:
1. Find your own comfort mode
The very first time of trying meditation, you can choose to sit in a chair, lie down or keep standing. Choose a comfort posture that fits you well. You may want to close your eyes throughout the process to avoid being distracted by items around you.
At the start of your meditation practice, it might be difficult to hold still for an hour. Beginners can start with five minutes of meditation each day, at anytime and anywhere. It could be right before you take a shower or right before you go to bed. It guides you to build new habits. In fact, meditation is flexible. It could be done outdoors, with nature sounds to help you to concentrate.
2. Breathing practice
Take a few deep breaths, concentrate on the inhale and exhale rhythms, and listen to the sound of breathing. Breathing in and out helps you to alleviate tension and nervousness.
When you find yourself getting distracted, needing a lot attention to reconcentrate or even wanting to give up halfway through, encourage yourself with positive messages such as 'I can do it', 'I am calm', or make a single character sound to enhance concentration.
3. Feel your body
After breathing practice, shift your focus to each part of your body, such as your shoulders, leg or low back. Which part of your body was the most tired? Relaxing that part can aid in reduction of stiffness. At the same time, remember to maintain a stable breathing rhythm.
Learners are advised to seek professional help if they experience depression symptoms. Please seek the advice of a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist.
This article is provided by Wave Medical Limited.
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