Brain scans and interest by medical doctors have provided answers to the question, “Why learn to meditate?” Researchers made the connection between spiritual meditation and the body’s physical processes through several studies of participants who were practicing meditation. They discovered that, with just 40 minutes of meditation each day, a person could actually alter the makeup of the brain — lessening the effects of aging and increasing the amount of gray matter in the right hemisphere. There are many other positive benefits of meditation for people with depression, chronic pain and insomnia, experts say.
If you’re an insomniac, then you needn’t ask “why learn to meditate” at all — for the secret lies in deep relaxation meditation. At the June 2009 Associated Professional Sleep Societies meeting, researchers from Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Evanston, Illinois reported their findings that daytime meditation improved the quality of sleep in patients with insomnia. Patients noted marked improvement in their sleep latency, total sleep time, total wake time, sleep efficiency, sleep quality and depression symptoms after two months of practicing Kriya Yoga meditation methods. “Results of the study show that teaching deep relaxation techniques during the daytime can help improve sleep at night,” said study leader Ramadevi Gourineni MD.
If you’re depressed, then you also need not wonder “why learn to meditate.” An Oxford University study indicates that mindfulness meditation significantly reduces the number of people with depression. Study leader Professor Mark Williams said: “We are on the brink of discovering really important things about how people can learn to stay well after depression. Our aim is to help people to find long-term freedom from the daily battle with their moods.” A great place to begin is at the Big Free Meditation List: www.mymeditationgarden.com/guided-meditations/the-big-list-of-free-guided-meditations.
People who once wondered “why learn to meditate” are now finding they are the biggest advocates of meditation. Physicians are using meditation to cut down on fatigue, stress and burn-out. Employers are incorporating yoga and meditation into their employees’ work days to increase productivity and boost office morale. Patients are using different types of meditation to help when traditional medicine has failed them, for everything from chronic joint pain to depression. We’re likely to see many exciting findings in the coming years, given the amount of research being conducted and the advancement of MRI brain scan technology.
As a leading expert in the field of anxiety disorders and panic attacks, Beth Kaminski is always on the lookout for how to anxiety or panic attacks. Visit her site for more information on her treating panic disorder and much more.
