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Mindfulness Meditation: Exploring The Healing Benefits Of Daily Meditation
Do you take a few moments for yourself every day? One of the most basic elements of self-care is taking time for yourself. There is no better way to do this than through a daily meditation practice. Too often, we get stuck in patterns of thinking that do nothing but drag us down.
Mindfulness meditation techniques help to clear your thoughts and recenter you. It helps you to stay in the present and disengage from strong beliefs, thoughts and emotions – essentially putting you “in the now.” While it can be extremely difficult to train your mind and focus on the present moment, with daily habits and practice, it is possible.
Meditation techniques differ depending on the specific style of meditation, but many follow the same steps: focusing on breathing, bringing something to the forefront of your mind, being aware of your mind and body, and relaxing.
What Is Mindfulness Meditation?
Mindfulness is being fully aware and present of where you are, enhancing focus on what you are doing, and limiting reactive behavior. You are simply letting the world happen around you. We all have the ability to be mindful, but our modern brains are not used to it.
Mindfulness meditation is simply sitting and paying attention to where you are and how you feel in this moment. With mindfulness you may train your brain to be more present and aware and with time, effectively reprogram your brain.
Benefits of Mindfulness and Healing Meditation
Mindfulness and healing meditation techniques have been used for centuries, including in many religions. The benefits of mindfulness have been lauded throughout different types of medicine and healing. Not only does it help with being more present, but mindfulness has also been shown to help with behavior, health, and performance.
Mindfulness Helps Overall Happiness: By improving your ability to be mindful, you can cultivate your sense of joy. These daily habits make it easier to enjoy the good things in life when they come, and handle the difficult things with ease.
Mindfulness Helps You Feel Better In Your Body: Many people who practice daily meditation have found that they sleep better, reduce food cravings, stick to their diets, reduce emotional eating, relieve stress, lower blood pressure, and are better at making lifestyle changes like getting more exercise.
How To Practice Mindfulness Meditation
Getting into a daily meditation practice doesn’t take a lot of time, but it does take patience. With practice you are better able to notice when your mind wanders and become better able to bring it back to the present. Even though it is simple, many people still question how to start meditating.
The basic steps to mindfulness meditation are:
- Find a comfortable location to sit – this can be a chair, a cushion, or on a bed. Wherever you feel stable and solid.
- Position your body – you want to keep your legs in full contact with whatever you are sitting on and keep your feet flat if you are in a chair. Make sure you keep good posture but don’t hold yourself rigid. Allow your arms to fall into a natural position. It isn’t necessary to close your eyes, but you may.
- Relax yourself – focus on your breathing. Pay attention as you inhale through your nose and exhale. Notice the sensation of your breath.
- If your mind wanders, simply bring it back to your breathing. Sometimes, you may think of something interesting or something may come to mind of importance. Allow yourself to think the thought but let it go if you can.
Whatever your goal is for practicing mindfulness meditation, even practicing for a few minutes each day can be beneficial. You don’t even have to take time out of your day – simply do it while you are washing the dishes, brushing your teeth, or even taking a shower. It may just change your life.
