Mindfulness and meditation are ancient Buddhist practices that have existed for centuries as a way to centre the mind and body and increase mental focus. It has spawned mindfulness, a way of training your attention to achieve a mental state of calm concentration and positive emotions.
Mindfulness is one of the most popular meditation techniques and is often utilised when trying to build resilience. It is about tuning into your senses to focus on what’s happening in the present moment. It typically involves directing your awareness to your breath, your thoughts or the physical sensations in your body. Some liken it to a ‘warm bath for your mind’, a way of curtailing the chaos happening in your head and in your environment, in favour of a calmer, more relaxing experience. Mindfulness can be practiced for any length of time, from 2 minutes upwards. The key is practicing mindfulness exercises regularly.
There has certainly been a lot of research conducted over recent years with some surprising benefits. Teaching resilience can be difficult. But is mindfulness really a superpower?
The top 3 reasons why people choose to practice mindfulness:
- 84% to reduce stress and anxiety
- 53% to improve concentration and memory
- 52% to improve performance at work and/or school
Many studies suggest that practicing meditation and mindfulness can lower stress, improve insomnia, mental focus and pain management as well as building resilience. Other studies go as far as to say mindfulness and meditation reduce addictive behaviours, build self-esteem and increase grey matter.
Certainly, the weight of evidence points towards mindfulness exercises improving your mental, physical, and spiritual well-being, so it may well be our own special superpower if we build it into our daily lives to teach resilience.
- Daily mindfulness exercises can improve mental health.
Meditation and mindfulness can help prevent the mind from wandering into negative territory and over-processing events by promoting self-awareness and focus on the present moment. According to neuroscience studies, meditation can potentially reduce the stress hormone cortisol, alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety, and boost your immune system and mood. It is also extremely helpful for building resilience.
- Meditation programs can improve physical wellness.
Studies show that regular meditation practice can reduce your heart rate and lower blood pressure. According to Harvard Medical School, meditative mindfulness practices can reduce the risk of heart disease and other cardiac issues over time.
- Meditation and mindfulness sessions can improve sleep quality.
Meditation can increase the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, which can alleviate insomnia and improve your quality of sleep.
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- Mindfulness can help build resilience to stress.
Scientific studies have shown that meditation sessions can produce structural changes that may underpin calmness, mental focus, and contentment. In a Harvard study, researchers found that a few weeks of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) therapy increased cortical thickness in areas of the brain responsible for memory, learning and emotional regulation, along with decreases in the cell volume of the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for anxiety, stress, and fear.
Harness your superpower and the results will speak for themselves. If you’d like to learn more about mindfulness and building resilience, call us on 1300 850 959
