When should you meditate to improve your life and change your outlook? Can or can't I meditate before bed? This article discusses all the benefits of evening meditation.
After regular meditation sessions, the cardiovascular system improves: blood pressure decreases, heart rate decreases, ischaemic heart disease improves
Meditation is becoming more and more deeply embedded in people's lives, thanks to both practitioners' own experiences and scientific research confirming its positive effects. Scientists are very optimistic about meditation, believing that it is a technique that can deal with pain, anxiety, depression and stress. It can be a useful adjunct to addiction treatment, helping to better understand and tolerate cravings. It improves a person's performance by improving concentration and coping calmly with stressful situations.
After regular meditation sessions, the cardiovascular system improves: blood pressure decreases, heart rate decreases, ischaemic heart disease improves. Meditation can halt cognitive decline and memory impairment in old age. There is great hope for meditation in the fight against aging. Cellular ageing occurs due to the natural division of cells during life, as well as due to disease or stress. Meditation has a beneficial effect on telomeres, the proteins that protect cells from ageing.
Sleep is wasted time. Some people, for whom life is a kaleidoscope of activities and events, think so seriously. However, the lack of sleep experienced by a person causes serious damage to the brain: cognitive functions deteriorate, reaction time slows down (it becomes similar to alcohol intoxication), and the risk of neurodegenerative diseases increases.
Research published in Science and Archives of Neurology has shown that the interstitial space surrounding brain cells increases during sleep, allowing toxins that accumulate during wakefulness to be flushed out. Brain cells are very sensitive to their environment, so it is important that waste products are flushed out of the interstitial space in a timely manner. The brain does not have a lymphatic system for this purpose, and its function is performed by cerebrospinal fluid, which circulates through the brain, removing toxic proteins during sleep.
But even if a person does not consider sleep a hindrance and is ready to sleep the necessary 7-8 hours, this is not always possible. Today there are about 80 sleep disorders that do not allow you to get enough sleep and, consequently, to renew your body. Some people resort to medication, while others practice meditation. It is like a reboot, returning to a natural physiological state. You can rethink and process emotions and thoughts arising during the day, calm your mind and prepare for sleep. Therefore, meditation before bed is a sure way to calm down and sink into a healing state.
How does meditation help falling asleep? By relaxing the body and brain, it is easier to calm distracting thoughts that keep the mind active. During meditation, levels of cortisol, a stress-related hormone, decrease and melatonin, which promotes restful sleep, increases.
It is important to note that meditation is not a cure for diseases affecting sleep quality or the ability to fall asleep. It is a preventative component of a healthy lifestyle. If meditation does not improve the problem of poor sleep, it is better to consult a specialised specialist.
The classroom environment should be calm, quiet, and free of distractions
For any, even the most good deed to be beneficial, the right approach is needed. Therefore, you need to meditate properly before going to bed. For experienced practitioners meditation is not difficult. They are able to monitor their state of mind and choose the method required depending on the conditions, but for beginners it can be difficult to take the first step.
The practice environment should be calm, quiet, and free of distractions. Switch off the television, put the children to bed, put away electronic devices. Meditate in a quiet, semi-dark place.
Choose comfortable clothes and a meditation posture. It is best to sit with a straight back and crossed legs. If it is not possible to assume this position and remain in it without discomfort, you can meditate lying down before going to bed, but it is important not to fall asleep.
From the many techniques, choose one that you understand and that will calm your mind after practice. You may have to experiment with several techniques to achieve this.
Guided meditation involves either an audio recording or a facilitator whose voice directs your attention and gives instructions on how to breathe and what to focus on. This is how yoga nidra (yogic sleep) works.
Guided meditation is useful if you need to focus on relaxation, but is not suitable if silence is required.
Mindfulness meditation is about focusing on the current state of mind, body and breath. Practitioners have noted its effectiveness for insomnia. Begin by becoming aware of the breath. Then scan your body from head to toe, stopping at each body part, and think about how it feels. Ask yourself what sensations are present, is there tension? It is important not to dwell on any one thought or sensation, but to recognize their presence and move past them. This is not easy at first, but with practice it will become much easier.
Concentration meditation is appropriate if you struggle with mind wandering. This method begins with choosing an object of concentration. The object can be physical, visual, sound, mental: a steady breath, a flickering candle, the sound of the ocean, a mantra, an idea. The goal is to observe what you see and relax the mind. If the mind drifts away from the object of concentration, gently bring it back.
Meditation acts on the areas of the brain responsible for generating positive reactions to events
Meditation acts on the areas of the brain responsible for generating positive reactions to events. When you relax, dopamine, serotonin and endorphins are activated. Therefore, it is not surprising that meditation allows you to see the world in a positive light and have an optimistic outlook on life.
The person takes the problems of the past day to bed with him, which creates chronic stress and anxiety. In such a state it is impossible to concentrate on what is needed at the moment - sleep. Meditation before sleep for stress trains the ability to focus on what needs to be done, leaving behind past experiences.
When an eventful day comes to an end, meditation allows you to look at what happened with less anxiety so that you can then make the right decision. When the mind is calm and peaceful, it is easier to recognize and manage emotions: to highlight and support positive emotions and to suppress and dispel negative memories or external stimuli.
In conclusion, we can add that a state of calm after meditation influences good rest, brings the body into balance at the cellular level and promotes a state of well-being and positive outlook. Just 15-30 minutes a day can change motivation and make a person satisfied.