How meditation can improve your health

We’ve increasingly become more worried about taking care of ourselves and of our image, whilst there’s still not enough attention being paid to taking care of our mind. In the same way that we care of our body, we have to care of our mind.

In order to have optimum health, it’s an absolute necessity to rest our mind to avoid becoming trapped in our thoughts and our life from becoming automated. Our character and our habits generate certain types of thoughts. We must take into account that our thoughts are very powerful, up to the point that they can either contribute to our health, or become detrimental. Everything that affects our mind can affect our body and vice versa. Therefore, if we want to improve our health, we must learn to focus our attention where we want it to be and not where our mind or our character desires.

How can meditation help us in this task?

Meditation is a useful and powerful tool that helps us train our mind. It’s not a relaxation technique, however, when we incorporate it into our daily routine we will feel calmer, focused and gain perspective to see things with more clarity.

Meditation allows us to focus on the present and acknowledge our true necessities, as well as become responsible for our mental thoughts. It also boosts our energy and improves our sleep.

What are the best tips and tricks to meditate?

To meditate properly, it’s important to find a moment in the day where we can focus solely on ourselves. This moment can vary from person to person. Some people will prefer to meditate first thing in the morning; others prefer to do it at night before sleeping. Every one has to choose a time that works best for them.

It is also important to find a place that is calm, free from distractions, hurries and mobiles- a place that brings the attention to ourselves.

It is also important to place the body in a vertical position, whether we meditate on a small cushion or on a chair. Once we are seated, little by little we begin to focus our attention to our body and let go of the tensions in our face, shoulders, abdominal area, etc. We then close our eyes and focus our mind on our breathing, feeling the sensation of breathing in and breathing out. Focus all your attention to the inwards breath and how your abdomen inflates and then towards your outwards breath and how your abdomen deflates. Each time your attention becomes distracted, find your focus in your breathing.

With this simple practice, you can create a habit that will improve your quality of life, therefore, your health and wellbeing.