Why Do We Meditate?

As we have had the past few months to reflect back on 2020, it has really opened by eyes into what habits and routines I have been engaging in. These habits can both be identified as positive and negative but focusing on the positive habits is very important.  One habit that I have really stuck on to is meditation.  Gaining an understanding of why meditation is helpful and important is key to also engaging in meditation.  I know often times, I have heard clients (and I have said this myself) that it is hard to meditate, but gaining an understanding of it is important.

• Meditation makes you happy.  Meditation allows us to relax and process on emotions that we often times do not allow ourselves to think about.  Allowing the few moments to think and breath is important for our brain and body to slow down.
• Release of stress.   Meditation as it allows us to feel happy, it also allows us to release stressors in our lives.  We have the few moments of silence to focus on our breathing and slowing down our thought process.  Not only does it actually focus on stress, it allows us to decrease our anxiety and depression also. 
• Ability to sleep better.  Meditation as stated previously, helps us relax and slow our brains down.  When we are able to relax and slow down, that allows us to sleep better.  Meditation has been a great tool to aid individuals when they are having trouble sleeping.
• Controls our eating habits.  Meditation really allows us to focus on our breathing which also makes us have a lot of self-control.  We are not going to just breathe, but we are going to be focusing on how we are breathing.  When we learn to have that self-control, it also allows u to have self-control in other aspects of our lives-including eating.  We tend to not feel as hungry with boredom since we are now concentrating on something else and can curb certain emotions and feelings.
• Gain control of your emotions.  As stated earlier, meditation can help with controlling your food intake, but it also allows us to control our emotions.  When we are able to meditate, it really helps us focus on our emotions and what we have control over.  We do not have a lot of control without the help of certain things in our lives, and meditation will allow us to have control over our emotions and other aspects of our lives. 

Meditation has so many benefits and it can be hard to get yourself started on and understanding what the proper way to meditate is.  There are many apps that can help you meditate such as Calm or Headspace, but I also feel like yoga is a good beginning step to start meditating.  I know a lot of people think that you need to be flexible to do yoga or yoga isn’t beneficial, but it really is.  It allows our brains to calm down and the benefit of yoga is that it is for all levels and there are poses that change per your level. 

If you feel like you are struggling with allowing yourself to calm down and then contact any our talented therapists at Symmetry Counseling for a complimentary consultation.  We are here to support you through what you are going through and will make sure we meet you with where you are at. We offer online counseling services in Chicago and beyond to support you. Check out our other blogs on meditation and mindfulness on our website and other social media platforms.