Relaxation Benefits of MEDITATION for Us

In the 1970s, Herbert Benson, MD, a researcher at Harvard University Medical School, coined the term “relaxation response" after conducting research on people who practiced transcendental meditation. The relaxation response, in Benson’s words, is “an opposite, involuntary response that causes a reduction in the activity of the sympathetic nervous system.”
Since then, studies on the relaxation response have documented the following short-term benefits to the nervous system:
·      Lower blood pressure
·      Improved blood circulation
·      Lower heart rate
·      Less perspiration
·      Slower respiratory rate
·      Less anxiety
·      Lower blood cortisol levels
·      More feelings of well-being
·      Less stress
·      Deeper relaxation
Contemporary researchers are now exploring whether a consistent relaxation meditational practice yields long-term benefits, and noting positive effects on brain and immune function among meditators. Yet it’s worth repeating that the purpose of meditation is not to achieve benefits. To put it as an Eastern philosopher may say, the goal of meditation is no goal. It’s simply to be present.
In Buddhist philosophy, the ultimate relaxation benefit of meditation is liberation of the mind from attachment to things it cannot control, such as external circumstances or strong internal emotions. The liberated or “enlightened” practitioner no longer needlessly follows desires or clings to experiences, but instead maintains a calm mind and sense of inner harmony.
 

Ways of Relaxation through Meditation

>>    Meditation Reduces Stress
Stress reduction is one of the most common reasons why people try meditation. One study including over 3,500 adults showed that it lives up to its reputation for stress reduction. Normally, mental and physical stress cause increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol. This produces many of the harmful effects of stress, such as the release of inflammation-promoting chemicals called cytokines. These effects can disrupt sleep, promote depression and anxiety, increase blood pressure and contribute to fatigue and cloudy thinking.
In an eight-week study, a meditation style called "mindfulness meditation" reduced the inflammation response caused by stress. Another study in nearly 1,300 adults demonstrated that relaxation meditation may decrease stress. Notably, this effect was strongest in individuals with the highest levels of stress. Research has shown that meditation may also improve symptoms of stress-related conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder and fibromyalgia.
  >>    Meditation Reduces Pain
Several studies have identified a connection between meditation and pain. One Journal of Neuroscience study, for instance, showed that after four 20-minute meditation sessions over the course of four days, a group of volunteers rated the same burning pain as 57 percent less unpleasant and 40 percent less intense. Plus, a review of 47 studies published in JAMA Internal Medicine earlier this year showed that meditation may be helpful in easing pain (though it was difficult for the researchers to identify exactly what type of pain, according to Reuters). Researchers speculate that those who practice meditation develop the ability to exert greater control over unpleasant feelings, including pain, by turning them down as if using a "volume knob" in the brain.
  >>    Meditation Boosts Immune System
Meditation also helps ward off illness and infections. In one study testing immune function, flu shots were given to volunteers who had meditated for eight weeks and to people who didn't meditate. Blood tests taken later showed the meditation group had higher levels of antibodies produced against the flu virus, according to the study in Psychosomatic Medicine. One small 2003 study showed a link between an eight-week mindfulness meditation program and better immune function, and 2012 UCLA research suggested meditation could improve the immune system in older people.
  >>    Meditation Controls Anxiety
Less stress translates to less anxiety. For example, an eight-week study of mindfulness meditation helped participants reduce their anxiety. It also reduced symptoms of anxiety disorders, such as phobias, social anxiety, paranoid thoughts, obsessive-compulsive behaviors and panic attacks. Another study followed up with 18 volunteers three years after they had completed an eight-week meditation program. Most volunteers had continued practicing regular meditation and maintained lower anxiety levels over the long term.
A larger study in 2,466 participants also showed that a variety of different meditation strategies may reduce anxiety levels. For example, yoga has been shown to help people reduce anxiety. This is likely due to benefits from both meditative practice and physical activity. Meditation may also help control job-related anxiety in high-pressure work environments. One study found that a meditation program reduced anxiety in a group of nurses.
  >>    Meditation Can Decrease Blood Pressure
Meditation can also improve physical health by reducing strain on the heart. Over time, high blood pressure makes the heart work harder to pump blood, which can lead to poor heart function. High blood pressure also contributes to atherosclerosis, or narrowing of the arteries, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes.
A study of 996 volunteers found that when they meditated by concentrating on a "silent mantra" — a repeated, non-vocalized word — reduced blood pressure by about five points, on average. This was more effective among older volunteers and those who had higher blood pressure prior to the study. A review concluded that several types of meditation produced similar improvements in blood pressure.
In part, meditation appears to control blood pressure by relaxing the nerve signals that coordinate heart function, tension in blood vessels and the "fight-or-flight" response that increases alertness in stressful situations.
  >>    Meditation Reduces Heart Risk
A 2012 study published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes showed a link between Transcendental Mediation and a reduction in heart attack, stroke and early death from heart disease in a group of African Americans, TIME reported. “The main finding [of our research] is that, added on top of usual medical care, intervention with a mind-body technique -- transcendental meditation -- can have a major effect on cardiovascular events,” lead author Robert Schneider, a professor at the Maharishi University of Management, told the publication. The American Heart Association also says that the stress-busting benefits of different types of meditation can be a boon to heart health.
  >>    Meditation Help Fight Addictions
The mental discipline we can develop through meditation may help us break dependencies by increasing our self-control and awareness of triggers for addictive behaviors. Research has shown that meditation may help people learn to redirect their attention, increase their willpower, control their emotions and impulses and increase their understanding of the causes behind their addictive behaviors. One study that taught 19 recovering alcoholics how to meditate found that participants who received the training got better at controlling their cravings and craving-related stress. Meditation may also help us control food cravings. A review of 14 studies found mindfulness meditation helped participants reduce emotional and binge eating.
  >>    Meditation Improves Depression
The 2014 review of 47 randomized trials, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, showed that mindfulness meditation can be effective in easing depression for some patients, as well as anxiety. The researchers wrote: "Anxiety, depression, and stress/distress are different components of negative affect. When we combined each component of negative affect, we saw a small and consistent signal that any domain of negative affect is improved in mindfulness programs when compared with a nonspecific active control." And depression has been linked with other serious health conditions, including heart disease.
  >>    Meditation Fosters a Healthy Body Image
Australian research published in Clinical Psychologist suggested that being mindful (which can be cultivated through mindfulness meditation) may be linked to having a healthier relationship with food and your body.
  >>    Meditation Improves Sleep
Nearly half the population will struggle with insomnia at some point. One study compared two mindfulness-based meditation programs by randomly assigning participants to one of two groups. One group practiced meditation, while the other didn't. Participants who meditated fell asleep sooner and stayed asleep longer, compared to those who didn't meditate. Becoming skilled in meditation may help us control or redirect the racing or "runaway" thoughts that often lead to insomnia. Additionally, it can help relax our body, releasing tension and placing us in a peaceful state in which we're more likely to fall asleep.
  >>    Meditation Eases Inflammation
In 2013 research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds in the Waisman Center, scientists identified a possible tie between mindfulness meditation and the relief of inflammatory symptoms among people who suffer from chronic inflammatory conditions. “This is not a cure-all, but our study does show that there are specific ways that mindfulness can be beneficial, and that there are specific people who may be more likely to benefit from this approach than other interventions," lead author Melissa Rosenkranz said in a statement.

Also read our other articles related to meditation

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Mind & Spiritual Benefits of Meditation