In the busy world it is a common trend to be seen today that while accomplishing endless acts, we are missing on embracing the feeling of living in present. Most of our life is filled with the regrets of the past and insecurities of the future. We have forgotten to make a connection with the present and live in it a little. Mindfulness teaches us to shift back the focus and reset it on the current moment so that we can live our lives gracefully and free of judgments. Even scientific reports claim that mindfulness if practiced daily, can show remarkable improvement in decreasing stress. It brings remarkable improvement in health by bringing positive changes in thoughts, behaviors, and attitudes.
Below are mentioned some benefits of mindfulness-
It brings good physical health
Mindfulness if practiced daily can show remarkable improvement in the physical health of an individual. It decreases the stress of an individual. It decreases blood pressure. It improves the quality of sleep. It helps in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and gastrointestinal disorders. It decreases the intensity of chronic pain.
It boosts mental health
Mindfulness keeps depression at bay. It helps individuals who are suffering from eating disorders as well as those who are indulged in substance abuse. It decreases stress and anxiety levels. It helps to create strong bonds and thus improve the relationship with others. In short, it brings remarkable improvement in the mental health of an individual.
It helps to improve overall wellness
Good physical and mental health promotes overall wellness. Moreover, mindfulness helps to live life with complete satisfaction. We get to enjoy every moment of our lives as they approach us. We will then rarely concentrate on obstacles that come in the way. Instead, we will be blessed with a greater capacity to overcome the adversities of life. The regrets of the past and anxiety about the future will rarely bother us. Instead of getting caught up in the past or future, we will be able to embrace the current moment of our life and live it to the fullest. Thus, concerns related to being successful or not will never bother us. Our bonds with others will strengthen and it will help in developing deeper connections with them.
It improves the performance
Since mindfulness is all about concentration and focuses on the current moment, we will be able to concentrate on our daily tasks in a better way. Thus, we will excel at the work we are doing. When our mind is not able to concentrate then it exerts a negative effect on our performance. Thus, one who practices mindfulness is able to concentrate in a better way. They have good memory power and excel in their performance. Reports have shown that mindfulness thickens cerebral cortex of the brain. This area of the brain is responsible for memory, learning, and focus.
Mindfulness boosts creativity
When an individual practices mindfulness on a daily basis, a perfect balance is created between two networks of the brain namely freestyle and control. Balance is essential for a person to get creative. Thus, those who want to get creative in life and those creative people who are not able to give their 100% should practice mindfulness to let their creativity flow.
It improves emotional response
Being susceptible to emotions is not a very good thing. If an individual is vulnerable to emotions then he will react to each and everything that comes now and then in his life. Too many reactions affect mental health. The mind is closely related to the body. When mental health is affected, the body cannot remain fit. Practicing mindfulness helps an individual to overcome the difficulties and remain strong when it comes to displaying an emotional response. The more we are able to distance ourselves from the ups and downs of our lives, the better we will be able to deal with them.
It improves relationships
When we practice mindfulness on a daily basis, we tend to develop compassion and empathy towards others. We practice kindness. All these traits are necessary for any relationship to flourish and progress. In the absence of these traits, relationships between two individuals are shallow and incomplete. Mindfulness exerts its effects on emotion processing unit of the brain which is known as the amygdala. It decreases in volume. Thus, it is concluded that daily mindfulness practice can help in checking the emotions and reduce the responses. These two are the essential factors for maintaining good relations with others.
Gets rid of lonely feelings
Feeling of loneliness should not be taken lightly. It is because they have a serious impact on mental health over a period of time. When mental health is affected, it takes a serious toll on physical health also. Individuals who suffer from feelings of loneliness usually suffer from anxiety attacks, depression, Alzheimer’s, heart diseases in the long run. It also decreases their life span. Thus, individuals who live alone or are suffering from such feelings should practice mindfulness on a regular basis as it has shown positive effects on the health of such individuals. Within a few days, they begin changing the thought process and think more positively.
Improves the quality of sleep
Increased stress in day to day lives interferes with sound sleep and also deteriorates the quality. On the other hand, mindfulness improves the quality of sleep and also helps an individual to get adequate sleep. Mindfulness decreases stress. Thus, it helps in getting rid of many stress associated issues such as sleep disorders, chronic pain, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, and many others.
Provides relief from pain
Instead of using drugs to relieve pain, it is better to practice mindfulness. It is because mindfulness helps in relieving pain and improves overall wellness whereas drugs exert lots of side effects and do more harm to the body than any good. When an individual practices mindfulness, the body produces three different opioids. They are dynorphins, beta-endorphin and Leu- and met-enkephalin. These opioids are responsible for pain reduction.
Decreases the risk of neurodegenerative diseases
Individuals who practice mindfulness on a daily basis are at least risk of suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. Individuals who are suffering from these diseases have also shown a reduction in the progression of these diseases when daily therapy is practiced. During the session, positive changes take place in the brain. In short, anxiousness and stress are decreased to a large extent. Thus, neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s show slow progression.
Overcome illnesses
Mindfulness cannot help in treating the symptoms and signs. However, an individual learns to manage them well. Thus, it becomes easy for him to deal with the illnesses irrespective of how mild or severe intensity they are. Mindfulness boosts energy levels in an individual. It decreases stress, anxiety, emotional reactions to not so good experiences. All these factors help a patient to deal with diseases and disorders in a much better way.
How much of mindfulness is necessary?
Mindfulness is a therapy. It is a form of meditation. The more we do it, the more benefits we receive from it. In short, it is dose-related. Initially, one requires a lot of practice. One can start with a practice session of small duration that lasts for 5-10 minutes. Gradually when it becomes easy, one can extend the span to 20-30 minutes. Some even recommend a session of 45 minutes on a daily basis. Soon it becomes a way of life. One does not have to spare time to practice it. We will soon inculcate it in our daily routine and start practicing it throughout the day. The more we practice it, the more life becomes easy.
More about mindfulness
People usually confuse between mindfulness and meditation. It is because they both are so alike and both of them exert good benefits on mind and body. However, do remember that mindfulness is a form of meditation. Mindfulness is nothing but awareness. Initially, we may need to devote some time of our day to practice it. As we keep mastering it, we can choose to be aware all the time throughout the day. There are many other forms of meditation and mindfulness is one of them. Even religions and spirituality are associated with the art of meditation and mindfulness. The more aware we are about our living in the present, the more awareness increases in us about who we are and what surrounds us. It prevents us from living in the past or dwelling in the future. It helps us to live in the current moment. Thus, it is a stepping stone in the process of enlightening and achieving salvation.
Conclusion
Mindfulness is not just meditation. It is the art of dealing with everyday struggles. It is a technique to overcome daily stress and anxiety. It is a key to live healthy both physically and mentally. It helps an individual to remain free from diseases and disorders so that he can enjoy good health and wellness. It helps an individual to boost his creativity and strengthen the bond with others and let the relationships flourish. Thus, the need of the hour is to practice mindfulness and appreciate every second of life gracefully.