Mindfulness meditation for mental health management

For the longest time, people have been meditating for spiritual reasons. But of late, it has become a popular practice for managing mental health. When you’re feeling tense, anxious, and worried, try meditation. Even a few minutes will help restore your inner peace and calmness. And the good thing is that anyone can try it. It’s a simple exercise that doesn’t need any special tools.

Understanding mindfulness meditation

There’s a common misconception that meditation isn’t thinking. In other words, the absence of any thought. However, it’s impossible not to think of anything because thoughts will often intrude into your mind. The principle behind meditation is training your focus and releasing thoughts as they come. Doing this helps you achieve a calm state of mind, body, and spirit. Meditation usually involves focusing on something. You can focus on your breathing, a candle, the sounds of the ocean, or any other object.

A common meditation technique is called mindfulness meditation. It involves being in the present moment and allowing your thoughts and feelings to flow. You can learn more about how to practice mindfulness every day to boost your mood. The two main parts of mindfulness meditation are attention and acceptance.

Attention is about tuning your thoughts to what is happening at the moment. That means directing your consciousness to your breathing and the physical sensations that you’re experiencing. On the other hand, acceptance is about observing those sensations or feelings without judgment. You simply take note of them and release them instead of reacting to them.

Mindfulness meditation

To some people, the thought of meditation can feel nightmarish. Understandably, some people aren’t comfortable being alone with their thoughts or sitting still in one place for a long time. That’s why meditation takes work and practice. It will take some time before you can get used to allowing thoughts to flow without judgment or reservation.

There are meditation-based therapies and classes to help you learn how to meditate. Such programs can include breathing exercises, guided lessons, and yoga to help you become aware of your thoughts, sensations, feelings, and body. The two common types of intervention are mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT).

Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)

This therapeutic technique involves an instructor guiding participants through weekly classes. The program usually runs for eight weeks, with one class every week. A session can last two to three hours, but the duration will depend on the program. The goal of these sessions is to help people be aware of the present moment.

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)

This technique combines some elements of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and MBSR to help manage depression. MBCT helps people review their feelings and thoughts without getting absorbed in what should have happened in the past or should happen in the future. It also encourages one to think clearly. Some of the mental health conditions this technique can help with include:

• Low mood
• Unhappiness
• Anxiety disorders
• Bipolar disorder
• Depression-relapse prevention

How mindfulness meditation can help your mental health

The goal of mindfulness meditation is to help you be in a better place mentally. Here are some of the ways this practice helps you manage your mental health.

It eases anxiety

A meta-analysis involving around 1300 adults found that mindfulness meditation eases anxiety. When you meditate, you allow your mind to focus on one thing. This eliminates all the jumbled thoughts crowding your mind and causing you to be anxious. Doing this results in enhanced emotional well-being.

It reduces stress

One of the major reasons people try mindfulness meditation is to reduce stress. Generally, stress disrupts sleep, promotes anxiety and depression, and increases blood pressure. Meditation eases certain symptoms of stress, like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), fibromyalgia, and irritable bowel syndrome.

Improves self-esteem and self awareness

Mindfulness meditation allows you to slow down and reflect on yourself. In the process, you can discover positive things about yourself. At the same time, it lets you examine your thoughts, increasing your self-awareness. When you examine your thoughts without judging yourself, you end up improving your self-esteem.

Helps manage depression

One of the causes of depression is anxiety brought about by thoughts of the future. Mindfulness meditation encourages you to focus on the present moment. This reduces anxiety and eventually eases symptoms of depression, such as trouble sleeping, low moods, and loss of appetite.

Helps generate kindness and love

Mindfulness meditation increases positive thoughts and actions towards oneself and others. Practicing loving-kindness meditation allows you to develop kind thoughts toward yourself. With time, you learn to extend that kindness to other people. It can start with friends, acquaintances, and even your enemies. This gesture will prevent you from holding grudges, which is good for your mental health.

Improves sleep

A lot of people struggle with insomnia. One of the reasons people find it hard to sleep is because of stress, anxiety, and depression. But because meditation eases the symptoms of stress and depression, you’re likely to sleep better. Also, people who meditate generally sleep for longer. The practice lets you redirect or control those racing thoughts that prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep. It also helps your body relax by releasing tension, putting you in a state where you’re likely to fall asleep quickly and stay asleep for longer.

It helps manage negative emotions

Research shows that meditation can help regulate negative emotions like fear and anger. The research done found that just one session of meditation could reduce anger. The study examined 12 people who had practiced meditation for a long time and 15 who had just started. These participants were asked to relieve upsetting events. The 15 experienced increased blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate. The 12 who had practiced meditation for longer showed no reaction. This just goes to show how powerful this exercise can be.

Elements of mindful meditation

The common features of mindfulness meditation are as follows.

• Relaxed Breathing: This involves deep and even breathing where your diaphragm muscles contract, allowing your lungs to expand. The aim is to slow down your breathing, inhale more oxygen, and release tension around your neck, shoulders, and chest muscles to breathe efficiently.
• Focused attention: Another important element is focus. This allows you to free your mind from various things, such as worry and stress. You can focus on various objects, a mantra, your breathing, or a particular image.
• A quiet place: As a beginner, it’s better to practice mindfulness meditation in a quiet spot. Things like cell phones, radios, and television can be a distraction. As your skills improve, you can practice meditation anywhere, particularly in high-stress situations like a tasking project, a traffic jam, or a long line at the coffee shop.
• An open mind: An open attitude makes it easy for you to release thoughts without resentment or judgment.
• A comfortable position: Mindfulness meditation requires you to be in a comfortable position to get the most out of this practice. Whether you do it while sitting, walking, or lying down, ensure you maintain a good posture throughout the entire session.

How to get Started on mindfulness meditation

Practicing mindfulness meditation to manage your mental health doesn’t need to be challenging. You also shouldn’t pressure yourself to be perfect. Here are some ideas on how to get started.

Set some time and space aside

While you may not need a meditation bench, cushion, or special equipment, set aside time and space for this practice. This can be in the morning when you wake up, in the evening before bed, or even during the day. You can practice in your living room, on your bed, or at the office. The important thing is to have adequate time and comfortable space.

Be present in the moment

The goal of mindfulness meditation isn’t to have a blank mind or achieve eternal calm. Rather, the aim is to observe the moment you’re in without resentment or judgment. Admittedly, it’s easier said than done. But with practice, you can learn to be present.

Let your thoughts roll by

As you meditate, whenever you notice a judgment arising, take note of it but allow it to pass. As expected, you may dwell on those thoughts for a couple of minutes, but don’t let that hold you back. Each time you notice your mind wants to focus on the negative thoughts, remind yourself to let go.

Get back to observing the moment

Most of the time, your mind will get carried away by other thoughts. That’s why mindfulness meditation is about returning to the present moment. No matter how many times your mind wanders, always returns to the present moment.

Be gentle with yourself if your mind wonders

One of the challenges that people face is judging themselves when their mind wanders. Just because you zoned out multiple times during your session doesn’t mean you failed. As long as you realize when your mind has wandered and gently bring it back to the moment, you’re doing great.

Practicing mindfulness meditation can take some time before it starts feeling natural. But the best way to learn is to incorporate it into your regular routine. You’ll realize it’s a powerful tool for managing your mental health.

24/05/2023