Meditation and specifically, mindfulness meditation, is currently one of the most researched topics in Western medicine and psychology. And rightfully so; meditation and mindfulness has been scientifically proven to provide many benefits to one’s mental, emotional, physical selves and interpersonal connections.
A former investment banker on Wall Street, I founded Simple Habit in early 2016 after personally discovering the benefits of mindfulness. Designed by a team of world class meditation experts and a Harvard psychologist, Simple Habit meditations are just 5-minutes and personalized for all kinds of life situations. The app is tailored for busy people to be able to experience the benefits of daily meditation on a time crunch; between meetings, commuting, or office lunch breaks.
The advantages of meditation are vast and even a 5-minute daily practice can improve all aspects of one’s professional and personal life. Here are just some of the many benefits:
Increase in Attention: Meditation affects the anterior cingulate cortex, a part of the brain involved in monitoring our focus and self-control. Researchers from Harvard Medical School found that a meditation program led to changes in brain regions involving learning and memory. In fact, practicing mindfulness and meditation has repeatedly been shown to improve our ability to sustain attention and decrease external and internal distractions. Those who worked in high stress work environments and practiced meditation were able to stay on a task longer, managed their time better, and received positive feedback after a task performance.
Decreased Stress Levels: Stress has been linked to a wide range of medical problems, including hypertension, heart disease, substance abuse, anxiety, and depression. Luckily, a study done at Standard University School of Medicine has shown that those who practice mindfulness meditation display greater reductions in stress related symptoms, and report increases in their sense of control in their lives. For instance, mindfulness meditation can produce a 30% reduction in symptoms of stress among those with a serious illness.
Release Your Creativity: Mindfulness meditation practice does more than simply help you regulate your emotions and attention – it also can impact your thinking. Research done at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands has found a link between mindfulness and creativity, and can lead to improvements in problem-solving creative solutions as well as promote divergent thinking. The more a person continues to practice mindfulness meditation regularly, the less rigid and more fluid their thinking becomes!
Improve Your Mood: Consistent practice of mindfulness meditation can also have a notable beneficial impact on our overall mood, including depression and anxiety. In fact, a study from Boston University has shown mindfulness and meditation-based programs have lead to significant reductions in clinical levels of anxiety and depression across a range of conditions.
Strengthen Your Relationships: Learning to be more mindful doesn’t only have a positive impact on you – it can have a positive impact on your relationships too. According to a study from Clark University, increased mindfulness leads to significant improvements in marital quality, as well as work relationships and friendships, due to improvements in the identification, communication, and expression of emotions. In fact, people who meditate tend to display more empathy and non-judgmental acceptance toward each other.
About the Author:
A former investment banker on Wall Street, Yunha Kim founded Simple Habit in early 2016 after personally discovering the benefits of mindfulness. Designed by a team of world class meditation experts and a Harvard psychologist, Simple Habit meditations are just 5-minutes and personalized for all kinds of life situations, from workplace stress, to coping with a break up, fighting off cold and flu season, enhancing fertility, and much more. www.simplehabitapp.com
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