Meditation is proven to have many health benefits, both physical and mental. It is shown to reduce stress, improve concentration, increase self-awareness, and even increase happiness.
I tried meditating every day for a week to see if it lived up to the hype. Here’s how it went:
Day 1:
I did a 10 minute guided meditation called a ‘body scan’. This type of meditation helps you check in with your self and examine how you are feeling physically. After minute eight I was super peaceful and calm, maybe I had reached nirvana—or maybe I was just about to fall asleep, who knows. I did this meditation at 10pm, so I felt super relaxed and sleepy afterwards. My mind was focused and I wasn’t thinking about all of the things that had been stressing me out that day anymore.
Day 2:
I was waiting to meet a teacher for office hours and I had 30 more minutes to kill, so I thought why not make good use of my time and meditate! There was no one else around so I closed my eyes and did some deep breathing for 10 minutes. I tried to clear my mind and focus on being present, but a million thoughts kept running through my head. I tried to just let them pass and re-focus. After 10 minutes I felt really calm and the stress from my long day had faded away.
Day 3:
I had a lot going on this day and really didn’t want to stop what I was doing to meditate. Usually when I take a ‘break’ from homework I reach for my phone, or watch a quick episode of my favorite show. Instead of wasting time on my phone during my break, I sat still and did a quick guided meditation that consisted of 8 minutes of checking in with myself and seeing how I was feeling.
Day 4:
It was Thursday and I was ready for the weekend so I could relax. So for this meditation, I put on a soundtrack of crashing waves to try and transport myself to the beach. After 10 minutes, I felt so much more relaxed and ready to focus and be really productive.
Day 5:
For my last day of meditation I thought I would try a 15-minute meditation. I used another guided meditation to help focus my thoughts and re-center myself. After 9 minutes I started to get distracted, and then sleepy. But I still felt calm and zen after meditating.
Overall, I enjoyed my experiment with meditation. Taking my mind off things for a short while, even for just 10 minutes, made a big difference in how I was feeling. I felt less stressed and more focused. These two benefits are enough to convince me to meditate more often!
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