7 Scientifically Proven Benefits of Meditation

Meditation has been used by people with varying religions all over the world for thousands of years. The oldest known dates back to 500BC and is called dhyãna with Hindu roots.

While there are many techniques, the main idea is simple: the cultivation and harnessing of mindful awareness and expanded consciousness.

Too often we are bogged down by our thoughts or past memories and worried about creating future ones. Many have tried some form of meditation, but few continue to practice this gift that we all have access to. I am by no means an expert, but enjoy spreading the word about the true and tangible benefits of meditation.

7 Scientifically Proven Benefits of Meditation:

Decreases Stress (1.)

Reduces inflammation at a Cellular Level (2.)

Fights Depression and Anxiety (3.)(4.)

Increases Emotional Intelligence (5.)

Increases your Grey Matter (6.)

Increases Focus (7.)

Improves Memory (8.)

Now if those aren't enough reasons to get started, I don't know what is - even if it achieves just one of them, why wouldn't you want to utilize an innate practice instilled in all of us?

Where Do I Start?


Whether we like it or not, our brains are constantly processing, analyzing, and judging information from raw data into ideas, concepts, and behaviors & practices via our senses.

Try This:


1.) Set timer for desired length of meditation(but time is not important during meditation)

2.) Sit upright

3.) Close your eyes and breath through your nose(let it be natural)

4.) As your breath rises and falls, feel the moving air in and out of the tips of your nostrils.

Thinking is noise. When we begin meditation, the thoughts that bog us down all day will likely arise, and that's normal and okay. Don't try to block them. Acknowledge them, and give them your full presence. Slowly but surely, each thought pattern will subside and be put in their "appropriate place."

You can practice as long as you'd like - there is no 'right' amount of time. Once you get the hang of it, and it of course takes practice, you will realize you can do it anywhere, anytime.

Do not take the content of your mind all that seriously. Your sense of self does not depend on it.

"This is why, for so many people, a large part of their sense of self is intimately connected with their problems. To be identified with your mind is to be trapped in time: the compulsion to live almost exclusively through memory and anticipation." - Eckhart Tolle

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I also highly recommend the App Calm. It has guided meditation, timers, and sleep stories that can aid in your meditation journey. Here is an 8 Month Free Trial.

Thanks for reading!