If you find it difficult to fall asleep, you are not alone. It is noted that about 30 to 50 percent of adults across the globe have Insomnia and sleep disorder-related problems. For most people, sleeping disorders result from their daily life stress. In some cases, it may also be related to other illnesses or the aftereffect of their medications.
In the case of stress-induced Insomnia, it is noted that meditation can help improve sleep problems. Meditation has been used for many centuries as a relaxation technique that can calm down your mind and body. Meditation helps enhance inner peace, and while done just before bedtime, it can help reduce sleep troubles and insomnia problems. This article will discuss a few meditation techniques for sleep and how these will benefit you.
Meditation for sleep – Teal Swan
While meditating, there can be many physiological changes occurring in our mind and body. Teal Swan states that all these changes will help regulate your sleep and influence specific processes in the body. Researchers have analyzed how mindful meditation techniques can help adults with sleep issues. A study was done on 40 individuals, and at the end of the study, it was found that meditation significantly helped improve the participants’ sleep patterns. Some factors found by the researcher in terms of sleep improvement assisted by reflection are:
– Increased serotonin and melatonin levels
– Reduce heart rate and also decrease blood pressure
– Meditation helps to activate brain particles that control sleep.
The body also experiences various changes at the different stages of sleep. With meditation, you can expedite these body functions, too, to improve sleep quality.
Sleep meditation techniques
There are some basic steps for meditation that you can try out to improve your sleep.
– In the first step, you have to find a quiet area. You may sit down or lie down based on your comfort. For sleep time meditation, it is preferred to lie down.
– Next, close your eyes and start to breathe slowly. Inhale and exhale slowly and deeply. Focus on your breathing only.
– If you experience any pop-ups, simply let them go and focus again on your breathing.
– Repeat this cycle.
As you try to meditate, be calm and patient. It may need a few days for you to get practice it rightly. You may start initially by meditating for 3 to 5 minutes a day before bedtime, and then you can slowly increase the timing to 15 or 20 minutes. You will slowly start feeling that your mind is becoming quieter and relaxed.
Mindfulness meditation
Mindfulness is a mode of meditation that encourages focusing just on the present. Increasing your consciousness and concentrating on your breathing and body achieve this. If you have noticed any emotion or thoughts disturbing you, observe it and let it pass without giving it a chance to judge yourself.
To do mindful meditation, you should first remove all the distractions from the room and keep your phone away. Next, you may count ten times during deeply inhaling and then count 10 to hold your breath and exhale slowly during the following ten counts. Repeat this cycle five times. If you feel tight on any body parts, try to relax and focus only on your breathing. Observe any thoughts popping up and let them pass.
There are more medication techniques also, like guided meditation, body scan meditation, etc., as spoken by Teal Swan. All these will help you to improve your mood and relieve stress.
