Why Meditating Is Helpful to the Body

¶ … Breathing and Meditating Diaphragmatic breathing is thought to be an effective relaxation technique because it engages the full extent of the lungs and can slow the beating/pace of the heart as a result. By slowing down one's heart rate through deep breathing one feels less pressured, calmer and more in control of one's body: thus, diaphragmatic breathing is a good way to relax (Harvard Health Publications, 2015). Deep breathing can also help a person to focus more and alleviate stress by blocking out distractions and regaining one's composure.

The three steps that are important when engaging in diaphragmatic breathing are to breathe in deeply and fully into the lungs, to hold your breath for a second or two, and then to exhale fully. This should be repeated a number of times until the body has it going in a comforting rhythm.

There are several steps or additions that one can do to accentuate this process -- such as to find a place to sit or be comfortable (someplace quiet is preferable); and then one can use one's imagination to produce images in the mind that help the body to relax; or one can focus on the idea that the breathing one is doing is going through the entire body and helping the entire body to be more relaxed.

One can also place a hand on one's belly and feel the belly rise and fall as the deep breathing commences. This can help the mind to relax even more by providing the sensation that the diaphragmatic breathing is physically taking place through evidence gathered by the senses (touch). The effects that meditation has on the mind and on the body are numerous. First, meditation can help to balance the body's systems -- including the mind, the heart, the limbs, the breathing and the blood flow (Davis, 2015).

Meditating allows one to relax by blocking out disturbing or stressful intrusions; it lowers the blood pressure and helps the heart rate to proceed at a more normal pace. Brain waves can also fluctuate better and an overall feeling of peace and calm can process through the entire body. This helps rid the body of tension and anxiety and can be like a mental massage that permeates throughout a person's core.

One of the main reasons meditation is so helpful is that it is a repetitive process that engages the breathing and the mental faculty, which combine to create an overall impact on the body that is positive and regenerative.

Three ways that imagery and visualization can be useful for relaxation are: first, by imagining oneself in a peaceful setting like at a beach, one reduces one's physical stress; second, by visualizing oneself performing an action, such as overcoming a challenging situation, one breathes peace into oneself and establishes confidence and conviction that the process can be achieved successfully; third, by visualizing a transcendental environment, one raises one's consciousness above the here and now and the daily turmoil and trials of the present to a place or ideal plane that does not change, that is not full of volatility and tension, where one can rest and be whole -- and this facilitates one's body by giving it a nurturing sense of being at one with the transcendental virtues.

Thus, using imagery and visualization can help the body to relax.