Why to Meditate for Better Sleep? Guide 101

Sleep is important for the mental and physical well-being of an individual. If you are having trouble sleeping at night, you are not the only one. 

According to one study from Johns Hopkins Medicine, poor sleep raises the risk of dementia, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and even cancers of the breast, colon, ovaries, and prostate, among other serious illnesses. According to a different Healthline study, getting poor sleep can negatively impact your mental health as well. 

Sleeping with a relaxed mindset is important for the overall health of a human being. But, in today’s fast-paced world people cannot cope with a healthy sleep cycle. Various studies have shown that at least 10% of the world’s population is suffering from insomnia. 

However, you have learned your lesson the hard way and are here to find a solution. Bingo, you have marked your first step in breaking this vicious cycle and are on the right track to build a better version of yourself.

The solution to this problem is Sleep Mediation. Yes, mediation has the solution for every problem. 

Now, you might be wondering, what is Sleep Mediation and how it will help you with better sleep. To get your answers and find the benefits of meditating for better sleep, keep scrolling. 

What is sleep meditation?

Sleep meditation is a technique for preparing our bodies and minds for sleep. When we meditate, we experience several physiological changes. These modifications cause sleep by altering particular systems in your body. 

Meditation is classified as a sort of mind-body treatment because meditation techniques frequently combine mental activity with physical features such as deep breathing. 

Sleep meditation tries to bring about general calm that helps prepare the body for sleep by addressing both anxious emotions and physical stress symptoms. Therefore, consider self-meditation as a way to de-stress by using mindful techniques that are specifically designed to help you relax your body and mind in preparation for sleep.

Sleep meditation strategies include counting breath exercises, visualization, body scanning, breathwork, and gradual muscle relaxation. All this promotes relaxation and eases the transition from awake to sleep by calming our body and mind.

1. Reduce stress, boosts relaxation 

Meditation can help you reduce tension and anxiety. When we are stressed, our bodies create adrenaline, cortisol, and other hormones that hinder us from sleeping. We are most anxious at the end of the day, therefore starting a meditation practice in the evening is ideal for stress relief and sleeping as well.

By focusing on the mind and soothing the neurological system, meditation can reduce stress. Research indicates that consistent meditation lowers cortisol levels—a hormone linked to stress—and raises alpha brain waves, which are connected with calmness, leading to better quality sleep. 

We may boost our energy levels and relax our nervous system by minimizing stress through meditation. 

We also get a further advantage of lowering our risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and other health concerns connected with chronic stress.

2. Improved sleep quality 

Guided meditation may assist you in doing a lot more than falling asleep or sleeping longer hours. It can also enhance the caliber of sleep. This is even more significant than the duration of sleep or sleep delay. 

Even while you can fall asleep and stay in bed for eight hours, you won’t reap the full benefits of getting good sleep if you wake up frequently or toss and turn a lot.

Research has shown us that meditation enhances the quality of our sleep. According to one study, scientists looked at many controlled clinical trials to assess the influence of meditation on sleep quality. 

The evaluation included more than 1,500 individuals in relevant research and discovered strong evidence that most people benefit from meditation programs in terms of improved sleep quality.

3. You can replace your bad bedtime habits with good ones! 

There are numerous contributing elements and causes of sleep difficulties. It includes unhealthy routines like binge drinking right before bed or obsessively checking social media during the night, among other things. 

A constructive technique to break these negative habits and start a new, more positive one is to meditate. Although it can be challenging to stop a habit, substituting is a useful tactic. For example, those who struggle with addiction frequently substitute good behaviors like running for drugs or alcohol.

The same idea can be applied to enhance your quality of sleep. Examine your unhealthy sleeping habits and start meditating for better sleep to replace them. It will provide you with the many benefits of meditation in addition to breaking the negative behaviors.

4. May help fight insomnia

Insomnia, which is classified as a sleep disorder, affects 8 to 10% of people worldwide. It happens rather frequently. Continuous mediate for better sleep may eventually help with insomnia symptoms because stress and anxiety are two major factors that disrupt sleep. 

People can stop their minds from racing and establish a peaceful mental space that is favorable to sleeping by practicing mindfulness and guided relaxation techniques. 

These meditation techniques help in lowering stress and anxiety levels as well as strengthening the body’s natural relaxation reaction. Sleep meditation, when included in a nightly habit, can train the mind and body to adopt a more restful and regenerative sleep routine over time. 

5. Can help ease racing thoughts before bed

Sometimes our issue is simply that our minds refuse to shut down. Perhaps you’re anxious about family issues or you’re having a hectic work week. You always have this thinking when you are about to fall asleep: What have I got to do tomorrow? Are I ready for this coming week? What had I overlooked?  

I believe that we frequently begin mentally reliving the day and fretting about the things we didn’t do correctly or what we should have done better. In this situation, sleep meditation can be quite beneficial in helping to let go of some of those thoughts.

Sleep meditation can help you switch off that film reel by redirecting your attention to your body and breathing, eventually leading to relaxation and restful sleep.

How to meditate for better sleep? The Basics Steps Explained. 

Meditation is an easy practice that may be done anywhere and at any time. There are no specific tools or equipment required for the same. A few minutes of mediation will do just well.

But it takes practice to get into a meditation scheme. Your chances of reaping the advantages of meditation will increase if you schedule time for it.

The basic steps of meditation are as follows:

• Locate a quiet spot. Depending on what is most comfortable, either lie down or sit. When it’s time for bed, it’s better to lie down.
• Close your eyes and take deep breaths. Take a deep breath in and out. Pay attention to your breathing.
• Focus on your breathing: When a thought or feeling arises, just acknowledge it, let it go without passing judgment, and return your attention to your breathing.

Be kind to yourself as you attempt meditation to fall asleep. A meditation routine is precisely that: a routine. Aim to meditate for three to five minutes before going to bed and then gradually extend the duration to fifteen or twenty minutes. 

What are some of the other ways to improve your sleep? 

Sleep meditation is not enough to better manage your sleep routine and get a quality routine, you need to try some other ways as well. 

Let’s find some of them: 

• Try a defined pattern of sleeping and waking up every day.
• Certain foods can be ‘sleep stealers’. For example, caffeine, alcohol, and heavy meals before bedtime. 
• Turning off technology usage at least 1 hour before bed helps the brain to stimulate better sleep.
• A comfortable mattress also plays a major role in balancing the overall health as choosing the right bed helps relax the spine muscles. 
• Studies say people engaging in at least 30 minutes of aerobic activity during the day have better sleep.
• Trying to sleep in the dark or with minimum light is necessary for releasing maximum melatonin. Cooler temperature with minimum sound disturbance helps in better sleep.

CONCLUSION

Here’s a wrap on everything you need to know about preventing your difficulty in falling asleep with the help of sleep meditation.  

When it comes to increasing the quality of your sleep as well as decreasing anxiety, including meditation in your everyday life can be a game changer. Meditation when practiced correctly, as described in the article, can assist you in dealing with this issue with ease. 

Moreover, keep in mind that although meditation can help you sleep better, it cannot replace appropriate sleeping practices. Thus, make sure you stick to a regular sleep schedule, switch off devices an hour before bed, maintain a peaceful, dark, and quiet bedroom, and refrain from consuming coffee or large meals right before bed. 

It takes time and effort to develop good habits. It may take some time before you experience noticeable improvements from your mediation practices.

However, you will surely reap the rewards of adding sleep meditation to your daily regimen if you are patient and persistent.

Just good wishes and all the luck!