5 Minutes Of Meditation For Better Health

by Dr. Nicole Calloway Rankins

I know you have 5 minutes a day to spend on yourself for better health and wellness. What can you do in those 5 minutes that helps reduce stress, anxiety, pain, and depression; and increases your compassion, self control, focus, and memory? MEDITATE!

Yes meditation has been scientifically proven to do all of this! I’ve had a daily meditation (and prayer) practice for several years and it's helped me tremendously to access calm and peace, particularly in the midst of difficult life situations.

So if you don't have a meditation practice, now's a great time to start.

Keep these things in mind when beginning your meditation practice:

Just do it. To get the benefits you have to do it regularly. Start out with 5 minutes a day and work your way up to whatever feels comfortable for you (I personally do 15 minutes; not every day but most days).
Be patient. It takes time for the positive effects to manifest.

Be kind to yourself. Your mind will probably wander during meditation and you will worry that you are not doing it right. That’s normal and OK.

You won’t be “zen” all the time. You’ll still get angry, upset, have disappointments, etc. But with regular meditation you’ll be able to move out of these states (and into calm and peace) much easier.

And here are some resources to help you get started.

Check out the apps Headspace, Calm, or Insight Timer for your phone or tablet. I personally use Insight Timer. It's free and has lots of guided meditations as well. Headspace and Calm have free and paid options.
If you like to read instructions I like this site.
If you prefer a video, check this out.

If you don’t already meditate, go ahead and start today. You are worth it! I'd love to hear in the comments what your meditation practice is (or will be!).

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