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Meditation
7 Benefits Of Transcendental Meditation On Mind And Body
“To transcend means to go beyond…”
Of all meditation techniques, transcendental meditation, or TM is the practice that has gotten the most attention. From beginners of meditation to established practitioners and from yogis to celebrities, transcendental meditation has taken the world by storm.
Developed by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and led by Tony Nader, a Harvard-trained doctor, transcendental meditation or TM is a simple yet effective combination of meditation and mantras to help you calm and relax your mind and body. Along with relaxation, TM can help reduce daily stress, anxiety, and lower blood pressure.
Like other types and forms of meditation, with the long-term practice of transcendental meditation, you can see other positive changes in your health including better resilience, lower anxiety levels, and a higher quality of life.
So, isn’t transcendental meditation worth it?
Don’t believe my words but look for the science-proven benefits of transcendental meditation on mind and body yourself!
7 Benefits of Transcendental Meditation
1. It Helps Release Stress
Not only to your physical health but transcendental meditation can help improve your psychological health too. In various studies, researchers have found that TM can help release the stress that you accumulate during the day, lower anxiety, and even prevent depression.
Transcendental meditation can play a hand in reducing stress hormones and increasing the production of happy hormones.
2. It Helps Declutter Your Mind
There are many days when we feel overwhelmed and find our minds in a mess. Well, transcendental meditation helps declutter our minds and keeps the irrelevant and negative thoughts away. If you have ADHD, then you may also find TM helpful in keeping your attention on the present.
Yes, you heard it right. Transcendental meditation can help improve your focus and attention span and keep your mind clear of errant and overwhelming thoughts.
3. It Helps Boost Relaxation
Another health or spiritual benefit of transcendental meditation is that it can help you unload and relax. If you feel overburdened with work in the middle of the day, you can take a break and practice TM to feel relaxed.
Find a quiet place and meditate for five minutes and you’ll feel refreshed and uplifted in no time! Try it and let me know how it feels.
4. It Helps Increase Cognitive Functions
If we talk about the scientific benefits of transcendental meditation, then count in better cognitive function there too. TM has been proven to help improve cognitive performance, memory, and even reflexes.
This meditation practice works directly on the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain related to making decisions. So, you can easily improve your cognitive functions by practicing transcendental meditation.
5. It Helps Develop Discipline
Transcendental meditation can help bring order and discipline to your life. When you practice TM long-term, it can help you maintain good habits and great mental health. Isn’t it a great long-term benefit of transcendental meditation?
Did you know that TM has also been proven to reduce unhealthy food cravings? So, you can improve your performance, and cognitive skills and bring discipline to your routine.
6. It Helps You Feel Energetic
Lack of energy means feeling lethargic and tired without doing anything, and who likes that, right? When you need a quick boost of energy in your day, look no further than transcendental meditation.
When you practice transcendental meditation for just over a week regularly, you begin to feel energetic and less lazy. Sounds great, doesn’t it?
7. It Helps Lower Blood Pressure
One of the most common medical issues that most adults face is high blood pressure. High blood pressure can be a result of chronic stress too, and what have we learned? Transcendental meditation can help release stress and by extension, it can also help lower blood pressure.
If you feel a spike in your blood pressure – either by being too excited or too stressed – a dose of transcendental meditation can be all you need.
What Research Says…
Because of its growing popularity, researchers have been focusing on the benefits of transcendental meditation for the last few years. In 2017, it was found in an analysis that TM reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure just like significant lifestyle changes like exercise and nutrition can.
In a 2019 study, it was found that transcendental meditation helped people with hypertension and cardiovascular risk. Supporting this, a 2021 review listed transcendental meditation as an intervention for hypertension along with tai chi, nutrition changes, and exercises.
In a small-scale 2020 study, it was found that TM helped reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress. In a 2021 study, it was shown that this meditation practice also helped reduce all negative psychological symptoms and burnout caused by COVID-19.
If we talk about PTSD, then in a 2021 review it was stated that TM on veterans with PTSD was met with improvements in the symptoms.
Talking about the spiritual benefits of transcendental meditation, it can be safe to say that people who practiced TM felt an increased sense of connectedness, improved empathy, and greater compassion towards themselves and others.
Wrap-Up
“This is what transcendence means. It means going beyond all activity of the mind and diving into a state of oneness.” – Tony Nader, leader of Transcendental Meditation (TM)
Personalities such as Oprah, Jerry Seinfeld, and even Clint Eastwood are said to practice transcendental meditation or TM. However, the practice has had its roots for centuries. If you want to practice transcendental meditation, then it is recommended that you connect with a TM teacher or guide.
These benefits of transcendental meditation can be seen when you practice for some time so have patience if you’ve begun but have not seen any change. I’m sure that after understanding the benefits of TM, you’ll add this meditation to your self-care routine.
I hope this blog helps you understand the health benefits of transcendental meditation on your mind and body. For more, you can write to us at info@calmsage.com or DM us on social media. You can also share your thoughts on TM in the comments section below.
Take Care!