Disclaimer: This is neither a medical article nor medical advice. I am NOT a doctor. This is just an attempt to break down high-level science into information more relevant to the topic discussed so that the content can be digested easily. This is solely for educational purposes. For medical advice, please consult your physician or a qualified healthcare provider.
People keep talking about how meditation is life-changing and that numerous highly successful people incorporate meditation without fail into their daily routines. But what exactly does it do? Will meditation help me? If so, how?
I dabbled in meditation before but was inconsistent by a long shot. I would barely meditate for 10 days a month, but I noticed minute changes in myself. I decided to give meditation a shot because of the billion articles and videos that would pop up, breaking down the daily routine of a hyper-successful CEO or billionaire. I concluded that if every single one of these high-achieving individuals swears by meditation, there must be some merit to it. Therefore, in 2023, I decided to get serious about meditation and set a goal to meditate for 200 days.
At first glance, 200 days seems trivial.Ha, 200 days? What a joke!
But hey, creating habits, good ones, takes time!
Add to that the fact that meditating is an uphill battle, especially in the age of social media, where our attention spans have been severely neutered. One can hardly pay attention for a few seconds before being distracted by the next thing. In stark contrast to this lies the principle of meditation, which is paying as much attention as possible to a particular aspect, typically the breath.
Our brain comprises these super small blocks called neurons, which communicate with each other to perform cognitive tasks. This communication is done via electrical signals, which produce wave patterns or brain waves, which can be measured using Electroencephalography or EEG.
The types of brain waves based on their frequency are:
Enough of the technical jargon. The basic funda is this: gamma waves are paramount for higher cognitive functions, concentration, happiness, problem-solving, and boosting immunity. So, to perform at the highest level possible, one needs to maximise the amount of Gamma waves their brain produces. How do we do that?
A study conducted by Lutz. et al. highlighted a few things that I believe are revolutionary:
C. Braboszcz et al. additionally found a substantial increase in the amount of gamma waves generated in the parieto-occipital region of the brain, which is involved in several high-level neurological functions such as reading, writing, language processing, calculation, and working memory. Meditation is also shown to have myriad health benefits, such as reduced stress, decreased depression and anxiety, improved efficiency, and an increase in grey matter.
This is most commonly observed in athletes, who claim to be in a state of flow or on fire when they perform ridiculous feats of athleticism, even on the highest levels of achievement. Achieving a flow state is paramount to succeeding in the 21st century, especially when there is so much competition from our peers.
Being extremely ambitious and career-oriented, in 2023, I decided to zero down on separating myself from the crowd and attempting to enter a state of flow as much as possible. Though this has been challenging, meditation has helped me reach a flow state more often than I thought.
I am well on track to achieving my goal of meditating for 200 days in 2023, which is a substantial step forward. After researching the benefits of meditation and experiencing it first-hand, meditation will forever be a pivotal cog in my daily routine. I still miss a day or two of meditation because of personal commitments, but overall? I have been somewhat consistent, meditating for 5-10 minutes at least 5 days a week on average. Hopefully, meditation becomes as consistent a habit as brushing my teeth.
To many more mindful minutes! 🧘