There have been many scientific studies of peoples’ brain states in a waking, conscious state and during meditation. It’s been found that our brain produces different types of brain waves as described below. Each wave has its own frequency and vibration, with each wave being slower than the previous one.

Beta waves are the ones the brain produces during the day – whilst your working, travelling, looking after the kids, etc.

Alpha waves are a bridge between your conscious and subconscious minds, and they help learning. This is a relaxed state which can be induced via meditation or trance.

Theta waves are produced as you’re drifting off to sleep.

Delta waves are produced in deep sleep and deep meditation.

If most of the time we are in a Beta state, the chances are that we can get stressed and anxious quickly. If this happens frequently, the body is producing more adrenalin and cortisol which have been shown to increase the risk of anxiety, heart disease, weight gain and depression.

This is why people are asked to take deep breaths when they’re panicked or stressed because it starts to slow down the brainwaves, and the body starts to become calmer, lessening the production of adrenalin.

The best solution would be to not to get stressed quickly. You might have been in a situation desperately trying to solve a problem at work or home. The funny thing is, sometimes just forgetting about the problem, maybe taking a walk and becoming calmer means that a solution just pops into your head!

It’s as if, the more we can relax, and slow down our brain waves, we reach a place of calmness where the answers arrive. This could well be because at this stage you are accessing your subconscious mind which is where solutions reside.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be mostly relaxed and calm whatever is going on around you? This is perfectly achievable with meditation.

It’s been found that with regular practice of say, Mindfulness Meditation, the brain’s activity diminishes in anxiety related parts of the brain. This increases your ability to better control stress levels – given the year we’ve just had, many of us could do with that!

There is also evidence that meditation helps with a range of things, all the way from alleviating depression to improving sleep patterns. It pretty much rewires the brain circuits to produce better health and wellbeing overall.

Meditation is like a mental gym for the mind. It teaches the mind to focus with the added benefit of keeping you calmer and more relaxed. If you’d like to try it, listen to my meditation on YouTube:

It is better to practice meditation regularly as opposed to try to fit it in everyday and then give up because there is no time. Even once or twice a week, for 5-10 minutes can be beneficial.

As anything, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. The relaxation and peacefulness felt during meditation continue even after you stop. With all its advantages, it’s worthwhile to make time and get into the habit of meditating regularly.

After the roller-coaster of 2020, give yourself the gift of being calmer and staying sane in 2021!