Bedtime Meditation For Better Sleep
About 30 to 50 % of adults worldwide suffer from insomnia. Insomnia is a sleeping disorder in which people face difficulty in falling asleep and in having slept for longer periods.
It is a common concern for adults but these days many young people are also facing insomnia. Over the years the quality and quantity of sleep have decreased significantly.
There might be many causes for this. Some of them might be Lifestyle changes, stress, eating habits, health conditions, etc.
Stress and anxiety make sleeplessness even worse. While people go on with medications to treat insomnia. But taking these drugs for longer periods is not good for your health, especially your liver.
There is a technique called meditation that can help you in improving your quality and quantity of sleep. Meditation is an exercise that can help you to relax your body and mind, enhancing your inner peace.
Well, people do meditation early in the morning or before bedtime. So here in this article let us discuss bedtime meditation which can help you fight Insomnia and help you to have good quality sleep.
Does bedtime meditation improve sleep?
Studies have shown that meditation is very helpful in reducing stress and anxiety. When the stress is in control your body feels relaxed and meditation helps in the release of certain hormones which helps you in having good quality sleep throughout.
Meditation helps you in the secretion of melatonin and serotonin (sleep hormones) and reduces the heart rate, decreases the blood pressure, and activates certain parts of the brain which can help you have quality sleep.
How to do better meditation
Meditation does not need any equipment to practice. To do meditation, simply sit down in a quiet area that you find comfortable and then close your eyes and breathe slowly.
Try to inhale, exhale and focus on your breath. If any thought pops up in your mind, give some time to let it go and again come to the present situation. Repeat the series for 5 to 10 minutes.
Meditating as a beginner might be intimidating for you. So you can start with a few minutes like 5 to 10 minutes and then can increase the time up to 15 to 20 minutes while practicing.
And one thing to remember is to be consistent and practice meditation daily to see better results. You cannot see all the benefits just by practicing once.
Once you make it a part of your daily routine you will be amazed to see the positive results that meditation brings to your day-to-day life.
Let us discuss some of the meditation techniques which you can follow to do while bedtime.
Also Read: 5 Tips to Practice Meditation Consistently
Mindfulness meditation
Mindfulness meditation follows a set of breathing techniques that can help you focus on the present.
Sit or lie down in a comfortable position where you find no disturbance. Inhale for ten counts, hold your breath for 10 counts and exhale for 10 counts.
Try to focus only on your breath throughout the entire process. If you feel tightness in any part consciously bring your focus on that part and relax it.
If any thought pops up in your mind let that thought pass away without judging it and slowly come back to the present. Repeat these series of steps for 5 to 10 minutes.
Guided meditation
This can be a very good technique to get into the practice of meditation for beginners.
Guided meditation is a process in which a person gets you on each step through a series of breathing. The relaxing music and sound can help you in relaxing your mind and helping you to fall asleep.
You can practice this by lying down on the bed and then start recording by your side. Listen to the instructor’s voice and whenever you feel that thought is popping up in your mind, slowly divert that thought and bring your focus on the instructor’s voice again.
Repeat this throughout the meditation process. The music and sound can relax your mind and help you to fall asleep.
Body scan meditation
In body scan meditation you try to focus your attention on every part of your body by relaxing them.
Lie down in a comfortable position and make sure that there are no distractions in your room.
Start from your head and try to relax every part of your body up to the toe. Gently break through the process.
You can also reverse the direction and the staff from toes to head.
Some of the benefits of bedtime Meditation
Meditation helps you in relieving your stress and anxiety and improving your overall mood.
Meditation helps in the secretion of sleep-promoting hormones like melatonin and serotonin.
Certain conditions are required in our body to help us fall asleep. Our body’s temperature falls about 1 to 2 degrees centigrade and the blood pressure decreases and the Heartbeat reduces and our brain activity increases. These are essential in promoting sleep.
Meditation helps in reaching these conditions and helps you in falling asleep quickly and having a good quality sleep throughout.
Also Read: 10 Simple & Proven Tips to have Better Sleep at Night
Risks of doing bedtime meditation
Usually, meditation offers good benefits for most people. But in case you have a history of mental illness meditation may trigger the possibility of anxiety and worsen the situation.
Meditation may result in increased anxiety, derealization, intense mood changes, etc.
In case you are concerned with these negative possibilities or if you experience any of these situations, it would be better to consult your doctor or therapist before starting bedtime meditation.
Take away
We have seen that bedtime meditation can help improve the quality and quantity of sleep.
While practicing meditation, maintaining some bedtime hygiene is also very important.
You have to make sure to follow some of the bedtime hygiene practices to have a good sleep. Some of them are returning your electronic devices, having a light dinner, avoiding caffeine, and alcohol, staying away from disturbances, etc.
Thus bedtime Meditation hygiene practices and meditation can enhance the overall quality of sleep.
