MIND
The Benefits of Meditation for Over 50 Year Olds
BY LAURE KIRSTEN-OTTO
“The quality of your life is determined by the quality of your thoughts.” – Robin Sharma
No truer words have ever been spoken than this quote by Robin Sharma. To live a fulfilled and happy life we need to learn how to effectively utilise the most powerful tool that we as humans have access to…the mind.
In the times we live in it is difficult to become still and present and not let our minds be taken over by stress, anxiety or feelings of depression. As we grow older and face the changes that happen in our bodies, careers and families it becomes increasingly important to harness the power of the mind in order for our quality of life not to deteriorate.
Learning to meditate at any age can have many benefits such as improved mental health and better focus but has the following particular benefits for those over 50:
- Protect Your Brain – Meditating slows the decrease in the volume of grey and white matter in the brain as we age. One remarkable study found that at age fifty, brains of meditators appeared to be 7.5 years younger and that the benefits compounded with time.
- Cardiovascular Health – Meditation reduces stress in the body and activates the parasympathetic (healing) nervous system which improves overall physical health and in particular cardiovascular health.
- Improved Sleep – As we age changes in our hormones and bodies can cause changes to occur in our sleep cycles. Lack of sleep or broken sleep cycles are correlated to poor mental focus and poor task performance. Meditation helps to improve and maintain healthy sleep patterns.
- Reduced Pain – As we age we are more likely to develop chronic pain. Meditation reduces pain and inflammation in the body through the activation of the parasympathetic nervous system as well as improved emotional regulation and processing.
- Improved Body Image – Daily self appreciation and gratitude meditations vastly improve the relationship with self in particular self-esteem and self-worth which in turns improves self-image.
Learning to meditate has many other health and wellness benefits which help to harness the mind, improve our mental and physical health which in turn has a direct impact on the quality of our thoughts and behaviour patterns thereby improving the quality of our lives and overall wellbeing.
Laure Kirsten-Otto
Personal Development Coach / Meditation Teacher
laure@expand.net.za
