Meditation and the Tired Mind

By: Hannah Ariesen

I remember the way it felt. “It’s a heart attack. I’m twenty and I’m having a heart attack.” My body quaked and the deep humdrum of my heart screamed into my chest maybe now is the time. I sat in my small office space at work, staring down at my trembling hands as the slow rise of hyperventilation caught the attention of a passing co-worker. “Sit down, breathe, I’m calling the paramedics.”

Sit down, breathe. If only the thought had occurred to me earlier. When the ambulance arrived I fully expected them to tell me it was all in my head. And the thing is, it was—but not in the way I expected. Having a severe anxiety attack that mimicked the patterns of a heart attack was in my mind a sign from the universe that I had a more serious underlying problem, and that I needed to do something about it.

That something that was recommended to me repeatedly was meditation. If you’re new to meditation, you’re not alone. But the intense therapeutic nature of the practice and how it can heal the mind, body, and soul will make you wish you had tried it sooner. But first, it’s important to understand what meditation is and isn’t. “Meditation isn’t about becoming a different person, a new person, or a better person. It’s about training in awareness and getting a healthy sense of perspective,” is the definition listed on the website of the popular meditation app Headspace (2).

In the busyness of the world we live in, information overload, and the daily stresses of just existing in the modern day—it’s easy to get lost in the conundrum and feel essentially meaningless, just as I did. I was not taking the time to ground myself in the present moments and not taking the time to sit down and breathe. Meditation is about being with the self, letting the thoughts roll over you, and in some cases finding the answers to internal questions you’ve had for the longest time. It’s important to remember that, “You’re not trying to turn off your thoughts or feelings. You’re learning to observe them without judgment. And eventually, you may start to better understand them as well” (2).

Meditation can also be just as or even more powerful than medicine itself. The young paramedic had even turned to me, noting, “You know, you should try meditating. Medicine can’t fix everything.” Unsurprisingly, a study was conducted to measure the physiological effects of transcendental meditation on the body’s processes. It was found that within 5-10 minutes of meditation, O2 consumption and CO2 elimination decreased significantly in all subjects measured (1). Essentially, their breathing was more consistent and slowed down. When someone is having an anxiety attack, you will find that CO2 consumption increases a drastic amount due to the amount of breaths you are taking in. The study also found that cardiac output decreased significantly during meditation, with a mean decrease of 5 beats per minute (1). The heart rate slowed, giving the body a much-needed break.

Now, we may be able to guess those things, but the slowing of the heart and the breathing produces a calming effect that is much needed for people like me who suffer from heart palpitations, random bouts of hyperventilation, and discomfort caused by anxiety. Making meditation a habit can help calm the negative effects that anxiety has on our lives. While meditation has some amazing effects, it’s also important to understand that is does not inherently make our lives more meaningful. It is what arises out of the practice that allows us to see the more meaningful parts of our lives, and can awaken something within us that allows us to see the value in the everyday. I don’t know about you, but life just seems better that way.

It’s also important to keep in mind that it’s not just for monks or anxious people: it’s for everyone. I used to meditate quite often, and for “some reason” I recall not being so anxious and feeling much more grounded in my life. Every moment felt more meaningful, and when I was worried or confused about something—I meditated. I invite you to do the same. There are many forms of meditation, and it’s not something that has to be perfect. Find what suits you, I’m not here to tell you the best or perfect way because it is entirely dependent on the individual. But I do now invite you to go and seek out a calm space, sit or lie down, and breathe. Do so with intention. It’s going to be okay.

References

Wallace, Robert Keith. The Physiological Effects of Transcendental Meditation. MIU Press, 1970.
“What Is Meditation?” Headspace, www.headspace.com/meditation-101/what-is-meditation.