How Meditation Can Help Us Win the Fight Against Addiction
Meditation is an incredible tool, no matter how you look at it. Anything that can help us to promote gamma waves in the brain and help us to maintain an objective and balanced state of mind is worth looking into. Whether we are able to benefit immediately or over time through long-term practice, meditation is a tool that can be fully utilized for good.
Studies have shown that consistent meditation has been linked with recovery from addiction. People who have found themselves struggling with addiction have been able to utilize meditation as a tool that can help them to overcome their mental and emotional dependence on foreign substances and begin a journey of healing from within. These people also find that meditation is a good way to interrupt cravings for their addiction and replace those cravings with introspective, calming meditations that help to reaffirm why they are on a journey to recovery and stay on track.
People who were encouraged to meditate as a way to help them during their addiction recovery were far more likely to quit their addiction entirely. It has been known to help people who are struggling to prevent relapses and is often maintained long after they have successfully quit their addiction. Meditation can play a crucial role in helping to maintain the balance that is necessary to survive in a stressful, triggering environment. It allows people who are struggling to observe the situations they find themselves in without having reactive emotional reactions, such as turning to the coping mechanism that got them into trouble in the first place.
Instead, meditation helps the brain to remain balanced and objective throughout the recovery process, and even long after, to ensure that the stress we find ourselves struggling to handle will not ultimately cause more issues. We are better able to cope with our addictions in a healthy and productive way, as our brains become trained to adapt to stressful situations without becoming overwhelmed.
Mindfulness meditations can be particularly effective when it comes to combating addictions. It can be very helpful for anybody who is having a craving for something that they are addicted to to be able to take their focus off of their craving and bring it to the present moment. Interrupting the cravings with thoughts that process what we are currently experiencing is a good way to disrupt the neural pathways that have begun to solidify as a part of the addiction.
No matter what stage of addiction you find yourself in, meditation has been proven as a useful tool in both prevention and recovery. In learning how to manage our emotions and maintain the peace within ourselves, we are able to better handle the negative stimulus we encounter during daily life and make decisions that are closer aligned to our true intentions.
If doesn’t matter what it is that you find yourself addicted to; meditation can help. We have the power to lead a healthy life, and using meditation is a great tool in doing so!