12 ways meditation can benefit your mental and physical health
Clinically reviewed by Dr. Chris Mosunic, PhD, RD, CDCES, MBA
Did you know that regular meditation practice can improve both your mental and physical health? Here are 12 benefits you need to know about, and how to start meditating.
When it comes to meditating, most of us just want to quiet some of our stress and anxiety or finally get a good night's sleep. And there’s no doubt that meditation can do that, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the benefits you can have with regular practice.
From affecting blood pressure and preventing disease, to helping you focus and increasing your happiness, meditation can help you live a longer and healthier life — mentally and physically.
Let’s dive into all of the benefits of meditation, and how you can build a practice that will help you take advantage of them.
What is meditation?
Meditation is practice to train your mind to focus and calm itself, so you can stay more present and centered. You're not aiming to stop thinking altogether (that will never happen — sorry!) but instead to become more aware of your thoughts and emotions without getting swept away by them.
There are a lot of different types of meditation, but they all share common elements — like finding a place you can take a moment to relax, focusing your attention (usually on your breath, a word, or a sound), and letting go of distractions.
Over time, meditation can help you develop a better understanding of your own mind. And that self-awareness can be a powerful tool to help you handle life’s challenges. Imagine having a surge of anger or a burst of anxiety, but being able to observe them with curiosity rather than reacting impulsively. That’s what meditation is helping us do.
If you're new to meditation, we know the sheer number of styles you can try may feel overwhelming. Here’s a taste of a few popular ones to get you started.
Mindfulness meditation: One of the most popular forms of meditation, with mindfulness meditation you focus on the present moment—what you’re feeling, thinking, or sensing—without judgment. You become more aware of your thoughts, observing them but not getting caught up in them, and gently bring your focus back to your breath or your body.
Transcendental meditation: In this type of meditation, also known as TM, you use a mantra—a word, sound, or phrase repeated silently—to help quiet your mind and reach a deep state of relaxation. It’s usually practiced for 20 minutes twice a day, while sitting comfortably with your eyes closed.
Loving-kindness meditation: Also known as Metta meditation — in this practice you focus on developing feelings of compassion and kindness, first toward yourself, and then extending to others. This can be especially helpful if you’re looking to nurture more positive emotions like empathy and forgiveness.
Body scan meditation: During a body scan, you pay attention to different parts of your body, often starting from your toes and moving upward. As you mentally "scan" each part, you relax any tension you may be holding. This can help you become more in tune with your body, and notice how stress or anxiety might affect it.
While each type of meditation is slightly different, they can all offer ways to calm the mind and body. You don’t need to follow a strict routine or join a particular group to practice meditation — unless you want to. Just try out a few to find what works for you, and make it a regular part of your day — these 11 tips can help.
And most importantly: Don’t worry about whether you’re “doing it right,” because there’s no perfect way to meditate. As long as you try to approach it with patience and self-compassion, you’ll be on the right track. If your mind wanders (which it will!) simply guide it back to the present moment without being hard on yourself — it’s all part of the process. With time, you’ll likely find that meditation creates a sense of calm and balance in your life, both mentally and physically.
How meditation can help your mental and physical health: 12 benefits
While feeling calm is a great benefit of meditation, there’s so many more ways it can improve your mental and physical health. Whether it’s a more positive mindset, a decrease in chronic pain, or even protection from disease or addiction, having a daily practice can really improve your overall quality of life. Here are 12 of the benefits you need to know about.
1. Meditation can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression
Meditation can be a natural way to help calm the mind and lower stress. By focusing on your breath or a specific point of concentration, you can help shift your mind away from worries, and reduce the levels of cortisol—one of the most important stress hormones—in your body. This can help you feel more relaxed and less overwhelmed by day-to-day challenges. People who meditate regularly often report lower anxiety and a greater sense of peace.
If you’re dealing with depression, meditation can help you develop positive thinking patterns and stay grounded in the present. Here are five meditation techniques that can support people with depression.
While meditation alone isn’t a replacement for professional treatment, studies have shown it can complement traditional therapies, which can help improve the outcomes from treatments suggested by your doctor or therapist.
💙 Use meditation to Overcome Stress and Anxiety in this series with Clinical Psychologist Dr. Julie Smith.
2. Meditation can promote emotional health
Emotional wellbeing isn’t just a luxury — it's a necessity for overall health. Mindfulness practices help you become aware of your thoughts and feelings in the present moment and make it easier to change, or stop, your reactions to them. So rather than feeling controlled by your emotions, you can notice them and take action from a more grounded place.
And this skill can help us feel better, literally. Research indicates a noteworthy uptick in positive emotions among those who meditate regularly. And meditation practices, particularly mindfulness, have been shown to significantly improve mental health.
💙 Look for a boost in your emotional health? Try out the 7 Days of Happiness meditation series with Tamara Levitt.
3. Meditation can help to improve focus and concentration
Think of meditation as a gym for your brain. Just as you train muscles, you can train your attention through meditation. Each time you sit down to meditate, you strengthen your ability to be present and stay focused on whatever is at hand. Which will apply to the rest of your life as well.
Several studies indicate that meditation can have a lasting impact on your attention span and focus. Some studies suggest that regular meditation may even lead to structural changes in the brain that enhance sustained attention. Better focus and a stronger brain? Sign us up!
💙 Explore how meditation can help with Finding Focus in this short session with Jeff Warren.
4. Meditation can enhance self-awareness
Meditation can also help you develop a deeper understanding of yourself. By paying attention to your thoughts and feelings without judging yourself, you can become more in tune with your emotional and mental state. Rather than ignoring or shutting out your internal world, meditation gives you a way to gently get to know all the different parts of you, and maybe even become “friends” with them.
This self-awareness can lead to better decision-making and help you address negative patterns of thinking that may be holding you back.
💙 Learn how to strengthen your Relationship with Self through trust, insight, and compassion during this meditation series with Tamara Levitt.
5. Meditation may lower blood pressure
Hypertension is one of the leading risk factors for heart disease and stroke, and it can be challenging to treat. Since 2013, The American Heart Association has listed meditation as a clinically-proven complementary treatment. In a review of the science, they found strong evidence that practicing meditation can reduce high blood pressure.
Experts still aren’t sure exactly how this works or whether some forms of meditation are better than others, but in this scenario it’s a win-win. Meditation can be an important part of your treatment strategy if you have hypertension (or want to prevent it) but please always consult with a healthcare professional if you suspect you may have high blood pressure.
Learn a few tips for using meditation to lower blood pressure.
6. Meditation can help reduce our perception of chronic pain
Chronic pain and the often-related problem of opioid addiction are some of the biggest public health crises facing countries today. While many have understood the power of meditation when it comes to pain relief, it’s only been over the last few decades that scientific research has been able to back up the pain-reducing effects of meditation. Here are five meditation techniques that can help you find relief from chronic pain.
Meditation helps manage chronic pain by increasing activation in several brain areas that regulate pain perception and by diminishing the negative emotional response connected with the experience of pain. Encouragingly, one study showed that even beginner meditators could reduce pain severity after just a few weeks of practicing mindfulness.
💙 Dive into the 7 Days of Soothing Pain series with Oren Jay Sofer to bring more ease and perspective to pain, discomfort, and illness.
7. Meditation can enhance sleep quality
So many of us struggle to fall asleep. With all the daily stressors, responsibilities, and constant alerts and notifications, a peaceful night's sleep can feel like a pipedream.
Luckily, relaxation-centered meditation practices like body scan or mindful breathing can help calm the mind and make it easier to fall into a deep, restorative sleep (check out this guide on how to practice a body scan before bed tonight). Studies have shown that people who practice meditation regularly experience improved sleep quality and duration.
💙 Meditation isn’t just for the daytime! Sleep meditations, like Unwind into Sleep with Chibs Okereke, can help you settle in for the night and help you to get better sleep.
8. Meditation may boost immune system function
The immune system has been called our body’s “floating brain.” It’s an incredibly sophisticated system for identifying and destroying pathogens that threaten our health, and is intimately linked with our nervous system. When we have weakened immunity, we are sitting ducks for infection.
Practicing mindfulness meditation has been linked to reduced markers for inflammation, a signal of reduced immune function. Several studies have also found that meditation increases crucial immune cells that stave off disease. Experts still aren’t sure exactly how meditation works to benefit the immune system, but decreased stress and improved self-regulation may play a major role.
💙 Break the Stress Cycle and give your immune system a boost during this short meditation with Jeff Warren.
9. Meditation may slow cellular aging
Amazingly, cutting-edge science is finding that meditation may slow the biological aging process. When our cells divide, the DNA is protected by long proteins called telomeres. As we age, our telomeres get shorter, which increases the chance of cell damage. As cell damage accumulates over the years, our overall health suffers.
While meditation doesn’t stop the aging process entirely, scientists are finding evidence that meditation does slow the shortening of telomeres. Several studies have found that meditation activates genes that produce telomerase, a natural enzyme that helps prevent telomeres from shortening. That means meditation can protect us from age-related health decline at the cellular level.
10. Meditation can help prevent diabetes
Research shows that meditation helps the body regulate blood sugar by using insulin more efficiently. The stress hormone cortisol is a major contributor to insulin resistance, and meditation can lead to lower cortisol levels, allowing insulin to do its job. In this regard, meditation may help you prevent Type 2 diabetes if you’re at risk. Explore seven more ways you can naturally lower your cortisol levels.
Whether you’re trying to prevent diabetes or you’re already navigating the effects of the disease, meditation can help support your journey by being a key part of your treatment or prevention plan.
💙 Mindful Eating is another way to support a healthier lifestyle, and this series has been designed to show you the ropes.
11. Meditation may help fight Alzheimer’s disease
Brain imaging studies have shown that long-term meditators lose less brain matter with age meaning those who meditate have a lower risk of cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease, and other forms of dementia. One study found that cortical thickness in the brains of meditators aged 40 to 50 was the same as non-meditators aged 20 to 30.
Even if you’re newer to practicing, meditation can still help. This is especially true in the crucial period when there are early signs of cognitive decline, but dementia hasn’t yet set in.
When we meditate, we exercise the brain in a new way. Learning a new skill, improving concentration, and building more conscious awareness all stimulate the growth of new neurons. In addition, stress reduction protects our existing brain structures from further damage.
💙 New to meditating? Check out the Mindfulness for Beginners series where you can learn the basics of mindful meditation over 30 days.
12. Meditation can assist in overcoming addiction
Addiction is a complex battle, requiring a multi-pronged approach for effective management. Meditation practice may be helpful as an aid to combating various types of addiction. It can help you redirect your attention, manage your emotions, and increase your understanding of the triggers and causes of addictive behaviors.
Of course, battling addiction can be incredibly difficult and it’s important to reach out for professional support. With that said, meditation can be a great addition to your treatment plan.
💙 Check out this meditation on Addiction from the Breaking Habits series with Tamara Levitt.
10 tips to build a meditation practice
Ready to start soaking up all those benefits? Lucky for you, starting a meditation practice doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. In fact, one of the best things about meditation is that it can fit into your life in whatever way works best for you.
You don’t need a special room, fancy cushions, or hours of free time to start meditating. You just need some simple, practical tips to help you build a meditation practice that’s easy to stick with… here are 10 for you to explore.
1. Start small
The idea of sitting still for long periods can feel overwhelming, so start with just a few minutes a day. 5–10 minutes of focused breathing or mindfulness can make a big difference, especially if you’re new to meditation — a short, daily practice can be much more beneficial than a long session once in a while. Over time, you can gradually ease into longer meditation sessions.
2. Find a quiet, comfortable space
It can be easier to meditate when you’re in a calm, peaceful environment. While you don’t need a designated meditation space, it can help to find a spot where you won’t be interrupted or distracted. (But if you are feeling crafty, here are six tips to DIY a space in your home.) Choose a cozy corner of your living room or bedroom, or a peaceful spot in your backyard or local park.
Just make sure it’s a place where you can sit comfortably—on a chair, a cushion, or the floor—so you can feel relaxed and at ease, ready to focus on your meditation.
3. Use a guided meditation app
If you’re new to meditation or find it hard to sit quietly on your own, guided meditations can be incredibly helpful no matter what your goal is for meditating. And we happen to know a great one.
Explore the Calm app’s guided meditations for help getting your practice started: they’re led by experienced teachers who walk you through the process step-by-step. Having someone guide you can make the practice feel easier and less intimidating, especially when you’re just starting out.
4. Focus on your breath
One of the simplest, most effective ways to meditate is to focus on your breath (here are seven steps to try it yourself). You don’t need to change your breathing, just observe the sensation of your breath as it enters and leaves your body. If your mind starts to wander (which it inevitably will), gently bring your attention back to your breath without judging yourself. This can help train your mind to stay focused and present, which can be very calming.
The beauty of breath-focused meditation is that you can do it anytime, anywhere — whether you’re sitting at home or taking a break at work.
5. Be patient with yourself
Meditation is a practice. And like any new skill, it can take time to get the hang of it. If your mind feels restless or you find it hard to concentrate, that’s completely normal.
Instead of trying to clear your mind, become more aware of your thoughts and learn how to guide them back to a point of focus (your breath, sounds around you, or a mantra are good focus points). Regular practice can help this get easier, so be kind and patient with yourself as you’re learning. There’s no rush, and no perfect way to meditate.
6. Set a regular time to meditate
One of the best ways to build a lasting meditation practice is to make it part of your daily routine, whether it’s first thing in the morning, during your lunch break, or before bed. This can help you form a habit that feels natural and easy.
If you’re worried about finding time in your schedule, start with just five minutes and build from there. Show up for yourself every day, even if it’s just for a short session.
7. Trust the process
While some benefits of meditation—like feeling more relaxed—can happen quickly, others take time to develop. Meditation is a gradual process where benefits come from practicing regularly. Let go of the pressure to feel a certain way or reach a specific outcome.
Instead, focus on the meditation itself, and trust that the benefits will come.
8. Experiment with different types of meditation
If sitting in silence doesn’t appeal to you, you might enjoy a more active way to meditate. Try walking meditation, where you focus on your steps and the sensations in your body (these six steps can guide you through it). Or maybe you’d be interested in loving-kindness meditation, which focuses on generating feelings of compassion and empathy.
Explore the many different types on the Calm app to find the kind of meditation that resonates with you the most.
9. Use reminders and habit stacking to stay on track
It’s easy to forget to meditate — especially when you’re just starting out. To help build the habit, set a reminder on your phone, leave a note somewhere you’ll see it, or use the Calm app’s daily reminders to help you stay on track.
Another tip is to “attach” your meditation practice to an existing habit. So you might meditate right after brushing your teeth in the morning, or just after you’ve put your pajamas on at night. This can make it easier to remember, so meditation can become a regular part of your routine.
10. Keep going!
People often start meditating with enthusiasm, but end up giving up after a few days because they think it’s not working or they don’t have time. But meditation’s a skill that takes practice, and its benefits can only come when you’re consistent.
If you miss a day or two, don’t be hard on yourself: simply start again. Every time you meditate, you’re making progress. With time, you’ll likely start to notice small changes — perhaps feeling a little less stressed, sleeping a bit better, or handling everyday challenges with more patience. Celebrate all these little wins to help you stay motivated to keep it up!
Benefits of meditation FAQs
Why is meditation so powerful?
Meditation can help calm the mind and body by giving you a break from stress and overwhelming thoughts. It can help create clarity and inner peace, so you feel lighter and more focused when you practice.
Over time, meditation can enhance your resilience by changing your brain’s responses to stress, which can help reduce fear and anxiety. It can also help strengthen areas related to memory and emotional regulation. With practice and self-compassion, meditation can help you manage life's challenges and improve your overall wellbeing.
Can meditation cure anxiety disorders or depression?
Meditation can help relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression, but it's not a cure. You can use meditation alongside other treatments like therapy or medication, as it can help you become more aware of your thoughts and emotions without getting overwhelmed by them.
If you have anxiety, meditation can provide a sense of calm. If you’re managing depression, it can help encourage balanced thinking and self-compassion. Chat with your doctor or a mental health therapist for support with serious conditions, and ask them about using meditation to complement their advice.
How long should I meditate to see benefits for my physical health?
You don’t need to meditate for hours to experience physical health benefits: just 10–15 minutes a day can help reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and improve sleep. If you’re looking for specific benefits, try 20–30 minutes most days.
Consistency is more important than length. It's better to meditate regularly—even briefly—than to go weeks between long sessions. So start with a manageable time and gradually increase it as you get more comfortable. While physical benefits may take time to develop, you might notice improvements in your wellbeing within a few weeks of regular practice.
What happens if you meditate every day?
Meditating daily can bring both immediate and long-term benefits for both mental and physical wellbeing.
In the short term, it can help reduce stress and promote relaxation. Over time, it can help bring you focus, better emotional control, and a sense of peace.
Practicing meditation consistently can help improve your sleep, reduce muscle tension, lower blood pressure, and enhance your immunity.
What is the difference between mindfulness meditation and other types of meditation?
There are many different forms of meditation, each with its own focus and technique. Every style offers its own set of benefits, so explore different types to see which one resonates with you.
Mindfulness meditation can be a great place to start since it’s so simple and adaptable, but experimenting with other forms can deepen your practice and offer greater support through different times in your life.
Mindfulness meditation: Focuses on being present, observing your thoughts without judgment, and bringing your attention back to the moment. It’s flexible and can be great for reducing stress.
Transcendental meditation: Involves silently repeating a mantra to reach deep relaxation. It’s more structured, typically practiced for 20 minutes twice a day.
Loving-kindness meditation: Developing compassion by repeating phrases of goodwill toward yourself and others. It can help boost your empathy and reduce negative emotions.
Body scan meditation: Involves paying attention to tension in different areas of the body, and promotes awareness and relaxation of physical sensations.
Zen meditation (Zazen): A seated practice from Zen Buddhism that focuses on breath and posture, and aims to observe thoughts without attachment.
Can meditation replace traditional therapies for mental health treatment?
Meditation can complement traditional mental health treatments by helping reduce stress and improve mood. But it doesn’t replace professional care — especially for serious issues like anxiety, depression, or trauma.
Talk to a mental health professional for their help in creating a tailored treatment, which may include therapy, lifestyle changes, or medication. Many therapists recommend meditation as part of a comprehensive treatment plan — it can be a powerful support in your wellness journey, but it isn’t a substitute for therapy or medical interventions.
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