You’ve probably heard of meditation, a practice that focuses on clearing your mind to improve your overall well-being. But how familiar are you with it? Here are three things you never knew about meditation.

1. Meditation Has Been Around for Thousands of Years

While meditation has grown increasingly popular in the United States over the past few decades, it has a much longer history. In fact, according to an article published by Psychology Today, wall art from the Indus Valley indicates that meditation may have been used as early as 5,000 B.C.E.

2. Meditation Can Have Long-Term Effects

It’s common for people to turn to meditation when they’re already feeling stressed. But studies suggest that meditation doesn’t just relieve stress in the moment—consistently practicing meditation over a long period of time can reduce the inflammatory response to psychological stressors, making someone less reactive to stress and better able to recover from it.

3. Therapists Can Help With Meditation

Many people think of meditation as being something that you do on your own, but therapists often use meditation to treat patients who are struggling with stress, anxiety, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), sleep problems, anger management, and various other issues. An experienced therapist can guide patients through meditation sessions and offer advice for how to practice mindfulness at home.

Fortunately, residents of Connecticut won’t need to look far for professional help with learning meditation. Our therapists regularly incorporate meditation into their practice, and they can recommend the approach that’s most appropriate for your needs. 

We’ll be happy to tell you about our practice and our approach to treatment, and if you feel that we’re a good match for your needs, we can schedule therapy in Middlebury, CT or therapy in Southbury, CT at a date and time that’s convenient for you. We also offer telehealth visits for clients all throughout Connecticut. Our providers are trained in CBT, DBT, IFS, EMDR, ICBT, ERP, mindfulness based techniques, and somatic experiencing, all of which can help you gain skills to assist with stress. Our APRN's can explore any medical conditions that may be contributing to your symptoms, and evaluate vitamin levels, as well as thyroid hormone levels, to determine if there is a physical factor to your symptoms. Together, as a team, we can work with you to help you gain more peace in your life. You deserve to feel better!