Mental Baseline: How Meditation Raises Your Mental Well-Being

Introduction

We all have a baseline physical and mental health that is unique to us. This baseline is a foundation shaped by our genetics, early life experiences, and the cumulative effects of our daily habits and routines. It’s where we naturally fall back to when life throws a curveball at us.

The Default Baseline:

Consider the ways we try to enhance our baseline. We go to the gym, take part in sports, or even run marathons to build our physical bodies. Similarly, we engage in challenging tasks to build our mental resilience and focus. However, despite our best efforts, when an acute or unknown situation arises, we often find ourselves falling back to that familiar baseline.

Much of our focus is on building our careers, excelling in our studies, and when we’re younger, investing energy in our appearance and relationships. We spend countless hours refining our professional skills and knowledge, and ensuring we present ourselves in a certain way to attract friends or life partners. While these pursuits are important, they often overshadow the time and effort needed to cultivate deeper, more intrinsic qualities.

Qualities such as curiosity, resilience, creativity, passion, risk-taking, adaptability, persistence, collaborative spirit, empathy, and open-mindedness are crucial for a fulfilling and dynamic life. Unfortunately, these traits are frequently neglected in our day-to-day lives. They are often seen as secondary to the more tangible, immediate goals we set for ourselves.

People often seek motivation from speakers or coaches to briefly elevate their mental state, only to revert to their default baseline shortly after. These methods can provide a temporary lift to a higher baseline, but often the effects are short-lived. Our minds are notoriously resistant to change, clinging to familiar patterns and habits. Motivational talks can inspire and energize us for a short while, but we usually revert to our baseline state soon after.

Raising Your Baseline: The Power of Meditation

So, what can be done to make a shift that lasts? Enter mindfulness and meditation. Unlike motivational talks that primarily work on the conscious mind, meditation targets the subconscious. It’s a practice that doesn’t just scratch the surface but dives deep, fostering genuine and lasting change.

One of the most profound benefits of meditation is its ability to shift your baseline higher. This means not only living a more fulfilling life but also finding it more difficult to fall into the slippery slope that can lead below your baseline. A higher baseline provides greater resilience against stress and adversity.

Imagine having a mental baseline that is not easily shaken, where even in tough times, you are still operating from a place of greater strength and stability. Meditation helps create this elevated baseline by consistently nurturing and developing our inner resources. The baseline can move down, or it can move higher – which would you rather have?

Meditation offers a way to rewire the mind from within. Regular practice has been shown to alter brain function and structure in profound ways. Studies suggest that meditation can increase the grey matter in areas of the brain associated with learning, memory, and emotional regulation. It helps quiet the constant chatter of the mind, allowing us to experience a sense of inner peace and clarity.

Mindfulness, a form of meditation, involves paying attention to the present moment without judgment. While it is effective, traditional meditation techniques often go a step further. They work on the subconscious, gradually transforming our mental landscape. This process helps shift our baseline mental state, making us more resilient, creative, and open-minded over time.

Shifting to a Lower Baseline: Slippery Slope

In pursuit of perceived happiness, some of us end up going down a slippery slope, falling below our baseline. This descent often leads to the creation of a new, lower baseline from which it becomes increasingly difficult to return. The challenge here is not just psychological but also chemical. This new factor, a chemical imbalance, can dramatically alter our mental state, making recovery and return to our original baseline a much harder journey.

When a chemical imbalance comes into play, the journey back to our original baseline can seem daunting. Here too, meditation and mindfulness can play a pivotal role. While the effects of meditation can be difficult to study and quantify, the real test lies in its manifestation in our daily lives. If the practice doesn’t lead to tangible improvements, it might be time to explore different meditation techniques.

There are numerous forms of meditation, each with its unique approach. Finding the one that resonates with you can make a significant difference. Whether it’s mindfulness meditation, loving-kindness meditation, transcendental meditation, or another form, the key is to find a practice that feels right for you and stick with it.

A New Outlook

Imagine opening the door to your house for the first time to experience the open space under the wide and expansive sky. This is the kind of transformation that meditation can bring. It offers a new perspective, a sense of expansiveness and freedom that wasn’t there before.

When we commit to a regular meditation practice, we begin to see lasting changes in our lives. We become more adaptable, resilient, and empathetic. Our baseline shifts, and we find ourselves better equipped to handle life’s challenges.

Conclusion

While building our physical and mental resilience through exercise, education, and motivation is important, it’s equally crucial to invest time in practices that foster intrinsic qualities. Meditation offers a unique path to lasting change, working from the inside out to transform our subconscious mind and elevate our baseline. By opening ourselves to the expansive possibilities that meditation provides, we can achieve a new level of mental and emotional well-being that stands the test of time.

In times of chemical imbalances or significant mental health challenges, meditation can serve as a powerful adjunct to other treatments, helping to stabilize and uplift our mental state. It’s a journey of discovering the meditation practice that best suits us and committing to it, ultimately leading to profound and lasting transformation. By raising our baseline, we not only enhance our quality of life but also build a stronger foundation that prevents us from slipping into lower, more difficult mental states.