Millennials today are experiencing one of the worst mental breakdowns of all time. As the working and living conditions of today’s world get worse and worse every day, there are reports that more and more people are committing suicide. Around 800,000 people on average commit suicide every year, according to the World Health Organization.
Factors That Affect Mental Health
The mounting problems of climate change play a big factor in the accumulation of this problem. With climate change, more and more of the Earth is getting extracted for greed. As a result, the natural world is slowly dying. We had paradise but instead, we paved it and put up a parking lot. The fight for resources is now on a continuous rise — alongside it is the fight for work.
Working conditions have seen the worse these past few years — with salary, minimum wage, benefits, and general working conditions taking a bad turn. As compared to how it was in the early years of the 3rd industrial revolution (post World War II), most people born in this generation are considered to be overworked and underpaid. Millennials are slowly burning out of their minds trying to earn a living. As they fight for their rights to a fair living wage, they’ve been called lazy and arrogant by the older generations.
The sum of these has led to many different mental illnesses for those living in current circumstances. As the situation worsens for them — whether it is because of pollution, poverty, unemployment, political climate, and living conditions — more and more millennials are getting into addictions, bouts of depression, anxiety, and suicide.
Those who acknowledge their addictions early on have been into outpatient rehabilitation for years. Rehabilitation centers around the world have seen an increase in the number of patients over a short amount of time. Psychologists and psychiatrists have reported the rapidly growing rate of patients being admitted and treated for various mental illnesses. Some of the patients are even on the brink of suicide by the time they get the treatment needed.
The Role of Meditation
Luckily for these modern-day problems, the ancient art of meditation is making a comeback as the big solution.
Meditation has been the center of attention of many people who value leading a mentally healthy life. A lot of doctors even advocate meditation as a way to keep some of the mental illnesses at bay. In recent years, advocates of meditation have soared because of its positive effects on the person. More and more scientific studies are triggered by the rising popularity of meditation. Does it really work? Is the ancient art of meditation truly a modern-day miracle?
According to multiple studies, meditation can actually alter how one’s brain works. The neurological benefits of meditation have been a wonder and a mystery. In some studies it has shown that brain activity is heightened in the stillness of meditation. It equips your mind with the tolerance to deal with your daily problems. Studies have also indicated that meditation helps how the mind focuses and reduces the chance of aging one’s brain.
Stress has a lot to do with the mental breakdowns millions are experiencing every day. Meditation can directly help with this problem. Through meditation, the mind is soothed and relaxed to gain a new outlook on modern-day stressors. It is mainly a skill built to manage the stressful situations you are encountering throughout the day. Thanks to meditation, your mind learns to accept that these stressors are merely events you experience outwardly. At the end of the day, you can let go of them if you allow yourself to do so.
Meditation also helps reduce the negative energy and feeling by making you focus on the present. The meditative process focuses your mind on your body and back to your own thoughts. It triggers the body to feel through mindfulness. Being the topic of many religions, meditation has allegedly helped many historical figures through the years achieve their well-known ideas and thoughts. For example, Siddhartha Gautama, also known as Buddha, has achieved true Nirvana by meditating. His thoughts about pain and how the world works were greatly dictated by his thoughts achieved through meditation.
Take Care of Your Mental Health
Meditation has been the ideal solution for those who experience a lot of anguish, pain, and distress. It is the pain-free and simplest way people have responded to the stresses in life. As more and more people are experiencing anxiety and depression, the common response nowadays is to practice meditation. Through the modern-day miracle, a lot more are saved.
