What positive effects meditation can have on sleep

Meditation encompasses a variety of techniques for body and mind aimed at inducing a state of relaxation. With a long history dating back thousands of years, meditation is also gaining popularity in Germany.

Meditation and insomnia 

Researchers are increasingly interested in the potential of meditation to treat insomnia. Since meditation is relatively affordable, low-risk, and easy to perform for treating insomnia, it presents an attractive option for people who have difficulty accessing other therapies or medications.

Can meditation improve insomnia?

Research findings from various studies around the world suggest that different types of meditation contribute to improving insomnia and can even enhance sleep quality in people without sleep problems. In particular, mindfulness meditation appears to improve sleep quality in people with chronic insomnia and in older adults.

How do meditation and mindfulness affect sleep?

Mindfulness and meditation help induce a relaxed state of mind that promotes falling asleep. Insomnia is often defined as a state of hyperarousal. When we are stressed, depressed, or anxious, our brain stays "revved up," making it harder to fall asleep. Over time, we maintain this tension as we begin to associate bedtime with the worry of not being able to fall asleep. The state of acceptance and awareness that meditation induces helps reduce psychological distress as well as stress and inner restlessness. On a biological level, meditation slows the heart rate and breathing and lowers cortisol levels, which are responsible for stress.

The exact interplay between meditation and sleep is still being studied, but it appears that meditation causes lasting changes in the brain that can affect sleep. A study from England with people who already meditate frequently found that meditation can improve REM sleep and reduce nighttime awakenings.

How often should one meditate for insomnia?

Meditation is a skill, and those who practice it more frequently generally gain greater benefits. Studies on the relaxation response have shown that it has immediate psychological and physical effects, suggesting that a daily practice is optimal to impact nighttime sleep. While factors such as the duration and quality of meditation are difficult to quantify, it has been shown that the benefits of meditation increase in long-term practitioners.

A 2013 study from Sweden on the connection between meditation and insomnia in breast cancer patients also found that the positive effect had disappeared after 12 months. The result shows that the greatest benefit is achieved with consistent meditation over a long period. It is therefore important that meditation is incorporated into daily routines to ensure an improvement in sleep through meditation. 

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