Meditation – The Feel Good Factor

Feeling good is an abstract term difficult to define – what makes us feel good?

Sometimes it’s easier to describe what stops us feeling good – poor health, loneliness, lack of ambition, challenging circumstances, lack of money, an unfulfilling job – or sometimes there is no specific reason, we just don’t feel like getting out of bed in the morning.

We might say that the Feel Good Factor is what’s missing in our lives when we are suffering from depression, when it’s so hard to get out of bed in the morning, when nothing seems worthwhile and life is meaningless.  The feel good factor injects some meaning into life – simple things – like making the bed, cleaning your teeth, standing outside in the fresh air for a few minutes – can have a big impact on our well-being.  But those simple things can sometimes be very hard to do.

Meditation music can really help and scientific evidence is now emerging to explain why it helps.

The 528 Hertz frequency originates from the Solfeggio scale – an ancient musical scale used in sacred music, composed using specific tones, believed to create spiritual blessings when sung in harmony .  Many cultures recognised the healing power of sound and used drumming, chanting and singing in spiritual, healing rituals the world over.

Binaural beats
You can use binaural beats to entrain your mind to reach a certain mental state.  People who find meditation difficult can use binaural beats to help to simulate a meditative state.

Endorphins are neurotransmitters released by the pituitary gland and hypothalamus in the brain.  They are natural hormones alleviating pain, lowering stress, improving mood and enhancing the sense of wellbeing.  Levels increase during reward-producing activities like singing, dancing, laughing, and yoga.

Dopamine is known as the ‘feel-good’ hormone – it’s a neurotransmitter which forms an important part of your brain’s reward system.  But it can be addictive.   Dopamine creates that feel good factor when you eat chocolate – but that only lasts for a few seconds – whilst the taste remains on your tongue.  Then we crave more … By doing something like taking a shower or going for a walk, that feel good factor remains with us all day.

There are lots of ways we can increase our dopamine levels naturally.  Research is ongoing but foods that increase dopamine naturally include chicken, almonds, apples, avocados, bananas, spinach, green tea, oranges, oatmeal, peas sesame seeds, turmeric, watermelon.  But overall, eating the right foods will increase that feel good factor – lots of fresh fruit and vegetables give our bodies the right nutrients to deal with the stresses and strains of everyday life.

Yoga increases dopamine – there are several ‘Yoga for Beginners’ videos which are very easy to follow.  As well as gentle exercise, Yoga is calming.

Feel good factors:

• Exercise
• Fresh air – being outside in nature
• Earthing (touch a tree)
• Simple things, looking after yourself – getting a shower, making your bed, cleaning your teeth
• Social interaction
• Practising gratitude
• Singing, dancing, laughing

And of course – music and meditation – try this ‘Happiness Frequency’

#meditation #calmingmusic #healingmusic #dopamine #thefeelgoodfactor