How does meditating help?

Better Focus - Because meditation is a practice in focusing our attention and being aware of when it drifts, this actually improves our focus when we’re not meditating, as well. It’s a lasting effect that comes from regular practice of meditation.

Less Anxiety - The more we meditate, the less anxiety we have, and it turns out this is because we're actually loosening the connections of particular neural pathways. What happens without meditation is that there’s a section of our brains that’s sometimes called the Me Center (medial prefrontal cortex). This is the part that processes information relating to ourselves and our experiences. Normally the neural pathways from the bodily sensation and fear centers of the brain to the Me Center are really strong. When you experience a scary or upsetting sensation, it triggers a strong reaction in your Me Center, making you feel scared and under attack. When we meditate, we weaken this neural connection. This means that we don’t react as strongly to sensations that might have once lit up our Me Centers. As we weaken this connection, we simultaneously strengthen the connection between what’s known as our Assessment Center (the part of our brains known for reasoning) and our bodily sensation and fear centers. So, when we experience scary or upsetting sensations, we can more easily look at them rationally.

More Compassion - Research on meditation has shown that empathy and compassion are higher in those who practice meditation regularly. Part of this comes from activity in the amygdala—the part of the brain that processes emotional stimuli. A study in 2008 found that people who meditated regularly had stronger activation levels in their temporal parietal junctures (a part of the brain tied to empathy).

Better Memory -  Meditation has been linked to is improving rapid memory recall.