Meditation Help

The calm app (also available on computer) is an easy intro to meditation.

 

If you have Spotify, there are many guided meditations and podcasts on there. I am a big fan of void meditation. Basically, inhale for a count of 5, hold for a count of 5, then exhale for a count of 5. Do this for as long as you like, but it's a way to still the mind.

 

Hey!

I used to have difficulty with this also, as I have a very active mind and over think situations, coupled with anxiety. So don't worry. Many of the meditation leaders admit that sitting still and practicing meditation is a very hard task to do, as our brains are programmed to think, analyze and seek repetitive tasks. However, with anything, practice is key! At the start I could only sit still and focus on my breath for 2 minutes. After time, this gradually built up to 5 minutes, onto 10 and now I'm at 15 minutes.

So there is light at the end of the tunnel Also, you might actually feel more anxious when you start off meditation, this is normal and you are advised not to fight this emotion, rather let it come, observe it, and let it go (easier said than done for us who actually have anxiety) but it does get easier with time. When I sit to meditate, I get a range of emotions sometimes, anger, anxiety, sadness etc. but after a while of observing them and letting them go, they diminish greatly because you recognize them for what they are, thoughts! We have a warped view of meditation as "clearing the mind automatically and receiving some special zen mindspace", when really it's just about being in the present moment observing it and bringing your mind back to the present moment when it wanders to the past or future.

Calming your mind will be tough, so don't be fooled by people who can just sit and "calm their mind and focus", as they are either a) Lying or b) doing it for so long that they have mastered it. For the latter, you'll be there soon enough! Take a look at Qi Gong if sitting meditation isn't working out for you, it's a movement meditation which I use daily now and I like its style

If you want to try a sitting and breathing meditation, HeadSpace has some free guided practices to get started. They are in 2, 5 or 10 minute chunks. Some people, myself included, like to listen to nothing and just sit in the moment observing the sounds and smells around me while focusing on my breathing. It needs to be a relatively quiet place for that to work like a bedroom, library, woods etc.

Goodluck!

 

Be open. Train ur focus. Reduce distractions in ur field. Focus on ur count, the number itself. Focus on the feel of ur body on the ground and on the feel of ur breathe. Breath from entire body, not just chest, not just stomach. Focus on the duration of inhale and exhale, and/or the number of repetitions. Begin with 3 large inhales, to open ur lungs. Then Four second inhale, four second pause, six second exhale, four second pause, repeat 100 times. If a thought comes, dont give up, let the thought go, then continue focusing on ur count. In time the breathing will be muscle memory, and u won't have to focus on the count. You will have more intimate trust and discipline over ur focus. At that point you will be mentally and emotionally still ... ull be meditating. And that's just the start of the journey..

 

The best theraphy there is.

 

Sit relax breath forget the world creat youre own