The Basics Of Meditation In 4 Steps
Meditation can be beautiful and helpful. It's one of the techniques often used for stress management. If you find yourself riddled anxiety or find it hard to focus which can lead to more anxiety, mediation can help. Meditation can help you achieve a calm state of mind without having to resort to drugs (over the counter or otherwise) or other forms of negative self-soothing. If you don't put pressure on yourself to be perfect at meditation and ease into the process, you will love it!
Remember that meditation is not a one shot deal it takes practice. It is almost impossible to attain a calm state of mind in just a matter of minutes, especially if it’s your first time. It is essential that you keep on practicing meditation until you've conditioned your mind and body to achieve that calm state just by thinking about it. Here are some steps if your new mediation and want to incorporate this practice into your life:
1. Find A Quiet Corner to Start Your Meditation. You don't need a whole room, just a space where you can settle in and avoid distraction. You want to be able to keep your focus. When you close your eyes, your sense of hearing will be twice as good, so almost any noise in your surroundings will make it hard for you to concentrate. For beginners, it is important to start out in a quiet place in your home where noise is non-existent. Close your windows and lock your door. If possible, you can tell everyone in your home to keep it down to a dull roar while you're meditating so their noise so that you won’t get distracted.
2. Ready Your Position and Set a Time Limit. It is good idea if you're just starting out to avoid lying down when practicing meditation. The aim here is not to sleep, and it is likely that you will fall asleep if your mind reaches a relaxed state. To stop this from happening, you can start your meditation in a lotus position, or you can find a chair you can sit on. Make sure that your back is straight, and your hands are relaxed on the armrest or on your lap. I also like to give myself a time frame. You don't have to meditate for hours. A few minutes every day is fine. I like to light a stick of incense and meditate until it burns down. It doesn't take very long for incense to burn down, and aroma can also help with your relaxation. You can also put on music, light a candle - make your practice your own.
3. Begin Your Meditation with Proper Breathing. A good way to start meditation is to do the proper breathing exercise. You inhale deeply through your nose and exhale through your mouth. Do this a few times. It helps to release the stress that you're holding in your body. Breathing like this also give a rhythm that you can easily focus on. Also, the amount of oxygen in your body will help to keep you relaxed. Keep practicing your breathing until you can do it easily without having to think about it.
4. Focus on Your Mind. While you are concentrating on your breathing, you will achieve a state wherein your mind will start throwing images at you. These are mostly random- events of the day, future plans, problems and worries, fears and so on - it's called "monkey mind". Thoughts just swinging around everywhere! It will be hard to ignore these thoughts and you are not supposed to ignore them. The gist here is to acknowledge these thoughts when they enter your mind and then release them. This might sound hard, and it can be at first, but don't give up. When a thought pops up - imagine an open window and watching that thought just being blown out of it. Don't hang on to it - let it go. If doing this on your own sounds daunting, don't worry, I got you! In this world where everything is at our fingertips (literally!) there are numerous websites and applications that offer guided mediations to help you with your practice. My favorite is "Insight Timer" (fyi this is not a paid sponsorship I just really like this app). You can also focus on soft calming music or repeat positive affirmations or just your breathing. It takes time, but you'll notice that when you start your mediation these random thoughts will be less frequent and easier to release, and you'll notice that you'll be able to reach a calm state of mind more quickly - the state you want to achieve during meditation. Be patient. If you have an active mind, you’re normal. Bring your focus back to the music or to your breath, or a positive affirmation. When you're ready to end your meditation, slowly open your eyes and give yourself a few minutes to come back into the moment and the day.
Remember, there is no wrong way to meditate.
Relax and be OK with whatever experience is happening in the moment.
Love, Light & Aloha, Toni💜🌺
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