I started meditating in a group setting. It was guided meditation which means that the group is guided by a person who walks through the meditation process and calmly speaks while you meditate. It was a very comforting feeling and the results were great. My breathing became regular, my mind only wandered a little bit and the energy in the room gave me a calm feeling and a body devoid of stress.
When I tried at home, however, my results weren't the same. Although I put on soothing background music, I couldn't seem to get comfortable, my breathing didn't become as regular and my mind wandered. I brought my mind back over and over again, but it still wandered and I was very frustrated.
Practicing meditation is a lot like exercising. The first day is miserable and difficult. I wanted to quit early before the alloted time. I wanted to have immediate results. The key is to get into a regular routine and to stick with it. The more you exercise daily at the same time of day, the more you will stick with it. Meditation is similar. Be it first thing in the morning, last thing at night and mid-afternoon, try to choose a regular time and stick with it. Don't get discouraged and don't give up if results aren't immediate. There are people who have meditated for years and continue to 'practice' daily, believing they can still improve.
Why do it at all? As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, I have come away from meditating with a feeling of well-being, relaxed and stress free. If it were only that feeling - that would be enough.
But the real benefit of meditation is the knowledge we gain about ourselves as people on a journey in life. We are exercising our spiritual being. We are connecting with our inner selves and walking away from the noise and havoc of the world. Think about it. How many times during any given day do we take time to stop. To shut off the tv or take the ipod out of our ears. To sit instead of heading to pick up the kids or go to the grocery store.
The benefits of the quiet place inside brings more than peace for a few minutes. It brings a relief from stress and slows down the day to put it in perspective. You aren't as hurried. You aren't as short with people. Your body doesn't ache as much. You find that you are not clenching your teeth or your fists. Where else can you get this feeling for free?
When in a more relaxed mode, the true 'you' emerges and you will like that person. I don't like the person I am when I am stressed and when I haven't taken a few minutes to meditate. Personal well-being is the goal and twenty minutes a day will provide the solution.
Remember, don't give up. Don't get discouraged with yourself. I have meditated for years and I am still not very 'good' at it. My mind wanders. I forget to relax my entire body before beginning. I start out by thinking of the many things I need to do and how I don't really have time for this. But when I'm done, I am peacefully glad that I took the time to do it.
There are many ways to meditate. I put on soothing music (with no words to distract me). Then I sit on the rug, crossing my legs. I close my eyes and relax my body starting from the top of my head ending at my toes. I need to be aware that my teeth and my face are sometimes still tight. I go back and relax my body from my head to my toes again. It is probably the only time during the day that my body is this relaxed. I am always amazed at how many parts of my body that I clench.
I start to breathe regularly inhaling through my nose and exhaling through my mouth. Then I try to clear my mind of EVERYTHING. This is very difficult and I am not great at it. I have the most success concentrating on my breathing. I sit in this way for fifteen to twenty minutes every day. When I am done, my mind is clear, my body is relaxed and I am motivated to keep my body free from stress for the remainder of the day.
Try it for a week and see how you feel.
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