Meditation is one of the techniques often used for stress management, but nowadays people are doing it for the positive effects of maintaining health and wellbeing and connecting with their intuitive selves. It is good to focus on the positive and a lot of medical professionals will agree that prevention is much better than cure when it comes to health and wellness.
A person who is riddled with problems often finds it hard to focus, which can lead to more problems and a negative spiral. Meditation techniques help a person achieve a calm state of mind without having to resort to medication or commit to a therapist. Every step to meditation is done in the mind and, it is surprisingly easy, if you give it a chance…
Remember that meditation is not something you do once and that’s it – 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 have conditioned your mind to instantaneously achieve that calm state just by thinking about it. Here are some steps for you, if you are new to meditation and want to ake sure you are doing it right…
- Find A Quiet Place – a quiet place is better for you, when you’re first starting out as it can help you clear your mind, Background noises can be too distracting when you first start out. Some noises can help, though, such as rainfall on the window, or the noise of waves, if you are lucky enough to live by the sea. You can also use sound gongs or other meditation background music, if you prefer as not everyone feels comfortable in a space that is too quiet, either!
- Get Comfortable – Make sure you are wearing comfortable clothes and the room temperature is not too hot or too cold. Find a spot where you feel safe and will not be disturbed. You can sit on a chair or on a cushion on the floor. Traditionally, meditation is practised in the lotus (legs crossed on the floor) position, but you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. You could do it lying down, but we suggest you don’t do this until you are experienced as you might fall asleep if you are not used to a regular meditation practice.
- Begin Your Meditation With Proper Breathing. A good way to start meditation is to do the proper breathing exercise. You inhale through your nose for 4, hold for 4 and exhale through your mouth for 6. This way, you can come up with 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. Exhaling through the mouth is a great relaxation tool as it feels like a sigh of relief and helps your mind and body to relax deeper and deeper.
- Focus On Your Mind. When you first start to focus on your breathing your conscious mind will start to interrupt your flow by bringing you thoughts of worries, your to-do list, fears of the future, what to make for tea and so on and so on… It will be hard to ignore these thoughts and you are not supposed to ignore them. The idea is to acknowledge these thoughts, when they enter your mind, and then release them. The best way to do it is to acknowledge them without focusing on them. Imagine them in bubbles or clouds that float past. The more you practice meditation, the less these thoughts will bother you and eventually you will be able to reach several minutes without having these thoughts at all and, when this happens, you will receive guidance from your subconscious instead in the form of intuitive nudges and great ideas.