Guiding principles to help you meditate
Meditation is a way to stay mindfully aware to the present moment. In a previous WWT, I talked about the benefits of meditation as a practice, including helping to reduce stress and anxiety, strengthening our attention spans, encouraging self-awareness, supporting better sleep, reducing pain perception, and heightening a sense of presence and gratitude by encouraging us to live in the moment.
There are many different approaches to meditation, such as guided meditation, meditation that incorporates movement, loving-kindness meditation, meditation that involves repeating a sound or mantra…the list is endless. One of the questions often asked about meditation is, “Is there a right or wrong way to meditate?” The belief that there is a right or wrong way to meditate may even be one of the reasons why individuals may not want to try meditation in the first place. I am here to tell you that meditation is a deeply personal, subjective experience and there’s no single “correct” way to practice. What works for one person may not work for another. However, I’d like to share a few guiding principles that can help you get started:
1. Find a Comfortable Space: Comfort is key! Find a posture that feels natural for you, whether seated, lying down with or without a blanket, or moving/walking. Try to choose a space in or outside of your home where you feel relaxed.
2. Set an Intention, Goal or Focus: Decide on an intention, goal or focus for your meditation. It could be your breath, a guiding word/mantra, or something you hold in your hand to help anchor you in the present moment, such as a stone. Your goal may be to find moments of calm or peace during a hectic work week or to spend more time enjoying the present moment instead of ruminating about the past or worrying about the future.
3. Observe Without Judgment: This remains one of the most difficult things for me even after years of meditating. We often assume meditation entails clearing our minds of any thoughts, but this is impossible because of our DMN (default mode network). This is a network of interacting brain regions known to activate by default when we are not involved in a task. In other words, mind wandering is a default part of our brain. You are not expected to empty your mind or to stop thinking - ever. Thoughts will come and go; instead of fighting them, acknowledge the thought, recognize you are not attached to it, and then gently bring your focus back to your breath or chosen anchor. Meditation is about awareness and practice, not perfection.
4. Close with Gratitude or Reflection: After meditating, slowly bring your awareness back to your surroundings. Take a moment to express gratitude for the practice, even if your mind wandered, because that is part of the practice. Reflect on the sensations you experienced and whether the type of meditation practice worked for you. Was it too short? Did you feel hurried? Perhaps it was too long or maybe the space selected was too loud and distracting. The more you practice, the easier it becomes to find moments of calm and enjoyment in the present moment and the better you will be able to adapt to your needs, which brings me to the last point…
5. Adapt to Your Needs: Meditation can be short or long, 1 minute or a few hours, structured or informal, guided or unguided; the choice is yours and the choices are endless. Experiment with different ways to meditate and find whatever supports you in finding moments of calm throughout your day.
~Kate
