Meditation: It’s Not That Hard — Seriously!
I’m going to be honest with you: I’m terrible at meditation. Even though I practice it nearly daily, I still struggle. And you know what? That’s ok! Meditation (like life) is a journey, not a destination. It’s not a game where the athlete who can run the fastest or throw the farthest triumphs. Instead, it is a pathway toward connecting with your inner self: the part of you that constantly exists in a state of calm, peace, and joy, which is often dominated by the ‘noise’ of life, and the constant barrage of negative, hopeless thoughts that accompany any mental illness.
The Three P’s of Successful Meditation
There is hope: I promise! One can find it within. All it takes is a tiny, tiny bit of three things:
💆 Patience
🧘🏻 Practice
💪🏿 Perseverance
And a few minutes of your time. That’s it! Meditation is not that hard. Let me show you how to meditate in a few easy steps (with one bonus life-hack for good measure!).
4 Easy Steps to Start Meditating
Step 1. Close your eyes; put your phone away.
Yes, this is obvious, but it's crucial! One can’t properly connect with one’s own inner spirit if they are distracted by their surrounding environment. Silence (and darkness) help create the proper conditions for someone to calmly disconnect from their mind's inner, relentless soundtrack and connect with the loving sound of their heart and soul.
Pro Tip: Find a quiet room to be in! Outside noise is not your friend!
Step 2. Find a comfortable chair.
When I was a “noob” when it came to meditating (I still am in a way, lol), I was under the impression that the “proper way” to meditate was to sit on the floor, in a lotus position like a Zen Buddhist Monk. This is not necessary! All you need is a chair to sit in. That’s all! Make sure you:
Sit upright, with your back straight (no hunching over)
Plant your feet on the ground
Rest your arms gently on your lap (or on the armrests of your chair, if you like)
What’s important is to stay as relaxed as possible; keep your shoulders soft and try not to tense up.
Step 3. Breathe slowly. Take a lot of deep breaths.
This is the bread and butter of meditation: breathing. Take long, deep breaths to slow down breathing patterns. Way down. If nothing else, you’ll receive immense health benefits from deep breathing alone!
Step 4. Focus on your breath (no matter what is happening in your mind!)
Focusing on your breath allows you to mitigate the part of meditation that frustrates everyone; the part that causes people to curse the heavens and to give up on meditation:
the racing thoughts.
Managing Racing Thoughts in Meditation
Racing thoughts are entirely natural; they will happen to you; there is just no way around it. That is how our minds are wired. It may frustrate you (trust me, it frustrates me every single time!) It’s ok, however.
The racing thoughts may always be there. Your job isn’t to make the racing thoughts go away; it is to not let them bother you. By constantly returning your attention to your breathing, you are disarming these negative thoughts, bit by bit.
🌟 SUPER UBER PRO TIP:
Once you have the ‘focus on your breathing’ part down pat, try focusing your attention on the center of your chest. Try it! You will be amazed at the results. The inner love you feel for yourself will be like nothing you have experienced before…. with practice and patience, of course! 😉
💡 Remember: You may constantly lose focus, bombarded by the whirling cascade of racing thoughts. This is entirely natural. Meditation will not make you magically ignore bad thoughts. It will help you realize (over time) that the thoughts are just that: thoughts. They don’t have the same power over you as you always thought they did. In other words, you will discover that you are far more powerful (and special), beautiful, memorable, and unique than you ever thought possible.
And you know what?
It’s all true!
Because you are!
You are an absolute miracle of creation.
There is no human soul on this earth, just like you.
You are a gift to this world.
With meditation, you can slowly but surely realize this undeniable truth.
I really, really hope that you do.
**Bonus Tip**
Remember that life hack that I promised in the beginning? Well, here it is:
Meditate while lying in bed (at night), about to sleep.
Now, people always say not to do this because lying down while meditating may have the unintended consequence of falling asleep..
To that I say: So, what?
Nighttime is one of the hardest times for those who have mental illness (and even those who don’t). Why? The darkness, quiet, and solitude are a perfect time for all the racing, negative thoughts to overwhelm the mind when trying to drift off to sleep.
So why not solve and address two issues at once? Meditate to combat anxiety and depression, and to promote sleep. I do it every night— It feels incredible.
