Why Starting a Meditation Practice NOW is a Great Idea: Part 1 of a series on How to Start Your Own Meditation Practice
In this Post:
Why NOW is the time to start a Meditation Practice
Experience & Science say Meditation Works
The Many Benefits of Meditation
Meditation for Self Discovery
Video of 15 Minute Guided Meditation
********************************
Why NOW is the time to start a Meditation Practice
In the past few years we have been hearing more & more about how great meditation & mindfulness is - to the point where we may actually be tired of hearing about it! Or our friends may have gone on so much about how their life has changed since starting a meditation practice, that we are actually turned off to the idea of starting one ourselves! Or we may be feeling like since ‘mindfulness’ is all over the place, that we are getting the benefits just by osmosis alone, and so we don’t actually need our own practice.
Or maybe we have been curious or wanting to start, but have not been able to find a point of entry that feels like it fits. We may have been feeling stressed or overwhelmed, especially in light of this past year, but it always seems like something is more important to do, and so we put aside meditation for just a little bit longer. Or maybe we don’t want to go to silent retreats or commit to a particular school, and with all the information on mindfulness that’s out there, it becomes overwhelming how & where to start.
My intention with this series is to explain what meditation is, what it can be, and how it can be customised to fit our needs & lifestyle. The practice of meditation was first documented over 7000 years ago, and it has been evolving all that time - to fit different cultures, philosophies, and personal needs. I find this exciting, because it means that we can take advantage of the knowledge and history of the past and put it into our current context, so that we, too, can find our own place of calm within the storm, a refuge within ourselves, a place where we can water our own seeds of wisdom, freedom, compassion, & joy that are already inside of us.
Experience & Science Say Meditation Works
My own first experience with meditation was as a teenager, at a summer theatre camp, where every morning, before classes, we were led through a short meditation, focusing on our breath, our connection to the ground, and to visualise the thoughts in our mind like clouds in clear, blue sky - and instead of focusing on the clouds, to focus on the sky. I had all the insecurity, awkwardness, & emotional instability of any typical teenage girl, but I also came from a challenging home life, where addiction, violence, & dysfunctional relationships were the norm. For me, this time to just be able to watch the comings & goings of my mind from a more neutral place - like an observer, gave me hope that I could visualise a different future for myself, and inspired me to keep meditation in my self care toolbox. Over the years, my meditation practice has seen me through many ups & downs, and has often been THE key to keeping me safe & healthy in all respects. It has allowed me to cultivate a profound compassion for myself (as well as deepening my compassion for others), so that I can feel like I am my best friend, instead of my worst enemy. It has allowed me to find the voice of intuition & insight within me, instead of feeling like everyone else knows better than me what choices I should make for myself. It has allowed me to connect with a sense of wisdom and comfort that is bigger than me - so that when I feel like I cannot shoulder the burdens that life inevitably brings, I can relax into a spaciousness that is warm, kind & present. I would not be the same person without my practice.
Modern science is also touting the benefits of meditation, which is great news. Meditation programs are being incorporated into the business world, addiction rehabilitation programs, schools, the military, correctional institutions - because it has been shown to be so beneficial in not only in helping us overcome challenges, but also in discovering our fullest potential.
Read on to learn what Benefits Meditation as been show to offer
Stress Reduction*
Medical research estimates that as much of 90% of all illnesses are stress-related. In addition, stress can have negative effects on relationships, work & social life, and mental & emotional health. Reducing stress is not just a good idea, it’s vital, and meditation has clearly been shown to help reduce stress and to provide tools to help us manage stressful situations.
Lowering Reactivity
We have all had the experience of speaking or acting reflexively, without thinking, perhaps from a place of fear or anger, and then later wishing we had taken a breath before having behaved so impulsively. Even short programs of meditation have been shown to help reduce reactivity, and increase our ability to respond more wisely to challenging situations.
Improved Concentration & Focus*
Meditation is being used by everyone from professional athletes to school programs for children with attention issues, because of its demonstrated ability to help calm & focus the mind. Working towards goals & dreams also requires focus, and meditation can be the missing link on our path to success. In our modern world, with an increasing number of distractions, exercising our ability to concentrate & focus is increasingly valuable.
Boosts Mental & Emotional Health*
Studies have shown that a meditation practice can help reduce issues such as anxiety, depression, as well as reduce the effects of trauma and PTSD. With 1 in 5 adults in the US officially reporting suffering from mental illness (the actual numbers may be even higher), this is no small benefit.
Helps Manage Chronic Pain*
1 in 5 US adults also report suffering from chronic pain. MBSR - Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction - began at the University of Massachusetts in 1979 with John Kabat-Zinn - by working with those with chronic illnesses and pain, and since then numerous studies have shown that meditation significantly helps reduce the sensation & negative effects of pain, allowing people to live more comfortable lives.
Let’s Us Get a Better Night’s Sleep*
Meditation has been shown to relax the mind enough that we are able to fall asleep faster, and have a better quality of sleep through the night. This allows more time for healing & repair of all the body’s systems, as well as for regulating metabolism. Poor sleep has been linked to increased illness, inflammation, stress, and obesity, prompting health professionals to increasingly encourage their patients to make good quality sleep a top priority.
Improved Memory*
Meditation has been shown not only to prevent memory loss, but to reverse it. In fact, studies have shown that the hippocampus - the area of the brain in charge of memory - actually grows bigger in those who practice regular meditation. This is great news for all of us. Cognitive decline with age is a common issue, but not an inevitable one.
Treatment For Addiction*
More and more addiction treatment centers are incorporating mindfulness & meditation into their programs, because of their demonstrated effectiveness in dealing with the stress around the addiction itself, the trauma that often triggerred the onset of the addiction, the stress around the potential for relapse, as well as managing the effects of withdrawl. Mindfulness offers a tremendous potential for healing & empowerment for those suffering with the wide range of addictive behaviours that afflict our modern society.
Increase in Positive States*
Because of the reduction in reactivity & stress, as well as improved mental & emotional health, it seems natural that meditation would bring about more positive states, but the effects are even greater than that. Patience, kindness, empathy, compassion, gratitude, confidence, resilience, hope, & self-awareness - all of these positive states are often a natural byproduct of keeping a regular meditation practice, allowing us to live in more equanimity, joy and appreciation.
*As a mindful movement teacher with decades of experience teaching yoga, pilates, dance, and functional & reahabilitative exercise, I am compelled to point out that the benefits marked with an asterix * are also achieved with exercise. Movement & meditation make a wonderful healing partnership!
Meditation for Self Discovery
On possibly a more esoteric level, the ancient writings on meditation say that when we practice, we are less ‘clingy’, meaning that we can look at our thoughts, feelings, & opinions from a perspective where we are less attached to them. We can see that we are more than just our thoughts, our history, our pain, or our stuff.
With this perspective, we can also get to know our habits & strategies for avoiding the inevitable discomforts that come with being a human, and by being able to see ourselves from a bigger perspective, we can learn how to find a healthier path to our own kind of inner peace.
With the expanded perspective and stillness we find in meditation, we can more easily see how everything changes. We may be in a bad mood one day, but then the next day it shifts, even if only slightly. We may be in pain in one moment, but in the next it shifts, even if only slightly. This can allow us to see more possibilites for how we choose to look at our lives.
These can be quite big and complicated ideas to take on, and certainly years are required to fully understand & embody them. But long time meditators attest that the effort is worth it.
If one or more of these benefits feels relevent to you, it may be the perfect time to bring this ancient practice into your life.
Unless of course this describes you:
If you can sit quietly after difficult news;
if in financial downturns you remain perfectly calm;
if you can see your neighbors travel to fantastic places without a twinge of jealousy;
if you can happily eat whatever is put on your plate;
if you can fall asleep after a day of running around without a drink or a pill;
if you can always find contentment just where you are:
you are probably a dog.
– Jack Kornfield, author & world-renowned meditation teacher
But for those of us who are human beings, and who are not always able to find contentment so easily, starting a meditation practice may be just the thing we need to add into our life. It can take as few as 5 minutes a day, can be done in the comfort of our own home, and is free.
Over the next few weeks I will be sharing “How to Start a Simple Meditation Practice”, “Practicing Self-Compassion in Meditation”, “Taking your Meditation Practice to the Next level”, “Debunking Meditation Myths”, “Why Meditation May Not be Right for You Right Now”, “Meditation as Loving Embodied Awareness” and more. Guided Meditations will be included. Stay tuned, & follow me on social media to get the next installment.
Until then, I offer out this short practice designed to provide guidance in
connecting to the breath & to presence.
Enjoy.
Wishing you Well. Take good care.