The Ins and Outs of Starting a Meditation Practice
In case you missed it, I wrote a book! The Sweetest Thing, everyday exercises to easily access the wisdom of your heart which has been my biggest professional labor of love to date. Recently I was reading through it and got to the section on meditation… Peeking into the world of meditation is like trying to see clearly on a foggy day. You can’t look too far ahead and figure it out, you have to stay in the present moment and feel into it. And frankly, I know how much of an obstacle it is for some of us who are faced with job instability, juggling work-life balance, mounting debt, and other financial and mental health challenges to meditate. So, if you’re a beginner, let’s break down what starting a meditation practice could look like for you.
Take in this information because you won’t know what to expect if you don’t know what you’re in for! Let’s take a tour of the primary parts of a meditation experience to get an idea of what you can expect.
The Ins and Outs of starting a meditation practice
It’s that simple, and yet that hard. The truth is so many of us let the fact that we’re busy stand in the way of meditating. Questions like “How do I make time to do this when I’m already overwhelmed?”, or “What if I can’t settle my mind down enough to relax?”, or “What if it doesn’t help me at all?” But you’ve got to start trying to meditate or you’ll never know? So… do it.
Be sure that you really want to do this. In today’s world, we tend to want things to happen rather quickly. If so, then you might be surprised when I say that from when you start to when you have a meditation routine where you’re comfortable and can easily relax and get in the zone may take a few weeks to months.
I would have scoffed at that timeframe if I would have known that when I started, but I didn’t. So, I just forged ahead, and you can too. Whether you want to meditate every day, meditate for stress, or meditate for manifesting, you need to be connected to the end result (aka, benefits) so that you’re willing to face the time it will take to make meditating a reality!
There was a time when I would close my office door at lunch, set a timer for 11 minutes, and sit there with my eyes closed doing a bit of a meditation. Looking back, no, it wasn’t ideal, and some may say I wasn’t even meditating but it made me feel better and I still found benefits in it, so to me… I was meditating!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say that they just can’t calm their minds enough to settle down and meditate, and while that can be true, it can also not be true. What if you didn’t calm your mind completely, but slowed it down enough to feel like you’ve had a mini break? What if you learned to breathe deeper? Maybe you’ll discover how to calm anxiety to help yourself cope with daily stress? There could be meditation benefits out there that you’re not even aware of yet!
I get it, we’re all busy. It’s difficult to carve time out of our days for things like mindfulness and introspection and reflection when we’re faced with job instability, juggling work-life balance, mounting debt, and other financial and mental health challenges. The world has changed so much in recent years, and a lot of online activity consumes us so much so that we feel like we don’t get a break. But it also means that we need to expand our definitions of what it means to relax and take a moment for ourselves.
If you’re picturing sitting in an outdoor meditation sanctuary with butterflies all around, for hours on end chanting mantras without a care in the world… you’ll probably need to rethink your vision and shift it closer to reality. Meditators are now adaptable - from meditating at our desks to bathroom stalls to our cars when we’re early for appointments to our bedrooms and living rooms and everywhere else.
Ideally, most of us would love to be the person that had the time to sit undisturbed for hours on end but as a beginner we know that isn’t our reality, but that shouldn’t stop us.
Here’s the good news: you don’t have to sit still to reap the benefits of meditation! Even though there are some who would argue differently, meditation to me is any practice that helps us find peace as our oasis in the modern world.
There are many different types of meditations that can work for beginners, such as guided meditations, single-point-focus meditations, and moving meditations. They are of short duration and help get your mind out of the way so you can embody the full experience of being in the present moment. Too many thoughts wreck the flow of energy in the chakras, so getting the mind to rest is the key to successful meditation.
Still not sure if you’re ready? What have you got to lose by trying this? What happens if you don’t?
Starting a daily or weekly meditation practice will take time, effort, dedication, and commitment. But if you really want the benefits, think about the mental health cost of not doing it. For me, the value (benefits) far outweighs the time and effort I have to put into it.
I know that the meditation world has a certain magic to it and explaining what goes into starting a meditation practice might feel like I’m giving away some of the magic of discovery, but I think that’s impossible as each one of us will have a very different experience. It will always be magical to sift through our intricacies and discover what is on the other side when we begin to calm our minds and find peace within. So, knowing the facts will only be a guiding light to show you how it’s possible to start your own journey.
Hi there!
I'm Della Reside, I'm an expert in Chakras & Cellular Consciousness, a nerd when it comes to details, and, my obsession is teaching others how to raise their self-awareness (in easy, practical ways) to fulfill their biggest dreams!