Meditation can often be unfairly associated with new age spiritualists, or oddballs, or indeed the pious, but actually meditation should be a practice for everyone. Meditation can also be seen as being the remit of those who are more somatic in nature and who operate in a felt sense manner in how they relate to others. But meditation is also for thinkers and the analysts, the air heads.
Meditation is easy and simple and can be done anywhere. It is particularly useful for stress and anxiety when the mind can be racing and full of intrusive thoughts. However, it can so often be made complicated. One of the most common mistakes when seeking to maintain a meditative practice is to believe that when meditating you should be free of thoughts. For me, meditation is the practice of being still, to consciously breathe, and to sit and observe whatever thoughts are circulating in your mind. If your mind is racing, just sit with that state of existence rather than seeking to empty your mind of all thoughts.
With stress and anxiety we tend to have repetitive thoughts, circular thinking patterns that are more often than not negative in nature, even intrusive. When we are in a stressful and anxious state we tend to be attached to ourselves, our fears, our worries and other exhausting mental states. Through a regular meditative practice we can access a different part of the spectrum of our consciousness and reach a certain peace with ourselves. Think of recuperation, or recovery, which has its roots in the Latin word “recupare” meaning “to regain.” When we find ourselves stuck in negative circular thinking we lose an aspect of our consciousness, since we become obsessed with ourselves. Therefore, to recover might be to shift our consciousness, gain a new perspective, to know more about ourselves and the world around us and to regain interests in relationships. We begin to feel more present and happier in the here and now, we can accept our situation more readily and not seek to escape our feelings and thoughts. We can co-exist with our thoughts and feelings more easily.
Below is a link to a guided meditation that is just less than 23 minutes. Enjoy.
https://podomatic.com/embed/html5/episode/10036563?autoplay=false
Noel Bell is a UKCP accredited psychotherapist based in London and can be contacted on 07852407140 or noel@noelbell.net