The benefits of meditation are many and varied. Meditation can help lessen stress and anxiety, help us get a more restful sleep, improve our moods and heighten our cognition. It also gives us a better sense of self awareness and what self talk we habitually use (much of it negative and concerning worries, which can contribute to ill health).
Many people think meditation is a difficult practice, but there are many different kinds of meditation. Here are some you might want to try:
- Mindfulness meditation can be done at any time, in any moment, because all it involves is simply bringing your attention back to the present moment. Often we are stuck in the past or worried about the future, but as soon as you bring your awareness into what is actually happening, calmness can begin. Try focusing on what you see, hear, smell and so on.
- Transcendental meditation is a technique where you silently repeat a mantra (this could be simply repeating the word love or peace) over and over to achieve a state of relaxed awareness.
- Breath awareness is a great technique to use anytime you start to feel anxious. As mentioned in our previous blog, Unwind: Essential Techniques for Destressing and Finding Inner Peace, this method focuses on the breath, by observing it, or consciously counting in and out breaths.
- Loving kindness meditation (Metta Bhavana) is a Buddhist practice of practicing love and compassion towards oneself and then outwards into the world. Again,it uses mantras in its makeup. For example, one might start out by saying: may I be well, may I be happy, may I be peaceful.
- A guided visualization is a great way to unwind: you can listen to a pre-recorded session which invites you to go on a journey in your mind to a place of calm and tranquility.
- A walking meditation is somewhat like present moment meditations in that you are conscious and focused on your steps and the sensations around you. Nature is a great place to practice this calming exercise.
- Kundalini meditation is a practice that combines breathwork, movement, chanting, and meditation to awaken and channel energy through the body.
- Vipassana meditation: this traditional Buddhist meditation technique focusing on insight and awareness of the impermanent nature of sensations, thoughts, and emotions.
- Silent meditation involves sitting quietly in stillness, often without any specific focus, allowing thoughts and sensations to arise and pass without attachment.
These are just a few examples, and there are many more meditation practices out there, often drawing from various spiritual and cultural traditions. It's essential to explore different types and find what resonates best with your preferences and goals.
For a list of wellness businesses and products that can help with meditation in your area, please see: Holistipedia - Meditation.
For a list of resources on meditation, please see: Holistipedia - Resources.
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