They call it the monkey-mind for a reason. Racing through a million thoughts, usually not one of them serving you. I for one, know this monkey-mind all too well. It’s the reason I started meditating in the first place. To escape the never-ending anxiety. To relieve the building stress of negative thoughts and useless fears of the future.
I started meditating a few years back in the hopes of controlling my anxiety and depression. I’ll be honest when I say that this tool is still something I struggle with doing regularly but within 2020 it’s been growing stronger. Taking 5-20 minutes a day to just be and not do. A few minutes to let the sediments in the muddy waters of my mind settle so that things become clear.
Meditation doesn’t fix everything but the building practice is like the bricks of a house. They add up and start to create a structure that serves you. It prepares you for when things get back. It’s not a perfect practice, but a practice. Something that we do daily to get better with no end in sight. A journey that is the purpose.
This practice became even better when my mother bought me the book Miraculous Living: A Guided Journey in Kabbalah Through the Ten Gates of the Tree of Life. A daily devotional rooted in the Jewish faith, but applicable to all faiths, that shares a couple of pages of insight followed with a mediation to practice. It’s the perfect way to lead you into meditation. My favorite part is that there are no days in it so if you miss a few days (or months) you just pick up where you left off.
Of course, there are also the apps you can use to start your meditation practice. Calm, Insight Timer, and Headspace are all great options.
While meditation feels like a “woo-woo” concept at first it really does have the power to change your perspective and bring some peace. Countless studies continue to show the effects that meditation has on the brain and the benefits it creates with a longterm practice. Of course, the more you practice the more the benefits build but that doesn’t mean 5 minutes a day won’t still have a major effect. Even the smallest amount of practice will build.
Start slow. Find the method that works for you and see how this practice works for you. Whether it’s using the tools in my favorite book, an app or experimenting with walking meditation If you just can’t sit still. Or if you really want to get crazy experience a Yoga Nidra session like this one by Jeremy Wolf. It’s time to start meditating.
