How to Benefit From Meditation Even When You’re Not Good at It
Even though you hear about all the benefits all the time, it’s actually hard to dive into meditation . Many people who try to meditate feel like they have failed. I am one of those people. What do you mean by saying that you should “clear your mind”? This is where I keep all my thoughts!
At first, I chalked it up to the fact that mindfulness meditation was not for me. I figured I was a particular wad of anxiety who could never successfully calm my mind. Fortunately, some of my equally anxious but far more enlightened friends have shared with me how to reformulate the practice. And let me tell you, meditation becomes much more relaxing when you let go of the notion that there is only one right way to do it. Here is how you, too, can overcome the mental block of failure in meditation.
Reframe what meditation “should” feel like
Every time I tried to start meditating, I ran into the same puzzle: I think I should think about nothing, which of course makes me think about everything.
The key to meditation is to reorient the practice from the goal of clearing the mind to the goal of “witnessing” one’s thoughts. For most of us, the “don’t think” instruction is useless and stressful. Instead, a more practical approach is to accept and accept whatever thoughts come into your mind.
The challenge is to sit back and let your thoughts come in and out without causing a strong emotional reaction. In this sense, Verywell Mind points out that you can use meditation to “choose your actions more intelligently” as you will pay attention to your thoughts without letting unreasoned emotions get in the way.
The takeaway here is that your goal of meditation need not be to “empty your mind.” As long as you focus on your thoughts and pay attention to them as objectively as you can, you can consider this your mindfulness practice throughout the day.
Don’t be discouraged: meditation is like a muscle.
Meditation is more like a workout than a quick stress reliever. And when you first start a new training regime, you will feel a little pain. The only way to overcome this soreness is to constantly continue the practice. Look at meditation as a muscle; it might not work at first, but that’s because you haven’t put in the effort yet.
Meditation becomes easier, but you need to get rid of the idea that you are failing at something. If you have come to listen to your own thoughts, then you must consider this a victory in meditation.