How-to Meditate

   Mental health has become one of society's biggest concerns. So many individuals struggle with getting better, and I am here to help. As I have gone on a long mental health journey myself, I have found one of the best techniques to relax my mind is meditation. Meditation is a practice in training the mind for a sense of calmness, a lot in which I believe people struggle with the most, how to start to get better. In this article I will be giving how-to techniques of meditation. This will range from general beginning techniques, specific techniques and general advanced techniques to add into an everyday lifestyle that best suits you! 

 Meditation for beginners: 

 When starting your meditation journey, you want to start with finding a quiet place that relaxes you. When meditating, you do not want to be in an environment that overwhelms or stresses you out. It all begins with a place of peace. After finding the place of your choice, you want to make sure there is nothing in sight to distract you. For example, TV's, cellphones, computers, any of these things or others need to be turned off. What I found worked best for me was not picking an area where electronics were in my sight, and with my cellphone powered off completely. In doing this, I couldn't scroll on it even if I wanted to, this furthering me from distraction. The next step is positioning yourself comfortably. There are many ways you can do this. You can sit in a chair, on a cushion, on your bed, anywhere that will be comfortable for you to have an alert, yet comfortable, posture. 

The next thing you will want to do to acquire a sense of meditation is closing your eyes and focusing on breathing. During this point, your mind will try to wander, try to refocus it on the present, do not let your thoughts consume you. Continue to do this until you have reached a sense of relaxation and breathing accordingly. As a beginner, you will want to keep this short. Start your first couple of sessions at 5-10 minutes. Do not let yourself get frustrated during this process. It is normal and totally okay to get sidetracked, it is easy for the brain to find something to think about when there is nothing going on. But that is the purpose in meditation, to train your brain into a place of relaxation. It is important to remind yourself that this will take time. Remain calm and be kind to yourself. 

Meditation for stress: 

The main reason individuals start meditating is due to overall stress. There doesn’t have to be anything specific going on in your life to start meditation, you can simply just be stressed! To start out a meditation session simply aiming at deteriorating your stress will be the same starter steps as a beginner would take. Finding a peaceful place, no distractions and positioning yourself sitting straight. The main thing you want to focus on during this session is yourself. Start off with breathing in and exhaling out, reach that first point of calmness, bringing your mind back when it wanders. Once that peak hits, try different breathing methods to remain focused on yourself and what you are doing. One method is box breathing. This consists of inhaling a breath for 4 seconds, holding it for 4 seconds and then releasing it for 4 seconds. This will help your mind to focus more on what your body is doing rather than the thoughts that are consuming you. Another tip for helping this meditation session reduce your stress and get the help you are looking for is guided meditation. On days where I am more anxious or stressed I find that listening to others helps take my mind off of my own thoughts. You can incorporate this into your meditation by following a meditation guide. Try to avoid listening to music, podcasts, television or any other background noise as this will take away from achieving a sense of peace and distract you from the importance of why you are meditating in the first place. Instead, follow the voice of a meditation instructor who will guide you on what to do. Follow their steps and further help yourself relax and focus on what you are doing.

 

Advanced meditation/Chakra meditation: 

The last step of your meditation journey with me will end here, as you have now reached advanced meditation! This will start as your others have. Finding a peaceful place, no distractions and positioning yourself sitting straight. At this stage, I am sure you are now comfortable in meditation and often people will find different relaxing locations, such as outside. Feel free to switch it up if you are in need of a new relaxing location, and if you aren’t that's okay too, this is your journey! An advanced meditation technique I will be talking about to wrap up is Chakra meditation. Chakra meditation is a practice that focuses solely on balancing your body's energy centers. Your body's energy centers involve the 7 Chakras, crown, third eye, throat, heart, solar plexus, sacral and root chakras. 

 

This meditation session will start from your root to your crown. Each represents different things. For example, while you are sitting focusing on your breathing, you will begin to think about your root chakra, which is your “basic trust.” In doing this you are working on restoring each part of your body that is affiliated with something mental to promote a sense of healing and balance within. You will continue through each one, envisioning what they represent, their colors and how to restore them. Once you have worked through each one, you will bring your focus back to your actual breaths and physical body, leaving this session carrying those new, restored feelings of balance. 

Meditating is a great resource that has become very popular amongst the world in helping individuals relax again. I have shared beginning techniques, focused techniques and advanced techniques to get started with and to be there for when you continue. For those who suffer mentally, I hope you found this information insightful in starting meditation for your mental health journey aiming to bring calmness and relaxation back into your life. You deserve it!