Meditation
“Everyone should meditate once a day. And if you don’t have time to meditate, then you should do it twice a day.” – Dr. Sanjiv Chopra (Harvard physician)
Why meditate?
- To Feel Calm
Meditation increase our ability to feel calm and relaxed - To Increase Your Focu
Meditation helps activate the attention areas of our brain and deactivates mind wandering which increases your ability to focus - To Become Mindful
Meditation helps you develop self-awareness, to respond rather than react
Meditation helps you develop the skill of being mindful. Mindfulness is about developing awareness of yourself and your surroundings. You become more aware of your emotions and thoughts and also what others might be thinking and feeling. This can help you to be more compassionate towards yourself and others.
Mindfulness helps you in therapy by being more open to new insights about yourself and others which helps in the growth and healing process.You create space for new thoughts and feelings to emerge. With this awareness you can learn to respond thoughtfully rather than react impulsively in stressful or highly emotional situations.
How do I get started?
- Make a commitment to meditate for a month
- Choose a time of day to meditate
- Choose a calm place to meditate
- Start small – perhaps 5-10 minutes each day for the first week then add more time as you develop the skill of meditating
- When you miss a day, give yourself grace and commit to start again
Meditation ideas:
Meditation app, prayer, yoga, in nature, listen to a song, focus on your breath
Try out a guided meditation app such as
- 10% Happier
- Insight timerMeditation helps you develop the skill of being mindful.
- Calm
- Headspace
Read or listen to a book on meditation
References
Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-to Book by Dan Harris, J. Warren & C. Adler
