Your Absolute Guide For Starting A Meditation Practice

Meditation is proven to be one of the best tools to reset, rewire, and calm our brains.

This easily accessible self care tool has been around for centuries, and has become more encouraged within society over the last few decades. While many people reap the benefits of meditation, and have adopted it into their lifestyle, there is still a vast majority of people who claim "I can't meditate".

In a world of overstimulation, instant gratification, hustle culture, and the need to constantly "be on", meditation is one of. the best techniques that can disconnect us from the outside world. The benefits go beyond getting quiet & having a few minutes of calmness.

Let's talk about some ways that we can benefit from our meditation practice and how we can get better at it.

Why Meditate?

While it may seem trendy or part of a "soft girl era" aesthetic, meditation is a tool that comes with many benefits including

Connection to self
Increased focus
Increased self-awareness
Overall health improvement
More clarity & better decision making
Increased emotional awareness
Nervous system regulation
Increased feelings of gratitude
Connection with God, Spirit, Source, Universe (whatever you call it)
Increased creativity, imagination, & dream recollection

Realize That You're Never "Doing It Wrong"

One of. the biggest roadblocks that people face when starting to meditate is their own mind. Most people will say that they're not doing it right, or that they can't empty their minds. Well, I'm here to tell you that the whole point of starting a meditation PRACTICE is to work through the initial feelings of discomfort, overthinking, and practice quieting your mind a little more each time you meditate.

Initially you may have a lot of thoughts, or can't seem to get your mind off your to-do list. But to be completely honest, this can happen after 100 meditations. Every meditation will not be perfect and will not be your best. And that's not the point. The point is to feel improvement and increased benefits every time you do it. The more you do it, the better you feel, and eventually your mind, body and soul will crave that time.

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Find Your Perfect Setting

Your surroundings definitely make a huge difference when meditating. You definitely want to find somewhere quiet and away from distractions. This could be your room, your backyard, your balcony, an empty gym studio, or anywhere you feel comfortable. If finding a quiet place is a challenge for you, then consider grabbing some noise cancelling headphones and turning on a guided meditation.

Start With Guided Meditations

I'm a HUGE fan of guided meditations. While some days, I prefer to sit in silence, or with some binaural beats or sound bowls, most of the time I do find that guided meditations help me to focus on a particular theme or initiate the feeling that I'm looking for. such as gratitude, healing, or confidence.

Guided meditations are great because they are led with intention by the person speaking & guiding you with the goal of getting you into a state of calm & bliss. Usually the focus on their voice immediately allows you to disconnect from outside distractions or overbearing thoughts. You can also choose a meditation based on your needs & based on what you want to focus on.

Be Patient With Yourself

Beginning a meditation practice can feel strange at first, especially if you're someone who finds it hard to sit still, be with yourself. Be patient with yourself & don't get upset if you happen to doze off, wander off completely from the guided prompts, or can't seem to stop thinking about that one thing. Not only will this happen in the beginning, but this can happen even as a "seasoned meditator". Depending on your current mental state, your life circumstances, or your surroundings, distractions can and WILL happen.

Learn to let it go, and know that better meditations WILL come. One day you'll find yourself mentally floating, completely in a state of bliss, or recollecting. a beautiful childhood memory that inspires you to take action towards your dreams. You never know what may come out of your meditations, so why not just keep going?

Check out my guided visualization meditation for Summer below!

If you found this article useful, then dive deeper into the topic on Episode 4 of the "Let's Just Be Real Podcast" .