Medi-What?

When I was first starting out meditating, I had an idea about what being Mindful meant but I wanted a better understand of this. So, I decided to see if there were any good Ted Talks on the matter and sure enough I found one that explains it perfectly. With that being said... click the link, watch it and baby come back (Player - Baby Come Back; classic).

"That's essentially what meditation is; it's familiarizing ourselves with the present moment." - Andy Puddicombe

Before I started meditating, like others, I assumed that engaging in this meant I was just going to stop my thoughts, get rid of the emotions I had on certain situations, or seize my mind from all overwhelming intentions. Yes, it is something like that in a way but really it's made me feel all the sensations around myself in that very moment. It's about taking a step back, looking at my thoughts more clearly and with a level head. It's about seeing the brooding ideas that are coming and going, and as they swarm my mind, I have come to understand that it is just my inner worries playing with my emotional state, and the more I judge my own thoughts the more I get lost in them.

In this video he explains what you are looking for when meditating. He says that it's a, "Focused Relaxation." In this you are allowing your thoughts to come and go and not thinking about it as much, not getting so caught up on one emotion, not giving your mind the involvement that it oh so craves.

In day three of my mediation journey, the exercise that I practiced was called body scanning. As per usual, I was told to sit with my back straight, arms by my side, and to close my eyes. I started by breathing in and out and then the instructor would tell me to start focusing my breathing at the top of my head and feel the different sensations that it was giving off (whether that was itch, a vibration, a warm feeling, etc.). Then she had me do this for all parts of my face starting with my nose, mouth, chin, eyes, forehead, and ears and continued lowering my focus onto all the other parts of my body. The purpose of this was to, "Pay Attention," to the feelings my body was giving off in that present moment, which is something I rarely ever do. Instead of ruminating on all the thoughts that were making my body tense, it taught me how to ease myself into relaxation, and break the ties that were keeping me from cutting loose (FOOTLOOSE... sorry).

Day 3 tied into the Ted Talk the most for me because he strives to make us understand that we must be conscious of the present moment. We must be able to focus on how we are feeling from our head, shoulders, knees and toes and relax ourselves in times of stress and anxiety. For myself, I have never been able to get anything done and be productive when I am worried about a hundred things at once. This is teaching me to take a deep breath and one step at a time.

New blogs to come next week!!

So, this is Meditation Mads, signing off!

Take it easy!

Photo from Canva.Com!