A Beginners Guide to Meditation

When imagining meditation, we often think of a very stereotypical image but this is quite a common misconception. You don’t have to sit in a uncomfortable position for hours humming. Life today is stressful and hectic, meditation helps to calm and silence your mind and it provides a greater self- awareness.

What is Meditation?

Meditation is seen by a number of people as one of the most effective forms of stress reduction. It’s becoming more widely used in the Western world perhaps in correlation with life becoming more demanding and stressful. It often goes hand in hand with the practice of Yoga, with many finding meditation through this. If practiced enough then it can promote great physical and mental wellbeing.

How to Meditate

There are many ways to meditate and there’s no correct way to do it, with many different approaches and techniques.
For those looking to begin at the start with meditation then we would suggest the most basic kind:

1. Find a comfortable space – on the floor bed, sofa, chair, in the park. Somewhere quiet and distraction free (not the pub!).
2. If you enjoy listening to music put some soothing music on in the background.
3. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Feel and really focus on the movement your body makes with each breath.
4. Try to quiet your mind (easier said than done I know!) To help focus your attention try repeating a mantra such as ‘I am..great/beautiful/confident.’
5. As you exhale, allow the tension to leave your body and let your mind be emptied.
6. Repeat for as long as you wis.

Meditation is all about trying and seeing what works best for you. It can be frustrating at first if you can’t concentrate due to distracting thoughts, particularly if you’re very stressed. New habits aren’t necessarily easy to stick to, and you have to commit. Keep trying with meditation the more you do it the more you’ll benefit from it.
Join Beth Win on Wednesday evenings at 8pm for a taste of meditation in your ‘Beditation’ class where you will using the relaxing techniques of meditation you will forget your stresses of the day and have a perfect nights sleep.