Reducing the psychological responses to stress is essential to good mental health, and overall quality of life. A daily meditation practice can help lower your heart rate, blood pressure, and other phycological markers of stress helping to calm and reduce the impact stress can cause to your health.
Quieting the mind is hard to do. However, through meditation, you can learn to observe your thoughts without judgment and develop a greater awareness of your inner self. Once this level is achieved, you’ll be less reactive to stressors and will begin to cultivate a greater sense of inner calm.
Meditation can also help you become more aware of your emotions so that you can learn to regulate them more effectively. It allows you to build resilience to difficult emotions and reduce the impact they have on your emotional state.
Once you’re able to trigger a relaxation response to these emotions you’ll enter into a state of deep relaxation that will counteract the stress response. Meditation can help reduce body tension, improve your ability to cope with stress, and enhance positive well-being.
So, how do you begin if you’ve never meditated before? My advice is to start small and build as you go. Starting with 3 breaths and three meditation minutes is ideal for beginners in my humble opinion.
First, take a seat (or lay down if that’s more comfortable for you). Make sure to sit in a place that’s quiet and feels calm to you.
Then start with one deep breath, inhaling through your nose, and exhaling through your mouth. Following the first breath, notice how your body feels. Any distracting thoughts about posture, body aches, and sensations and work on these starting from the soles of your feet to the top of your head. Do this for three minutes minimum or for as long as you can. I don’t recommend a timer, although you can use one if you have time restraints but in my experience, when that timer goes off, it jolts you out of the stillness your after.
Once you are aware of your body sensations and make the necessary adjustments, take your second breath as you did the first.
For the next three minutes start allowing your thoughts to come and go without judgment, but with compassion and kindness. Don’t try to clear your mind and give yourself permission to address those thoughts later.
Take your third and last breath.
Let go of expectations. Some expectations can lead to more hurt and could hinder your quest for enlightenment and achievement. Just be. Also, be kind to your wondering mind. Working with your monkey mind takes time. Take these last three minutes to focus on one thing, such as a single life challenge, or something you’re manifesting, Again, do not bring forth negativity, self-judgment,