I’ve been practicing meditation irregularly for about two and half years. It was an outlet while going through a big change in my life when I needed to learn how to release, move on and refocus. Did it come easy? Absolutely not. Do I still struggle to not only meditate successfully but allocate the time to do so? Yup. I don’t even consider myself a real “meditator” (I don’t think that’s a word). But even with the small amount of practice I fit into my life, I feel the immense benefits. Here’s how meditation has and continues to improve my life.
The importance of breathing
I always knew meditation focused on breath, but until I started meditating myself, I was unaware of just how powerful this innate human function really is. We obviously cannot survive without oxygen, but how many times a day do you take a deep breath & feel the benefits? Hardly at all? That’s how I was for the longest time. Actually, I am still trying to break the habit of not taking 5 seconds every couple hours to sit back and breath. It’s amazing how much better I feel, how it relaxes my mind and how responsive my body is to it. Here’s how I see it – drink more water, feel better. Breath more oxygen, feel even better.
Opening the mind
I use the Calm app (seriously, I’m such a fan), and the daily sessions are guided, covering a wide range of topics. I personally enjoy a few minutes of voiceover for reflection and opening the mind. Sometimes it’s a new perspective on how to handle stress or sometimes it’s a simple reminder about gratitude. There’s always a good chunk of time for pure meditation and breathing, but the discussion helps ease my mind just as much. Plus, Calm also offers sleep stories (I especially love these while traveling or when sleeping alone), music for concentration, white noise options & plenty of other unique, personalized features. I highly recommend, even for beginners.
Curbing anxiety
Anxiety isn’t something I’ve ever suffered with. However, the annoying emotion crept it’s way into my life during the first trimester of pregnancy. Sounds normal – added stress about changes, uncertainty, etc – but actually, a lot of women suffer from it because of hormone changes alone. I think mine was a little mix of both, but regardless, it appeared. And meditation was there to save me. Adding stress to my body was the last thing I wanted to do, so plugging into Calm whenever I needed was a true savior. They have a whole category focused on anxiety and stress, but honestly, simply scheduling the quiet time for myself helped the most. Quieting the mind and breathing helped me escape, even if only for 10 minutes.
I’ve definitely become a believer over the past couple years. These benefits are the easiest to articulate, but I promise, it’s only the beginning. Meditation truly changes how I view the world, how I got about life & how I handle everyday situations. And I’m truly thankful for it.
Do you meditate or have you ever wanted to try?
xoxo. B
