Do you have a really busy mind and struggling with meditation? Are you feeling like you just can’t do it? Don’t worry. I think most people feel like this when they start out. Everyone has a busy mind, that is the job of the mind… to be busy doing things for us but here’s the wonderful news… you are not your mind and it’s only when you forget this that the mind takes control leading you to believe that you can not change it.
Your job is to take control of the mind and make it work for you, not against you.
So if you are just starting out in meditation that is great – here’s the thing – it’s probably not going to be easy. What I hear is people giving up after trying once or maybe twice because their mind is too busy, well, that’s exactly why you’re doing it and if you look at change in general, it rarely happens overnight.
The whole point of meditation is learning to be comfortable in the uncomfortable. When you can do this you can train your mind to not be so busy – it makes itself busy because distraction is easier than being with oneself. That takes time and patience – but no matter how busy your mind is, you can do it – practice, practice and practice.
Here are my five tips and things you must consider when you are starting out:
1. Accept that it is going to be difficult and you won’t get it right straight away.
Remember that it’s about being uncomfortable and moving through that discomfort.
2. It’s not about not thinking.
Your thoughts won’t suddenly stop happening but eventually, they will slow down. Don’t try and stop your thoughts but do recognise when you have run away with one and come back to being focussed on your breathing. This should help.
3. You don’t have to be physically uncomfortable to get started
If sitting cross-legged hurts, try sitting in a chair to start with as this will help you feel calm and then you can progress to being in a cross-legged position. If you want to be cross-legged try doing a bit of yoga first – ten minutes will be enough to settle the body.
4. Don’t give up
Stick with it. So many people give up early because they think it isn’t ‘working’. Just keep going and one day it will suddenly fall into place.
5. Start small
Just start with 5 minutes. Gradually increase this each day or even week. I started just doing 5 minutes each morning and now I can quite easily sit for 90 minutes at a time. I feel like it’s the best gift I can give myself.
It wasn’t always easy for me either
I started ten years ago on the kitchen floor and I would always fall asleep. Try as I might, I couldn’t succeed. I would stop and start and then I had a coach who kept telling me to do it. The reason being, because I was always moaning about being bored and he would say that boredom is a perspective, it’s not real unless you make it so.
So I pushed myself to practice and I stuck at it, day after day after day, until I had a transformational experience where I felt like I was leaving my body and then that was it, I was hooked. And I had the busiest of minds – so if I can do you can do it too. How’s your meditation practice? How did you start out? Share your story and tips with me.
