Have you ever sat down with the intention to meditate but felt immediately put off by the idea?
Has this experience stopped you from ever meditating again?
Or do you simply find it to be a strange experience to sit quietly with yourself, having your eyes closed for the few minutes?
If you replied yes to all of the above, then you are not alone!
From my own experience with stepping into the world of mindfulness and meditation, I have found that our initial response to meditating, can be made difficult simply by the fact that we cannot enjoy our own company or peace and quiet, even for just a few minutes.
It sounds very simple when written down like this, but in reality, many people can and are scared to meditate because it feels like entering into the unknown.
After all, it’s not a common activity to do nor is it well talked about and once the fear takes over, everything seems impossible.
Of course it isn’t though as I experienced with my two attempts at meditating. I remember the first time round feeling extremely odd for doing it and wondering what it would achieve. What kept me going was knowing the many benefits that meditation brings to our mental health and wellbeing and I am so very glad that I never gave up!
During my mindfulness journey, I have experienced people who have refused to partake in any meditation and while there is nothing wrong with that at all, I just feel sad that they are willing to be conquered by their fear instead of receiving and profound benefits that regular meditation brings over time.
If we change the way we look at meditation, we can learn to be more accepting of it and pursue it without putting any expectations on ourselves for the outcome and embrace the uncertainty in our experience, then we can begin the enjoy it with a more open mind.
Jem Girl at the Piano 