“Meditation, oh no it’s not for me, I’m too active, my mind races too much!” Whether you have ever tried meditation or not, this article is intended to tell you about my personal experience with it and how practising it allowed me to reduce my stress, improve my ability to concentrate and cope with the many expectations that life put down on me. It can really work for everyone!
Before, I did not meditate. Before, I was running around all day to do the millions of repetitive things I had to complete. My life was a continuous race against time. From when I would wake up until bedtime, I was always doing something and despite my best efforts, I could not manage all I had in mind, or I did so but not on time. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about!
No, I’m not telling you that meditation relieves you of your daily chores, rest assured. However my daily life has changed since I started meditating regularly. My days are now filled with things that I want to do instead of things I have to do. Doesn’t this catch one’s attention? Want to know a little more?
For almost four years now, I have been meditating every morning. Sometimes I only spend 5 minutes and other times much more, depending on how much time I have left but also how I feel. In some cases, meditation allows me to just gather my ideas a bit and connect to my inner being for a moment just before diving into the outside world. Other times I create a beautiful journey for myself and lose my awareness of my body, space and time.
What altered for me since I started meditating, you may ask? Here are the 5 changes that meditation has gifted me and my daily life:
1. From the very get-go of my meditation practice, peace and calm were planted within me. At first both were dormant but with time and by the miracle of practising meditation more every day, those sweet pieces of tranquility were transformed into serenity and inner peace, which accompanied me throughout
my days.
2. This new calmer and more relaxed mental state had tremendous effects on my surroundings, my relationships with others were soothed and the various problematic situations I encountered became easier to solve.
3. My thoughts, which due to habit were either submissive to the goal of planning the future or reliving the events of the past, were instead set towards the present moment. I could, finally and naturally, stay in the moment I was currently experiencing.
4. The discipline to get up every morning and do my meditation gave rise to a real desire in me to introduce more of it in my life. My mind was turned to the current moment and I gradually structured and directed myself and my thoughts.
5. My love for myself and the respect of my own being grew from one day to another thanks to the connection I built to my soul. This love for myself allowed me to give more love to the people around me, but also to put limits down, and to say no out of respect for myself and others.
In other words, through meditation I managed to get rid of stress, lack of concentration, negative feelings and emotions, such as hostility, frustration, anger, jealousy and make room for more inner peace and kindness.
It’s so simple to meditate, you really just have to sit down and be, but yet so few people have the willpower and discipline to do it, even when meditation’s innumerable benefits are now scientifically proven.
At Zen for Monday, my Sunday morning wellness workshop in Geneva, we will soon learn some simple techniques to calm our minds and thus be able to indulge in a nice restorative meditation. Follow my page if you do not want to miss the opportunity of coming over and having a chat with me!
I hope that through me sharing my story on meditation, I might have encouraged one or two people to try practicsing it, as I would joyfully give this beautiful gift to anyone who would like to learn more.
With love.
