5 Myths You Thought Were True About Meditation, But Aren’t

1) You have to completely still your mind and I can’t do that

Firstly, that’s OK. Not every meditation needs to be in a zen like state with a silent mind. Have you tried simply observing your mind, seeing what comes up, seeing what thoughts cause your emotions to flare. In normal life you’ll?see situations where you can triggered, these can lead to emotions like anger, frustration, sadness, and even happiness, relief, love. As you go through each day these triggers will seem to be the cause of these emotions, but when you sit with your mind, you’ll notice that there are no external circumstances causing these emotions. It’s all you, your memories, your thoughts of the future.

2) Meditation takes too long (and I don’t have time)

I don’t doubt that if you can sit in meditation for an hour that that is a good place to be. But if you can manage a minute, 5 minutes, even 10 minutes it’s better than not doing this at all. Eckhart Tolle says that one good breath can be a meditation. All you’re aiming for in however long you have is to focus inwards, whether that’s on your breath, your body, your thoughts.?

3) You need to sit still

We all have this, I can sit and meditate for an hour at times, and other times I can’t get beyond a few minutes. This is telling you something, this is likely you trying to avoid something inside of you (OK, sometimes there are external distractions such as your child that needs attention). This something inside of you is always there, and if you can’t be still for a few moments, this energy is driving you on a moment by moment basis. Think of the impact it is having on you and the world around you.?

You can also meditate while you walk, or if you feel the need to move, get up and move your body. For obvious reasons, don’t meditate when driving or operating machinery!!

4) Meditation is for “woke” people

Well maybe “woke” people meditate, but it’s for everyone. It’s not this woo woo thing that makes you give up all worldly possessions and live in silent isolation for the rest of your days. I’ve had some of my best insights in the middle of meditating, just like many people say they can have insights in the shower and driving to work or walking the dog.?

5) I can’t stay awake

That’s OK too, I meditate almost daily and have fallen asleep many times. If you have time commitments, set a timer before you start to meditate, and simply set the intention to receive whatever comes in the experience. If you fall asleep, chances are you’re mentally needing to switch off and get some inner peace for a while.

And a bonus one for getting this far…

6) I’ll look stupid / crazy / people will laugh

Yes OK this maybe isn't a myth! They may well do this. I do a walking meditation by a guy called Dr Joe Dispenza. You walk around for a while, stand still with your eyes closed, repeat some affirmations (out loud), and repeat 3 times. As you’ve got headphones on you don’t hear anyone approaching, and there’s more than once I’ve opened my eyes as people have walked past giving me a strange look.?

TL;DR

I’ve been meditating for over 10 years now and there’s one thing I am very aware of is my experience of life is so much better when I meditate than when I don’t. This doesn’t mean that I float through life without challenges, they come and go as with anyone else, meditation is a tool that helps calm the ship when the storm is raging.

And it's not just the mindfulness side of things either, I've noticed meditation helps with my health and energy levels, there's more than once that deep breathing and meditating has helped me recover from illness.

If you enjoyed this or got value from it, leave a comment below and let me know what your thoughts?