Healing Arts Report

Just saying the word meditation often calls forth an image of exotic monks sitting perfectly still forever. This image is daunting.

In our world of constant movement and sound, too many people cannot imagine such emptiness or what it could accomplish. And even those of us who have experienced the peace it brings, just forget to do it. There’s little in the surrounding culture to remind us.

This oversight is changing though. Teachers and therapists are exposing their clients to short meditative exercises that provide the only moment of quiet they may have all day. And it’s a powerful experience in contrast to constant worldly noise.

No equipment is needed. Nor are special postures or gymnastics. Just sit in a physically balanced manner with your feet on the floor. Imagine a string attached to the crown of your head leading up to the sky helping lift your head upward while your chin points downward and your spine lengthens. With a nice slow breath, breathe into that lengthening. Let your hands relax in your lap as you continue to rest into lengthening.

There, that took how long? Twenty-three seconds according to my stopwatch. If you’d measured your blood pressure before starting and then after doing that simple relaxation, you would likely have found it to become lower.

If you don’t believe that such a reset can accomplish anything, just try it to see what happens. The beauty of a little exercise of this nature is that you can do it anywhere–even in the middle of a busy street, while shopping, or during a chat with a friend. The challenge is in remembering to do it at all.

I have a short list of one-minute meditations. Sit or stand comfortably, close your eyes or not. Here are three more.

1. Just breathe and attend to your breathing.
2. If your mind is too active for you to keep your attention on your breathing, then count each breath—In 1, out 1. In 2, out 2. When you get to 10 stop.
3. Try a more body-oriented meditation. Sit with your feet flat on the floor and without moving them at all, notice feeling them from the inside. Slowly allow sensation to move up to your ankles, then to the shins, the knees, the thighs, to your hands resting on your thighs, to the lower arms, the upper arms, the shoulders, the sides of your neck, your ears, and to the top of your head
4. Here’s a moment-meditation introduction you might enjoy. The video is about five and a half minutes long and includes guiding you in a one-minute meditation.

Research has shown that meditation 1) lowers levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, 2) helps us become more mindful of our strengths and weaknesses, 3) helps us regulate our emotions, and 4) increases brain plasticity, helping you adjust to change.

Would you share a one-minute meditation you find easy to practice and tell us what situations you’ve practiced it in?

PRACTICE: If you are continuously busy, try sitting and doing nothing in a comfortable place, indoors or out, eyes open or closed, for just five minutes. Notice what you experience during the sitting and throughout your day.

CONTACT. If you find it uncomfortable or even frightening to do nothing but suspect that it might be a good thing for you to learn, contact me for a free 20-minute consultation and we can find a do-able way to get you started.