I’ve been Meditating For Seven Years, Here’s What Happened
Whenever someone asks me about how to handle stress, my common response is, ‘Meditate.’
But most of the time, people are skeptical, and their common response is ‘I don’t have time.’
Finding time for meditation is not easy for many, but I’ve been meditating for more than seven years now.
How did I find my time? What have I gained from meditation?
Here’s my complete story; I hope it will inspire you to meditate.
Remembering my past days still gives me a bad feeling, and I was physically and mentally drained.
I had lost my job, was recovering from a terrible breakup, and was failing in interviews.
Life really hit me hard during those days, so it’s obvious that I was filled with anxiety.
Meditation is not a fancy thing for me because my father has been meditating for more than 20 years, and I used to attend meditation classes from the age of 8.
So, at that time, going back to meditation was the best option for me to handle my worst phase.
One fine morning, after waking up and looking at notifications on my phone, I closed my room, sat down on the ground, and started practicing meditation.
After 10 minutes, I felt really good. My heartbeat was normal for the first time in many days, and that was the spark. Since then, there has been no turning back.
Consistency is not easy
Felt down in life, started meditating, and boom... life went easy?
Definitely not!
Though I felt good on that day, it was a bit hard to sit down the next morning.
Like many, I skipped the third day.
This continued for a week until I read a book that motivated me to continue meditating again.
The next day, I started meditating once again.
But looking back and being honest with you, I’m not 100% consistent.
I did miss certain days, but I never quit.
This is the key, I guess. It’s hard to be consistent, but you often have the option to get back on track.
You’re the one who decides about quitting.
Habit Stacking helped me
After reading a lot of self-help books, I learned about the habit stacking technique, and it certainly helped me keep following my habits.
If you do any task consistently for a long time, your brain tends to create a strong network of neurons, making it easier to do the task without hesitation.
For instance, brushing your teeth, showering in the morning, drinking coffee, etc. — these habits, without any awareness, create a strong pattern in your brain and make you do those tasks on autopilot.
So how can you use this concept?
A formula for habit stacking is: after completing your current habit, do your new habit.
For instance, after drinking my coffee, I will read my book. After brushing my teeth, I will meditate.
By pairing my current habit (brushing teeth) with a new habit(Meditation), I make it to stick it for a long time.
Similarly, you can pair your current habit with any new habit you want to follow.
How to meditate?
Now, we come to the best part. Whenever I talk about meditation, people think about sitting for long hours in the mountains with monks.
Meditation is not that hard; you don’t have to sit down on the floor for long hours or learn any fancy techniques. All you have to do is just sit down for 5 minutes.
5 minutes? Is it enough?
Definitely yes! It’s best for beginners to start small, and doing 5 minutes of meditation is more than enough.
Now, we will see how to practice the 4–4–4–4 technique:
· Sit down in a chair or on the floor.
· Take a deep breath and exhale it slowly.
· Now, take a deep breath for the count of four.
· Hold your breath for four counts.
· Exhale for the count of four.
· Hold it for four counts.
Great! Now you have completed one cycle. Repeat this cycle four times.
I don’t have to reiterate about mental health. Everyone knows it, and taking it for granted affects your overall health.
Considering meditation as a necessity is an only way to move forward during a difficult phase.
The good thing is, you don’t have to spend long hours or buy any courses. Simply sitting and focusing on your breath is more than enough.
Have a great day!
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