meditation

[mikecole114]

so ive recently taken up meditation before i get into bed to kind of relax myself a bit. at first it sent me to sleep really quickly which is massive for me but the longer ive done it the harder ive found to relax from it
does anyone else meditate and have some good free examples \ links \ apps to help me get into it??????
cheers

[Cuchculan]

There has been a new study about meditation done. You have two debates going on. One side claim that guided meditation, done by a therapist is the best kind. They are claiming that within the first five minutes of starting meditation, we bring up all the negative things in our lives. Thus the longer we do it, the worse they now claim it is meant to be for us. Ten minutes and we dig even deeper. Not sure if there is any truth to this at all. But some therapists are using it as a way of helping patients out minus medication. That is how much they believe in this latest theory. It was on a radio show here in Ireland. Some Indian shrink talking all about it. Was interesting if anything. To hear a different view on meditation. One that goes against the normal good view of it. Case of believe what you want about it. You are the one doing it. You will know if it is bringing up any negative images that surround your condition. I tend to go onto you tube and use a few videos on there. I may tape them. So I can play them back. Plus I downloaded a a few by Paul Santisi. They are amazing to listen to. I found them on a torrent site. Ended up with 5 CDs. No matter what I heard on the radio, with their latest claims, I still listen to some very deep relaxation CDs. They will always be there to relax me.

[jessed03]

There has been a new study about meditation done. You have two debates going on. One side claim that guided meditation, done by a therapist is the best kind. They are claiming that within the first five minutes of starting meditation, we bring up all the negative things in our lives. Thus the longer we do it, the worse they now claim it is meant to be for us. Ten minutes and we dig even deeper. Not sure if there is any truth to this at all. But some therapists are using it as a way of helping patients out minus medication. That is how much they believe in this latest theory. It was on a radio show here in Ireland. Some Indian shrink talking all about it. Was interesting if anything. To hear a different view on meditation. One that goes against the normal good view of it. Case of believe what you want about it. You are the one doing it. You will know if it is bringing up any negative images that surround your condition. I tend to go onto you tube and use a few videos on there. I may tape them. So I can play them back. Plus I downloaded a a few by Paul Santisi. They are amazing to listen to. I found them on a torrent site. Ended up with 5 CDs. No matter what I heard on the radio, with their latest claims, I still listen to some very deep relaxation CDs. They will always be there to relax me.

That's interesting, actually, just across the drink, we barely hear anything of it now. A few years ago it used to get brought up a fair bit, but now I can't remember the last time I heard it talked about here. England just seems yoga yoga yoga mad.

My personal experience from years of doing it, is there is definitely some truths in the criticism. I had a deep depression for years, whereby I never cried at family members funerals, barely laughed at anything, got the rep of someone who never smiled etc. and I went back to meditating, and after a week of doing it, I just cried flat out for 10 minutes. Just a regular day, doing it before bed.

I felt all this emotion and everything, just bombard me, memories, fears, dreams, truths of life etc, all just hit me, and that whole week, I cried each day for a week after having barely even being able to feel sadness, for like 5 years.

After that it stopped, and I felt quite calm. It did feel like a detox, that's why I kept up with it. They do advise not to over do it, as it can cause a huge detox of emotion, and if you aren't understanding of meditation or of what's gonna happen, I can see how it would be problematic.

For a period I did begin to focus on negatives during meditation sessions, and was unhappier for a year, but I tried a different kind, and it worked within weeks, I really did begin to feel good. There were massive differences for the better when comparing pre meditation life to post meditation life.

I've liked it for the most part, but I have had some intense panic attacks due to meditating, and some extremes of emotions cropping up. I feel it's made me a much more relaxed, confident person in general though, so I've always stuck with it.

@OP: a good free book to read to start with is 'Mindfulness in plain English', google it, and you'll find free ebooks. After reading that, you'll have a good understanding of the practice, and then can choose any of the cool ways to meditate. As mentioned above, guided meditations and stuff can be really relaxing.

[mikecole114]

That's interesting, actually, just across the drink, we barely hear anything of it now. A few years ago it used to get brought up a fair bit, but now I can't remember the last time I heard it talked about here. England just seems yoga yoga yoga mad. My personal experience from years of doing it, is there is definitely some truths in the criticism. I had a deep depression for years, whereby I never cried at family members funerals, barely laughed at anything, got the rep of someone who never smiled etc. and I went back to meditating, and after a week of doing it, I just cried flat out for 10 minutes. Just a regular day, doing it before bed. I felt all this emotion and everything, just bombard me, memories, fears, dreams, truths of life etc, all just hit me, and that whole week, I cried each day for a week after having barely even being able to feel sadness, for like 5 years. After that it stopped, and I felt quite calm. It did feel like a detox, that's why I kept up with it. They do advise not to over do it, as it can cause a huge detox of emotion, and if you aren't understanding of meditation or of what's gonna happen, I can see how it would be problematic. For a period I did begin to focus on negatives during meditation sessions, and was unhappier for a year, but I tried a different kind, and it worked within weeks, I really did begin to feel good. There were massive differences for the better when comparing pre meditation life to post meditation life. I've liked it for the most part, but I have had some intense panic attacks due to meditating, and some extremes of emotions cropping up. I feel it's made me a much more relaxed, confident person in general though, so I've always stuck with it. @OP: a good free book to read to start with is 'Mindfulness in plain English', google it, and you'll find free ebooks. After reading that, you'll have a good understanding of the practice, and then can choose any of the cool ways to meditate. As mentioned above, guided meditations and stuff can be really relaxing.

Cheers for replying guys
A really influential person on all of this is ruby wax she swears by mindfullness meditation and I was wondering if that's what your talking about an how different it is to other meditation types

[tailspin]

Awesome that you are trying meditation, Mike. I am a big fan of Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation, though I confess that I often have a hard time putting them into practice. From a philosophical perspective, Mindfulness makes total and utter sense to me and I really believe in it. But it can be incredibly difficult to actually BE mindful in challenging emotional situations.

This is where Mindfulness Meditation comes in because it is a form of "training", so that you do, gradually, find it easier to be mindful all the time in your life. I have not personally been dedicated enough to Mindfulness Meditation training (I don't meditate enough), but I do believe in this approach whole-heartedly (which reminds me that I need to do it more!)

Mindfulness Meditation is the form of meditation that I am most familiar with and which resonates with me the most. It actually comes from buddhism, but I am not a buddhist so I'm more into the "westernized" version of Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation. A great introduction to this more Westernized approach can be found in Jon Kabat-Zinn's book "Full Catastrophe Living". I think it even comes with a couple of CDs. Really anything by Jon Kabat-Zinn is great.

Another recommendation would be Pema Chodron's "How to Meditate". Again, this is all about Mindfulness Meditation. Pema Chodron is actually a Tibetan Buddhist nun, but she writes in a wonderfully clear and down to earth way and you absolutely don't need to be a buddhist to "get it".

It is my understanding that Mindfulness Meditation is not about trying to relax. It is not a relaxation exercise in that sense, but it can be relaxing. Rather, in it's most basic form, it's about training your mind to be still. It's about learning to focus your attention on the present moment and being aware of what you are experiencing RIGHT NOW. But not judging it or getting caught up in it.

Typically you use your breath as an anchor. Each time your attention wanders too much you bring your attention back to your breathing. You notice the thoughts and feelings that arise as you are sitting there, but you learn that you are not the same as your thoughts and feelings. You learn to hold them in a wider consciousness or awareness. All the time breathing in and out.

The analogy that is most frequently used is probably the sky analogy: You are the sky and the feelings and sensations you experience are the clouds passing across the sky. I love this analogy, but, of course, it's extremely hard to actually put this into practice when the thoughts and feelings are very distressing. It's extremely hard to just sit there and let the feelings come without judging them as horrible or distressing or whatever, and without being overwhelmed by them.

And that's why, as Jessed says, the experience can sometimes make us feel worse. Because when you're meditating, you really are letting your guard down and painful stuff that has been long buried can surface. And even though the idea is that you just notice the feelings without judging, naturally that can be too much to do on our own sometimes, if we're just starting out with meditation. And even though the only way to get through difficult things is to learn to face the feelings and not run from them, sometimes we need help to do this. So, if there is major trauma there, it would definitely be advisable to work with a therapist on this.

There are also specific Mindfulness Meditations you can do - as opposed to the basic type which involves sitting there, focusing on your breath and being present with your experience. For example you can do a Mindfulness Meditation on Forgiveness. And many others. I would definitely recommend finding out more about Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation. It has so much to offer.

Really hope it helps you!

PS: I'd also love to hear more from Jessed about the type of meditation that helped him.

[mikecole114]

Awesome that you are trying meditation, Mike. I am a big fan of Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation, though I confess that I often have a hard time putting them into practice. From a philosophical perspective, Mindfulness makes total and utter sense to me and I really believe in it. But it can be incredibly difficult to actually BE mindful in challenging emotional situations. This is where Mindfulness Meditation comes in because it is a form of "training", so that you do, gradually, find it easier to be mindful all the time in your life. I have not personally been dedicated enough to Mindfulness Meditation training (I don't meditate enough), but I do believe in this approach whole-heartedly (which reminds me that I need to do it more!) Mindfulness Meditation is the form of meditation that I am most familiar with and which resonates with me the most. It actually comes from buddhism, but I am not a buddhist so I'm more into the "westernized" version of Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation. A great introduction to this more Westernized approach can be found in Jon Kabat-Zinn's book "Full Catastrophe Living". I think it even comes with a couple of CDs. Really anything by Jon Kabat-Zinn is great. Another recommendation would be Pema Chodron's "How to Meditate". Again, this is all about Mindfulness Meditation. Pema Chodron is actually a Tibetan Buddhist nun, but she writes in a wonderfully clear and down to earth way and you absolutely don't need to be a buddhist to "get it". It is my understanding that Mindfulness Meditation is not about trying to relax. It is not a relaxation exercise in that sense, but it can be relaxing. Rather, in it's most basic form, it's about training your mind to be still. It's about learning to focus your attention on the present moment and being aware of what you are experiencing RIGHT NOW. But not judging it or getting caught up in it. Typically you use your breath as an anchor. Each time your attention wanders too much you bring your attention back to your breathing. You notice the thoughts and feelings that arise as you are sitting there, but you learn that you are not the same as your thoughts and feelings. You learn to hold them in a wider consciousness or awareness. All the time breathing in and out. The analogy that is most frequently used is probably the sky analogy: You are the sky and the feelings and sensations you experience are the clouds passing across the sky. I love this analogy, but, of course, it's extremely hard to actually put this into practice when the thoughts and feelings are very distressing. It's extremely hard to just sit there and let the feelings come without judging them as horrible or distressing or whatever, and without being overwhelmed by them. And that's why, as Jessed says, the experience can sometimes make us feel worse. Because when you're meditating, you really are letting your guard down and painful stuff that has been long buried can surface. And even though the idea is that you just notice the feelings without judging, naturally that can be too much to do on our own sometimes, if we're just starting out with meditation. And even though the only way to get through difficult things is to learn to face the feelings and not run from them, sometimes we need help to do this. So, if there is major trauma there, it would definitely be advisable to work with a therapist on this. There are also specific Mindfulness Meditations you can do - as opposed to the basic type which involves sitting there, focusing on your breath and being present with your experience. For example you can do a Mindfulness Meditation on Forgiveness. And many others. I would definitely recommend finding out more about Mindfulness and Mindfulness Meditation. It has so much to offer. Really hope it helps you! PS: I'd also love to hear more from Jessed about the type of meditation that helped him.


Yeah I found this really good app which is free and I advise anyone who's remotely interested to download called "headspace" done by an English guy called Andy pudicome it's really good for a starting point and first couple of nights sent me right to sleep. I've got another doctors appointment tomorrow where ima ask about different and alternative ways to help. Thankyou tailspin my 2 weeks on this forum has been so much more successful thanks to your replies

Hope you are ataying strong

[bcarp66]

Headspace is a great app. Signed up for the year and it has been great for me! There are also a few tracks on iTunes that are really good and have really helped me

[jessed03]

Yeah I found this really good app which is free and I advise anyone who's remotely interested to download called "headspace" done by an English guy called Andy pudicome it's really good for a starting point and first couple of nights sent me right to sleep.


Headspace is a great app. Signed up for the year and it has been great for me! There are also a few tracks on iTunes that are really good and have really helped me

Man, I really need to get myself an iphone!

[bcarp66]

You don't need for headspace. You can do the same stuff on the website. Getsomeheadspace.com

[tailspin]

You don't need for headspace. You can do the same stuff on the website. Getsomeheadspace.com

Thanks for the link. It looks great. I had never heard of this guy, but I will definitely be checking this out. Thank you!

[bcarp66]

The first program take 10 is free. After that it's 75 for a year which I did and so far it is very worth it for me. Tons of content

[trinidiva]

I downloaded and did my first 10 minutes. I really enjoyed it!

[mikecole114]

I downloaded and did my first 10 minutes. I really enjoyed it!

Keep at it! It's really good at taking things off your mind and making you think about things other then repetitive thoughts I find it especially useful when I'm about to go to sleep to clear my mind

[bcarp66]

Awesome!!!