Meditation & Anxiety

[Razzle]

I would like to communicate with anyone using and having success with meditation and or yoga for severe anxiety

Thanks

[Razzle]

Kev

What type of meditation do you do. Since my anxiety has gone sky high I have gone from one meditation a day to 3 or 4 - but I can not get relaxed now - I just sit and breathe for 20 minutes with out success??

Rick

[jessed03]

There is no success in meditation. Success implies there was a goal. For there to be a goal, the course of action must be changed. If you are setting out to make a change, then at that moment you aren't at one with life.

Meditation is the process of becoming one with life through understanding, cultivating to outer understanding. The best way this can be achieved is through observation. For your practice, as an ideal place to begin, start by just observing your breath, observing your body, observing your mind, and observing other stimuli. Don't aim to change any rhythm, or get involved in anything, or any thought process. Simply watch it as if you were sitting watching a movie, totally detached from any outcome. As your mind wanders, you can gently nudge it back into a direction of focus. Some focus on breathe entirely, this can be difficult for anxiety sufferers, so some focus on the third eye.

Meditiation actually really screwed me up at first, as I wasn't relaxed as I was doing it. I found I had to detach more, as when I was observing everything, I was speeding up without knowing, my breath become deeper, I felt a little more agitated. Soon you practice, and everything starts to feel right. If you PM me, I have an excellent ebook I can send you, for beginners and experts alike, a very relaxed approach to meditation that myself and others on this forum have found very useful. Same goes for anyone else.

I also echo Kev's sentiments. Therapy got me around 40% of the way better. Meditation took me to around 80% with the remaining 20 coming from diet, sleep, exercise, cutting out addictions, and finding joy in life.

[Peace]

You might want to try a guided meditation if you haven't been doing so. I find Jon Kabbat Zinn's CDs to be helpful. Sometimes when I meditate it can be hard to stay with it when I am feeling anxiety. My mind fights it. But, if I just sit with it and accept that that is what is happening usually the thoughts will pass. Also, you may want to try some yoga. Then you will be able to be moving your body and helping to tranform some of the energy of the anxiety.