Yoga + Meditation

[RedBeard]

I have had a lot of people mention yoga/meditation to help cope with anxiety and stress. Does anyone have any specific programs or techniques they recommend? Thanks.

[jessed03]

For meditation: Really easy method.

Focus on the emptiness. Sit cross legged, still, and listen to the sound of silence. You'll realize, every single sound, comes out of it. That sound needs silence. That they are different, but go perfectly together. This is good for training awareness. When you have awareness of emptiness, you realize you are awareness. That everything else happens within that awareness. That thought and feeling only exist inside your awareness. That they aren't 'real' or aren't you. That they are there, but like sound, everything is passing through. That the only reason they feel real and stick around, is because you pay attention to it. Both are merely ideas.

When you give something focus or awareness, you give it everything you are.

A way to practice this is to imagine a great white canvas. Vast and blank in your mind. Focus on that empty canvas. That is nothingness, silence, awareness. Everytime you hear a sound, imagine a small splash of paint comes onto the canvas. No matter how loud the sound is, the canvas is never more than half full. After every sound, the canvas becomes clear again, because the sound has passed, or awareness has moved to another sound.

Everything is constantly flowing. Like thought and feeling. That if you place no awareness to them, they are like wind in the sky. The sky always remains the same. The same way awareness always remains the same. Awareness is there no matter what. Always perfect and neutral. Thoughts and feelings are like the wind. They come and pass through, but the sky is always there. You suddenly notice that you aren't that voice in your head, or feeling... You're the one who realizes it's there. It all happens within your awareness.

You can start from 5-10 minutes, however long you can focus on the silence. I think you'll find some good stuff, but don't go into it with an outcome. Just experience it. You'll have an awareness shift, which is crucial to peace of mind. You'll realize you're default stae doesn't have to be to place your awareness in, that with a little understanding and practice, you can focus on, and ignore anything you want

I hope it's not confusing? I don't see the point in getting somebody to follow a method when they don't know why. You know? This way you can see for yourself whats happening. I found for me it worked so much better.

Simple method, yet deep.

Enjoy!

P.s. Unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, you won't convert to any religion, find super powers, disappear, or become a tantric sex god. (Unless you already were, of course :))

[vonnhelsing]

Hello Red Beard,

Meditation is wonderful. It has helped me SO much to combat anxiety. If ever i feel anxious, i just sit somewhere quiet and meditate for as long as i need to, to clear my mind and relax. There are tons of great videos on youtube you can use to help you start off, teaching you how to meditate. Once you know how to then just play some nice quiet relaxing music. I highly recommend it to all anxiety sufferers. Of course it won't completely eliminate anxiety, but it really does reduce it and calms your nervous system. Your body deserves a break and meditation is basically conscious sleep and will replenish your energy levels. In the beginning it'll be hard to completely clear your mind, you'll find it almost impossible to stop random thoughts popping into your head. It takes time, but if you do meditation every day even if just for 10-15 minutes you'll train your mind to fight off those intrusive thoughts faster.
Get in touch with your spiritual side and enjoy the wonders of meditation! :)
Take care!