Creatures Caves

I was asked to give some information about what meditation I do, and thought I'd post it here in case it was of interest or use to anyone else.

I've been meditating on and off for over 12 years; I started when I was very anxious and stressed out after my mother died. Some time earlier I'd found a book by Jon Kabat-Zinn about mindfulness, and when I was really freaking out, got a copy of his book "Full Catastrophe Living". This is a book about how to use mindfulness to stop your mind being so jumpy and reactive all the time, something I desperately needed. I never did the full 8-week program, but I took enough tools away from the book that really helped. Unfortunately, as I got life a bit more under control, I did the meditation less.

Mindfulness meditation is about developing awareness. In its simplest form, you wear something comfortable and sit somewhere quiet, close your eyes and just focus on your breathing. Not thinking about it; just paying attention to it, being aware of it. As you do this, you'll get bored, and your mind will wander to thinking about other things. As soon as you realise this has happened, you let go of the thought and - without criticising yourself! - turn your attention back to the breath.

And that's all you have to do, though you'll quickly find out that 'simple' isn't the same as 'easy'!

Other mindfulness meditations: eating meditation. Take two or three raisins, or grapes, or other small munchies of your choice, and really see them - the colours, the textures. What do they feel like? What do they smell like? Slowly, being aware of your body's movements, put one in your mouth and chew it. Really taste it. How does the texture change? When you're done with the whole eating process, repeat for the other things.

Walking meditation: you can do this at any speed, but the experience will vary. The aim is to be aware of the sensations of your body as you walk; the feel of the path, the feel of sun or wind on your skin, smells in the air, things you can hear, the feel of your body as you move through space. I find this quite a difficult one.

Body scan: there are some good body scans available on the web. You can do this yourself, but it's easier to be guided by a recording when you start. Starting with your feet, you try to be aware of each limb in turn, not thinking about it but being with it, really feeling it, whatever's there. You gradually progress through the body, moving your awareness. If you get distracted by thoughts, as soon as you realise then you let the thought go, listen to the recording and focus on the relevant area of the body.

Body scan was the meditation I did most when I was very stressed, because there was something very comforting about listening to someone - it was like I wasn't on my own, there was someone who cared, if only in the most general sense.

I want to stress that awareness is not about "trying not to think" or "trying not to feel" because mindfulness isn't about striving, it's about seeing what's there and accepting it because it's already part of the moment, and it's ok. It's ok to feel lousy, or stressed, or panicky, or bouncy, or whatever it is you are feeling. It's ok because it's already here; it's about accepting it, but not getting dragged along with it.

There's a different take on this by the writer Vivienne Tuffnell, who uses a visualisation for those times when emotions are overwhelming.

Some people meditate with mindful awareness, but that's pretty advanced. You sit with no aim, no focus, just being aware of whatever comes up; thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, pain, noises, smells, anything, just practising being aware of it but not getting dragged into it. Sometimes it's useful to have a bell ring at random intervals; if you're fully aware, it won't make you jump. If you've lost focus, it will.

There are several meditation bell sites on the internet (I use this one), and there are smartphone apps which do the same thing.

Over time, there seem to be two main benefits to mindfulness meditation: you become more aware generally, even if you aren't meditating you pay attention to things more, so life becomes richer. And your mind does become less reactive; you might still get jumpy or distracted, but the effects are less, because you've been practising not getting caught up with the emotions, but you can still see them for what they are, because you're more aware of them.