The first steps toward finding some inner calm with meditation
BERLIN - Meditation is widely seen as an effective way to reduce stress, focus your mind and manage symptoms of some health conditions, among other things. All you have to do is sit quietly, close your eyes and be suffused with inner calm. Right?
Well, not quite, as two experts explain in the following. They point out how to get off to a good start though, and why almost everyone can benefit from meditation and its cousin, mindfulness.
Meditation is an ancient practice of focusing one's attention on the present moment to achieve a state of mental clarity, emotional calmness and physical relaxation. It has its roots in the religious and secular traditions of various cultures and has been practiced for thousands of years.
While the theory of meditation is complex, basically anyone can learn how to practice it. All you need is "curiosity and interest in getting involved with it," says psychotherapist Steffen Brandt, who's also a yoga and meditation instructor. Having a spiritual bent isn't necessary.
A lot of people are familiar with active meditation - or meditation in motion - such as yoga. Like passive meditation, done sitting still, it cultivates mindfulness, a mental state that doesn't require the tool of meditation.
Modern mindfulness programs are often secular in nature, a well-known example being mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). Developed by US molecular biologist Jon Kabat-Zinn in the 1970s, it aims to manage stress, regulate emotions and enhance well-being.
Dr Martina Assmann, chairwoman of an association of mindfulness instructors in Germany, says meditation can simply mean consciously remaining in the present moment, "which anybody can learn within limits."
Basically anyone can benefit from meditation, says Brandt, as "it's essentially a concentrative exercise." You learn to regularly direct your mind towards something specific, such as your breathing or bodily sensations, which can lead to "greater relaxation, equanimity and inner calm."
Studies show that mindfulness and meditation reduce stress, improve stress resilience, and can have a positive effect on mood, depression and anxiety disorders.
Assmann describes the effects of mindfulness and meditation thus: "The good news is that you become more sensitive. The bad news is that you become more sensitive." Food has a stronger taste, for example, you feel the air on your skin, and joy and emotional attachment more distinctly.
"But you also realize you have stupid thoughts sometimes, that you're afraid in situations you thought you could easily manage."
Instructors often explain meditation as a means towards greater self-awareness, beginning with bodily sensations and extending to feelings and thoughts.
The best way to approach meditation is with realistic expectations, advises Brandt, who says many people associate it with enlightenment. "Then the exact opposite happens: First they find that a lot of brain noise or emotional chaos turns up, since the exercise acts as mirror of one's inner self."
Touting meditation as a panacea is also problematic. "Some people have great expectations of its curative power," hoping they'll be able to "relax incredibly well" or "meditate away" depression or an anxiety disorder, Brandt says. However, meditation can aid but not replace therapy.
Meditation and mindfulness can bring appreciable relief though, mainly because they create distance. It's a matter of "settling" in the present moment, says Assmann, of becoming more aware of it and not feeling compelled to react immediately to things.
In stressful situations you can step back and ask yourself, "What's going on now? Are my life and limb in danger? No, it's just an email!" This is how mindfulness helps reduce stress, she says, "because you don't have to scratch an itch right away, or leap to your feet as soon as it rings somewhere."
How do you find a meditation technique that suits you? Holding still in the lotus position is difficult for many people at first. So for starters, Brandt suggests trying out different techniques. Free online meditation sessions can help you to get started - many websites offer guided meditation.
"After all, you may well have no idea what 'type' you are, and might discover what it is you gravitate towards," he says.
It helps to consider, for instance, whether the meditation should be active or passive, secular or with a certain religious/philosophical underpinning, with or without joss sticks or meditation music.
Brandt says it's important to decide on a technique at some point and stick with it, because the long-term goal is to truly enter into a meditative process.
In his experience, purely online meditation formats often provide too little support. "In many cases there's no one to whom you can't pose questions that arise when your mind revs up in the stillness of meditation." As this can be frustrating, a meditation course led by an instructor is a good alternative.
In order to really understand and internalize meditation, Assmann, too, recommends getting support from someone who's well versed in it and can cushion any irritation and answer questions.
Mindfulness, she emphasizes, is an attitude that you can adopt, and whose effects on mind and body are well researched. What's also known though, is that "what takes place isn't lasting." So if you stop practicing it, a lot of what you've gained atrophies after a few weeks.
Lastingly reducing stress therefore requires continuity, for example via an established mindfulness routine in which you set aside a fixed time each day. Or practicing mindfulness in everyday situations, say, consciously enjoying your morning coffee sans smartphone, or not looking at it on public transport, but concentrating on your surroundings instead.
Brandt recommends incorporating meditation into your daily routine, at a set time in the morning or evening and in the right setting: a quiet place where you're undisturbed, your smartphone is turned off, and your children aren't around.
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