The first time I tried meditation, I wasn’t impressed.
“It’s too hard,” I told my husband. “I’m not sure how this is going to change my life.”
It was only upon reading more about it that I realized I was applying my overachieving self to my meditation practice. I was breathing like I was doing yoga—where I was inhaling through my nose and exhaling through my mouth, with effort, making the Darth Vader-like sound. I didn’t realize that meditation was as simple as sitting, breathing normally and comfortably, and allowing the thoughts that come up to simply float away like clouds across the sky.
After doing more than 160 sessions of meditation (at least, according to Insight Timer, my favorite meditation app), here are five reasons why meditation is magic:
1. I have become more mindful.
Mindfulness the newest buzzword. But what it means for me is that meditation has helped me become less reactive and more thoughtful and measured in my responses.
In the middle of a thought, I have felt myself pause and ask, “Is that really true?” Before a knee-jerk response, I check in, “Is this how I really want to act right now?” When I make a mistake, I don’t beat myself up over it. Instead I tell myself, “It’s okay. How can I make this better?”
2. I start my day calmly instead of feeling stressed and overwhelmed.
I used to check my email, Instagram and Flipboard first thing in the morning. Before I know it, I’ve filled my head with noise and comparison-envy…and that’s just in the first 15 minutes of my day.
By meditating first thing in the morning, I can center myself with prayer, serenity, the soothing voice of a meditation master or the tranquil sounds of ocean waves. That space of peace permeates the rest of my morning and even my day.
3. I’ve built more habits on top of my meditation habit.
Charles Duhigg, the author of The Power of Habit, calls them “keystone habits.” These habits “spark chain reactions that help other good habits take hold.”
Meditation is my keystone habit. It has clarified for me how I want to live and to choose my actions accordingly instead of just reacting to a situation.
After meditation, I do my (Youtube) barre exercises and eat a healthy breakfast before starting my workday. This routine makes me feel good and starts me off with the right mindset for work.
4. It reminds me about the power of the breath and the present moment.
Happiness lies in appreciating and living in the present moment. Meditation allows me to do that and to practice that daily. It feels like time is slowing down, where I can notice the air caressing my skin, the motion of the breath moving in and out of my body, the thoughts swirling in my brain.
5. It has gifted me with flashes of insight.
In the middle of a meditation session, I’ve received intuitive gifts—flashes of insight about my life or what I should be doing with my day. In the quiet, I can more clearly hear my intuition. Sometimes, I can even feel my third eye throbbing. When that happens, I focus my attention on that part of the body and allow what needs to come up to rise to the surface.
If you want to try meditation as another habit to nourish you, I suggest using an app like Headspace. When you get more practice, try the guided meditations on Insight Timer (as they’re free unlike Headspace). My favorites are Ten Minutes of Mindfulness and Morning Meditation with Music.
