Do you meditate and if so, how? I think it could be very beneficial for my PTSD and anxiety. It also can’t hurt my ability to focus etc.
I am planning on getting comfortable, focusing on one small spot and thinking “peace…peace…peace…peace…” or something similar. I may also listen to one of my meditation tracks and just focus on the spot. I am hoping to train myself so I have more control over my brain.
I was introduced to meditation when I was 12 preceding a serious surgery I was stressing about. It seemed to work then but I believe it was immediately thereafter when it failed to work entirely. I simply am unable to get my brain to sit still long enough for it to happen. I am equally incapable of “watching” my thoughts go by.
Cognitively, I’ve gained a lot from college and grad school; I read well, I can analyze things, I learn fairly easily but the meditation thing just never seemed to work.
I did transcendental meditation for a while at school. I think it had some beneficial effect, but it definitely didn’t live up to the claims many of its promoters put forth. I’ve come across practitioners of other forms of meditation who said that wasn’t the correct approach.
My Concentration is bad .so no meditation for me…
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I don’t meditate, I dissociate. Darn that D.I.D Dx.
I meditate 2-3 times a day in 25-30 minute sessions. I cross mindfulness and a transcendental meditation mantra.
What I do is say the word “compassion/” in my head as my mantra. I inhale “commm”. I exhale “passs”. I pause for my next inbreath “sion”. I do this over and over again. In a way I am concentrating on my breath and return to it whenever my mind wanders with patience. It is ok to let the mind wander as long as you come back to the mantra.
Each session is different. Sometimes the mind races, other times it is still. I have moments of bliss and joy and sometimes sadness, Memories surface and I return to the mantra. It took me 2 weeks to get anything out of it, but then it was like I found it was really calming and enjoyable.
I would recommend you do 20 minutes twice a day for at least a month and see how you feel. /it is no quick fix, It takes time and effort to train the mind, like if I was to work out at the gym, it would take months to get some awesome muscles.
I have been practising for 8 weeks properly and I love it. I just did 25 minutes just now and it was a great session.
Good luck…
tried to meditate before meds during psychosis body was shaking the whole time i dont know why i could never be still but it was like a seizure so i couldnt focus my body was pretty much shaking all the time tho and lots of neck spasms i could probably meditate now but i dont feel a need to
I play video games , video games are like meditation to me. but I will buy mala someday and try mantras as well from youtube
Try youtube for some ideas
I try. Everything is just so damn scary. What can you do?
no longer… even guided meditation is a danger to my mental health… there are many ways to do it finding the one that works for you is the trick… saying one way is right and all others are wrong is worded incorrectly… this way is right for me and these other ways do not work for me… is how it should be said…
breath counting is the way I did it… in through the nose out through the mouth pulling in air with your belly not your chest… counting in your head to 6 while you inhale…hold the breath for 6…exhale for 6…remain breathless for 6…repeat until you can do it without counting… 6 may be too long or too short I think I started with 5 and when I was doing it daily I could control my breath to a 10-15 count…
thinking in terms of right way wrong way only limits the possible options you will attempt…
I meditate and have a variety of ways to do so. Sometimes I tell myself a mantra over and over for a few minutes and move on to something else. Other times I sit in the dark and just relax.
I do mindfulness meditation for 15 minutes, twice a day, every single day. I never miss a day. I’ve been doing this since September 2016. It has brought me great benefits: my piano playing has improved greatly, my memory and cognitive function has improved, my problem solving ability has improved greatly, I am no longer confused, my appetite and weight has stabilized, my mood has evened out, I no longer have mood swings, I am calm and cool as a cucumber now, even under stress, I am no longer argumentative, I am no longer cruel, I am compassionate now, and my sleep has improved.
I had the same problem. I started saying things to myself over and over that I wanted to accomplish. Kind of like a wish. But it helped center my mind from being so chaotic.
Sort of, I breath really slowly and deeply while counting backwards from ten, one breath per number. Then I count back up to ten using the same method. My psychiatrist taught me how to do it.
Wow! It sounds like meditation has really helped you a lot. I have yet to try. My dad is home right now and there is too much noise. I’ll try it later on before I go to bed. I want to try it long enough to see if it actually works for me or not. Like 2 or 3 months.
Teach me your ways lol
I feel like meditation recently “clicked” with me. I think I had been trying too hard before. I highly recommend guided meditations. I found some on youtube. I am looking forward to meditating more after finally having some great success with it. It felt amazing.
I just notice my belly expanding with my in breath and notice my belly contracting with my out breath. I might silently say, “in” with the in breath and “out” with the out breath. And that is all. If any thoughts come up, just note them and let them float on by like clouds. Don’t dwell on them. And don’t curse yourself for having thoughts. Just note them and let them float away and go back to watching your breaths.