If even just a piece of you is curious about the practice of meditation, I encourage you to give it a shot.
When I burnt out hard as a full-time working mom in 2022, I went on an introspective journey to find my way back to a healthier version of myself.
I read books, revisited familiar workouts and tried my hand at new ones. I limited screen time, took PTO and increased my time outside when I could.
I was trying variations of all these things, among others, yet completely skirted around one tool that kept coming up – meditation.
An amateur yoga-lover for most of my life, I had only ever meditated if it was built into a class, but never did I ever just attempt the practice as a stand-alone act.
I had these notions in my head about why it just wasn’t for me.
“I can’t sit still that long.”
“My mind has too many racing thoughts for this.”
“I’m too busy.”
And let’s be real, in this season of motherhood when we are constantly anticipating and meeting everyone else’s needs, carving out time to just be, by ourselves can feel like an impossible, almost selfish, rebellious and counterproductive feat.
When viewed through that lens, it’s natural to let it be one of the first things to fall from our ever-overflowing, aspirational to-do lists.
But I continued to hear of the benefits that included things like:
- Reduced stress, anxiety and depression
- Enhanced self-awareness
- Better sleep
- Increased production of alpha and theta brain waves which support creativity and problem-solving abilities
Seeing only positives that would help me crawl out of my burn out and help me come out more resilient, my curiosity finally got the better of me to give it a try, but I was totally naïve of where to even start.
Books by Jay Shetty and Dr. James Hollis included some guidance on the matter, so I consumed those and sought out other materials like podcasts, articles, etc., that featured them discussing the topic.
Ultimately, I found my way to the treasure trove of guided meditations available on YouTube, which felt like the perfect starting point for a complete beginner like myself.
Being free and readily available, the barrier to entry through that channel was low so I started to dabble.
I’d carve out five minutes here, ten minutes there. Nothing too rigorous or lengthy, just something so I could get a feel for what felt natural, inviting and sustainable for me.
There was a LOT of starting and stopping at the beginning and it took me really examining my schedule and habits to find a time I could consistently do this.
For me, that time turned out to be just as I wake up and am still lying in bed. I pop in my earbuds, navigate quickly to my go-to playlist, push play and go.
Some of my favorites I revisit frequently include:
- Wake up slow – Morning Meditation
- Lying Down Meditation for Beginners
- Five min. Laying Down Wake up Happy Meditation
- Guided Meditation for Mornings/ Clear Negativity Open Chakras Awaken Vital Energy After Sleep
Despite morning being my preferred time, I have done it in the middle of the day, too, and just as I’m drifting to sleep. It really just depends what my schedule is like and what I’m feeling my body and mind need in that moment.
Is that the right way to go about it? Who knows. I certainly don’t.
I’m still very much in the early stages of my meditation journey and am FAR from an expert, but one thing is for sure, through meditation I’ve been able to embrace more slowness, more presence, more simply being.
And I now understand that doing absolutely NOTHING occasionally is A-OK, allowed and honestly sometimes the solution to being a better mom.
The underlying drive I used to feel to constantly be productive was taking a serious toll on my physical and mental health and this practice helps me keep that in check.
There’s SO MUCH MORE I have to learn on the matter and I am just now exploring more about things like the various styles and types of meditations that exist such as focused attention, open monitoring and automatic self-transcending.
But for anyone just starting out, I encourage you to NOT get hung up on the nuanced differences and details, and instead just try different guided options that speak to you.
If even just a piece of you is curious about the practice of meditation, I encourage you to give it a shot. Remind yourself there’s no harm in trying something new—no matter how unfamiliar and out of your realm it may initially seem. Will it feel weird at first? Most likely yes! But are we getting graded or ranked on how “well” we do? ABSOLUTELY NOT. Just lean into the process and let yourself explore what does and doesn’t work for you in this season of life.
