Just Sit

Back when the Beatles traveled to the foothills of the Indian Himalayas to study Transcendental Meditation (TM) with Maharishi-guru, most people thought of the activity as some sort of new age, hippie pastime. But over the past few decades, scientific studies have revealed time and again the significant benefits of meditation in terms of health and wellbeing.

The National Institutes for Health (NIH) reports that in clinical trails, meditation has been shown to relieve stress, asthma, and symptoms of chronic pain; reduce frequency and intensity of hot flashes among menopausal women; and improve attention and focus. It is thought to work by minimizing our body’s stress response and increasing activity of the parasympathetic nervous system (causing heart and breathing rate to slow, blood flow to increase, and digestion to improve). And it’s free, available to everyone regardless of age or health, and can be done in the convenience of your own home.

I have attended two ten-day silent Vipassana meditation retreats (find out how you can, too, at www.dhamma.org). Not only were we not permitted to talk, but we could not listen to music, write in a journal, exercise (other than walking during breaks), or read books. Basically, we had to live in the prison of our own minds with no distractions.

I was so nervous on my first day there that I nearly threw up on the meditation hall floor.  Seriously. For three straight 16-hour long days, I stewed, raged, got bored, fidgeted, and generally hated the experience. The only part I looked forward to was the delicious vegetarian lunch.

But on Day Four, I had a breakthrough. The afternoon session slipped by without my becoming anxious or agitated. In fact, I couldn’t believe it when the gong sounded, signaling that the evening tea break had begun. My mind had quieted down. I had found peace. I bowed forward on my cushion, placed my forehead on the floor, and wept with gratitude. Of course the very next day, I was back to my jumpy self… but at least I knew that my efforts were getting me somewhere.

If you don’t have a meditation practice, I recommend giving it a try. Just pick a quiet place in your house and set an alarm for 15 (or start with five, then ten, then work your way up to even 60) minutes. Sit comfortably on a cushion with a tall spine, and watch the breath move in and out of your nostrils. When you notice your mind wandering, simply label what you’re doing without judgment (“thinking,” “planning,” “remembering,” “fantasizing”), and then return to monitoring your breath.*

My favorite excuse people give for not meditating is: “I’m no good at it!” Really? I say. Guess what? None of us are good at it! You’re not born a meditator, anymore than you’re born a pianist or athlete or doctor. You have to work at it. What’s more, there’s no such thing as a good or bad sit. If you’re sitting, you are by definition meditating. Some days are easier than others. Some days bring a nearly instant sense of calm and grounding, whereas some days you’ll find your mind wandering and struggling throughout.

But isn’t that the nature of life? We feel more balanced and competent when we stand in our deep-rooted sense of who we are and the goodness of life, than when we allow ourselves to get swept up with intense emotional responses to every “good” or “bad” event that happens. The key—to meditation and to wellbeing—is not to judge or react, but rather to find equanimity, returning to the breath time and again no matter what whirlwinds surround and invade us.

*If you want to learn more about meditation, I strongly recommend the classic book “Wherever you Go, There you Are” by Jon Kabat-Zinn, MD. You might also try attending a meditation group at a church, yoga studio, hospital or wellness center, or Buddhist facility near you.