Let’s Meditate!

by Alex Sanchez

I was introduced to meditation by taking a yoga class in college. Initially, I was not very good at meditating because I am naturally a fidgety person who suffers from ADHD. The longest I could do it at first was 4–5 minutes. But after practicing for a few weeks, I was able to hold my attention longer, began to lean more into it and started to see some benefits.

The initial benefit I recognized was feeling mentally refreshed. It was a breath of fresh air for my constantly stimulated brain. After meditating consistently, I also started to feel a release of stress, my attention for virtual classes improved, and felt emotionally healthier. It was a non-time-consuming exercise which had so many benefits. I am writing about meditation for a couple reasons. First, I was recently finding it difficult to focus on my work from home. Second, I was looking for a healthy outlet for my stress and then remembered when I used to practice it in college. I picked meditation back up and all the benefits I experienced from college came rushing back and it began to have a positive impact on my work. Another reason I would recommend meditation, is that as consultants who often face stressful situations, this is a healthy outlet. I hope from sharing my experiences that anyone reading this will feel encouraged to try meditation and see similar positive experiences. Some of the top scientifically proven benefits listed in a Healthline article are reduced stress and anxiety, enhancing self-awareness, and a lengthened attention span (Healthline, 2020).

Now I want talk about how to begin practicing. My two preferred times to meditate are in the morning before work or at night before I go to bed. I find myself most free during those times. The morning is my preference because it helps reduce any stress or anxiety I might have leading into the workday. I’m going to list out a few other helpful/important tips:

· Focus on your breathing

· Pick out a space in your home where you will dedicate to meditating

· Try and reduce any external noise

· Be consistent, however many times you choose to do it in a week, then be consistent and stick with that

Lastly, a couple of free apps I would recommend are Headspace and Calm. Personally, I prefer to use the 10 Minute Mindfulness Meditation videos from Calm’s YouTube channel.

Good luck on your meditation journey!