Life is full of ups and downs, and it can be hard to find moments of peace and calm. When things are getting crazy, sometimes the best thing to do is to take a moment to yourself. Meditation is a great way to do this, slowing down your body and mind to a more relaxing pace.

What is meditation? Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years, by various different cultures and people. It is a collection of techniques used to focus and be aware while in a state of relaxation. Meditation is a useful tool that can be used by anyone to further their own personal growth and mindfulness.

To start with, you don’t need anything except for a quiet area.. Once you’ve found an area you can relax in, you’ll want to find a place to sit, typically on the floor. Make sure to remove any distractions, such as turning off a TV, silencing your phone, etc. Some people like to listen to music as they meditate, whichever works best for you. If you do decide to listen to music, keep it calm and repetitive. There are plenty of public meditation playlists available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, and more. 

Wherever you may be sitting, make sure it’s in a comfortable place and position, as you will have to hold it for your desired amount of time. Once you are situated in your spot, begin focusing on your breathing. Meditation is centralized around breathing. Try to keep it even and steady, with long breaths that fill your lungs. It might be hard at first for your mind not to wander and start thinking about other things, but that’s okay and it will definitely happen. If you start to notice your mind drifting off you can bring it back and refocus on your breathing.

Setting a time limit is great to help ease into meditating, so when you feel like you’ve been doing it long enough, you can slowly open your eyes. Make sure to take note of the way your body feels and any thoughts that may come to mind. Not only does meditation help destress and sort out your thoughts, but it even improves physical and mental wellbeing. 

It may seem complicated at first, but in reality, meditation is a simple thing and anyone could do it. When you feel like you’ve taken part in it enough, you can research countless other techniques and tricks for meditating. Giving yourself this time to be with yourself is worth it.