Finding My Peace

“Meditation is the ultimate mobile device; you can use it anywhere, anytime, unobtrusively,” writes renowned mindfulness teacher Sharon Salzberg in her 2010 New York Times best-selling book, Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation. If only I turned to meditation as willingly and as frequently as I reach for my actual mobile device.

The reality is, of all the healthy-living habits we write about in Experience Life, this is the one I’ve had the most trouble making part of my routine. Though it’s not for lack of trying.

Over the past 20 years, I’ve repeatedly attempted to adopt a meditation practice. I’ve bought books with daily prompts, downloaded apps with chimes and timers, and put reminders on my phone. For whatever reason, it hasn’t stuck.

Wake up bright and early five mornings a week to work out? No problem. Take my vitamins and supplements like clockwork? Done. Maintain a decent sleep schedule? I’ve got that covered too (at least most of the time).

It’s not for lack of awareness about meditation’s many benefits. In these pages of Experience Life and elsewhere, I’ve learned how a meditation practice can help us develop focus, mindfulness, greater compassion and empathy, and other skills. Mentally and physically, it can help reduce anxiety and depression, lower blood pressure, and boost immunity.

So what’s the deal with my resistance?

I think it comes down to accountability. I’m typically not doing my other health-supportive habits on my own. Connection and community — in some form or another — keep me on track.

Meditation is truly a solo endeavor, and when I’m accountable only to myself, I tend to let good habits slip. I’m aiming to change that this spring.

But meditation is truly a solo endeavor, and when I’m accountable only to myself, I tend to let good habits slip. I’m aiming to change that this spring.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month — the inspiration for this issue’s “Find Your Peace” theme.  So I’m recommitting to prioritizing my mental well-being. Just as strength training is one of the tools I use to build my fitness, meditation will be a resource for supporting my emotional health.

I’ll start small, with just five minutes a day.  And, alongside thousands of others, I’ll follow the guidance of the four-week mindfulness challenge in the Life Time app (free for everyone). Checking that box on the daily schedule — and knowing I’m not the only one doing so — might just be the motivation I need to finally make this habit stick.

In this busy phase of life, I’ll also look for moments to slow down and just be. It might be dabbing an essential oil on my wrist and taking a few minutes to breathe. It might be devoting five minutes of my morning run to listening to the birds chirp. It might be breaking down a project into smaller parts so it feels more feasible. You get the picture. (For more ideas, see “7 Ways Movement Benefits Mental Health” and “22 Ways to Lighten Your Mood.”)

It’s all about taking the time to care for myself amid all the other to-dos. Even if it’s just five minutes, it’s something. And that’s way better than nothing.

This article originally appeared as “Take Five” in the May/June issue of Experience Life. 

The post Finding My Peace appeared first on Experience Life.