My father has been a proponent of meditation for years. As his daughter, I of course did not believe him when he told me how, by meditating every morning, he was more mentally agile, creative, and patient. I struggled against his long rants about the benefits of meditation until the week leading up to June’s Law School Admissions Test. In that week, I was beginning to sacrifice sleep to my nerves, and was not able to study effectively due to the importance of the impending test. So one morning, I decided to give meditation a shot. I installed an app called Headspace (yes, my father did recommend) which has a 10-day free trial and is composed of 10-minute meditations. I thought to myself that 10 minutes surely could not make me feel better, but I did it anyway. The results were impressive. After a quick session, I felt refreshed and ready to take on my day; it was magical! Since then I have implemented Headspace into my daily routine, trying to set aside 10 minutes in the morning or evening just to check in with my body, reset for the day ahead, or put the day behind me.
In terms of studying, I think meditation is a great tool to implement as part of a study break. If you have been cramming for an exam for three hours and just really need a cup of coffee, I recommend trying meditation. While it may not cure your semi-serious caffeine addiction, if you put in the effort to make it work for you, it can. In my case, mediating brings me a sense of serenity. It’s sort of like turning off your brain for a little while. Though you acknowledge the thoughts as they come barging into your mind, you simply let them go and continue to cleanse yourself by paying attention to your breath. You can do general meditation, or seek out ones that focus on creativity, sport, kindness, and a whole host of other topics.
I think the most challenging thing about meditation is the fact that it asks you to sit still for a period of time. We are all extremely busy and constantly communicating with one another, so taking all of the extra movement and chatter away feels wrong somehow. I have felt this while meditating too. I drift off and start thinking about recipes I have recently found on Pinterest, or that song I heard in an episode of Mindhunter that I want to download, and that’s okay. Those thoughts don’t lessen your meditation, but you have to have enough mind power to set them free and bring yourself back to the practice. The mistake I believe most people make is to sit down (on a yoga mat or comfortable chair), close their eyes, and wait to feel engaged with their meditation. They want automatic responses like sweating during a cardio workout, but at least in my experience, the benefits come after the practice and that makes it challenging.
In the face of finals next month, you can try Headspace, find a local meditation class, or search a yoga YouTube instructor to guide you through the basic tenets of meditation. It can ease tension, the kind cultivated while hunched over notes and laptops, allow you to focus on the task ahead, and provide a productive way to take a study break. I enjoy Yoga with Adriene’s meditation series, available through her website or through her YouTube channel. Her Meditation for Anxiety video, and her 6-Minute Yoga Chill are two ways to freshen up a study slump, and make yourself feel more balanced and confident. Worse comes to worse, you have practiced some self-love and can bring that into your interactions with the world.
Namaste, my friends.