Over this quarantine period, I have made a habit of setting aside 5-10 minutes every morning for a meditation session. After my workout, I will lay back on my bed and pick a morning guided meditation session from YouTube to start my day. As someone who was a bit critical about meditation in the past, I was surprised to find that taking the time to meditate had a positive effect on my mental health and my productivity levels during the day.
I know that some choose to meditate in the evenings. While I can respect and understand this (depending on your schedule), I think taking the time to meditate in the morning is the most beneficial because in my experience, by the time the evening rolls around, I am so exhausted that I will likely fall asleep if I try to meditate. While this may be what some are looking for, I do meditation with the hope of coming out of it more energized and motivated to start my day!
The first video (or method) you try to meditate with might not be for you. Some choose not to do a guided meditation and instead use nature sounds or enjoy the stillness in whatever space they are in. As someone who is a chronic over worrier and overthinker, I need the guided meditation to keep myself on track and honed into my thoughts and body. I am hoping to get to the point where I do not need this aid, but at this point in my meditation journey, I need it.
By meditating in the morning, I find that I can focus on my work without feeling the itch to grab my phone and check my messages (anyone else?). Following my meditation session, I also use the Steam “game” Virtual Cottage. A free app, Virtual Cottage supplies lo-fi beats and rain/fire/wind/snow sounds to help create an ambient atmosphere. As someone who gets tired of hearing a busy road on the other side of my bedroom all day, having this application on my computer helps me tap back into the meditative state that I create every morning. Today, I have logged over 120 hours in the application and have even unlocked some achievements (showing the amount of time I spend sitting on my PC doing work. Yikes).
I encourage you to take some time for your mental health each morning to try meditation. Taking five minutes each day can drastically change your mindset and set you up for success. As the world slowly transitions to the new normal that we will be in once everyone gets vaccinated, I hope to continue my practice of meditation to help myself cope and lessen my anxiety. I hope it manages to do the same for you as well.