Broad, vast, and mysterious– These are some descriptors that come to mind as I start off this guide to beginning & thriving in meditation because I’m here simply honoring that my ways may not be your ways, but also, that I can support with tools to find your way(s). 

Meditation is a natural state of being that we can all access, and we can rejoice in that! Even so, it is all too common as a Yoga and Meditation guide to encountering the plethora of reasons why an individual cannot access a meditative state;

• “My brain is too loud, too many thoughts”

• “I get too bored/restless’”

• ”I fall asleep, and that’s not meditating!”

• “I just don’t enjoy it”

I can certainly empathize with all of these phrases, however, they do not mean you cannot enjoy the superior rejuvenation benefits of meditation practice. You can, I can, we all can & our ways may be very different.

Let’s place some context around what meditation actually is; an innate healing process all humans (potentially all beings) can access, in which we shift into the parasympathetic nervous system and the mind-body system can process, rejuvenate, and heal deeply. This state of rest is different from the rest that sleep produces and has the potential to create states of recovery deeper than the deepest sleep you could ever have (please note that it does not replace sleep!). 

I think I’m justified in making the blanket statement: we all need meditation. Life has a strong habit of making waves in our nervous system, albeit this is normal, we need our tools to recalibrate ourselves. Meditative practices should be given a place of high priority in our schedules, and also something that we genuinely look forward to.

I’ll share a bit of my own story with cultivating a daily practice here- I knew I needed to recalibrate my nervous system, so I began to explore this further and hone in on this personal ‘WHY’, or my fuel to form a meditation habit. I felt the pangs of many circumstances in my life unraveling; my interpersonal relationships were deteriorating, my work was lacking inspiration, and I had experienced too many traumatic events to count that kept me up at night, and they deeply, deeply hurt. 

I chose to use an App, Insight Timer (not a paid ad haha), to keep me accountable. Every morning, 10 min, sometimes even less, just experiencing myself. And it worked! I did not impose any rules on myself, I just let myself explore and soften. Allowing my mind to do its exquisite filing, processing, and integrating work fascinates and rejuvenates me, but big BUT here, that’s me. 

Fast forward, I was able to keep my habit of daily meditation but I was also experiencing some resistance and lack of authenticity, and I needed some guidance. Enter my amazing teachers Camille and Lorin of The Radiance Sutras School of Meditation. In their approach, I was able to truly see myself as I am, recognize my colorful individuality, and claim my sovereignty in meditation. 

I can say proudly that my meditation practice now feels like one of the biggest solids of my life. That little space in my day I create is so cherished, ever-evolving, exciting, and wildly intimate. The ways I teach meditation have also evolved, and continue their expansion with each student I teach, as each one reveals a new proprietary technique that they specifically embody like an expert. 

Let’s cover some tools for getting started: 

1. Discover your WHY; what within you is calling for that sacred time with self? Does the call represent a need for nurturing, self-discovery, rejuvenation, or something else? Trust your intuition here (which is a skill all it’s own!). 

2. Follow your desires & be with what you love; This is to say, your meditation practice should be in congruence with your current needs. Do you need to lay down, stand up, or add some movement? Do you love listening to the soothing tones of your breath? Is there a mantra in your own native language or another that supports your growth? Is nature your refuge? Discover and honor the pathways of what you love, and your meditation practice will be something you absolutely adore and look forward to each day. 

3. Befriend an accountability tool; for me, it was my insight timer app, then it became that in conjunction with my meditation community. This is something that does not need to look any one way, but from experience, I have seen this be helpful for so many folks who are understandably busy in life and need tools. If technology turns you off, look for communities or a meditation buddy to support you in your journey, and you in theirs. 

4. Keep a journal nearby; journaling is a potent practice that allows us to ‘brain-dump’ some of our amazing thoughts we have, which may be seeking an outlet. When we meditate many thoughts have the space to emerge, this is a great thing to occur for us! Stopping and writing while meditating may or may not resonate with you but having your journal nearby as an option allows us to jot down inspirations we’d like to remember (like, must buy more dish soap!). The journal is also there for post-meditation musings to be expressed as well; for me, this has been a great way of taking stock of what occurred in my meditation and how amazing that little 10-30 minutes of my day truly was. 

And some tools to thrive in meditation:

1. Embrace your weird, release shame; If we want to create a sustainable practice that will endure throughout our lifetime, we should consider the ways that we can craft our practice to meet us where we are at any given moment, sans force or shame of what we cannot achieve in the moment. We want a practice that can be rejuvenating or energizing, thrilling or grounding, exploratory and also familiar…depending on our particular needs. You want to start with understanding your beloved pathways into your inner world, ones that when practiced leave you feeling like you’ve just come back from a 10-day vacation, ready to take on the world. Shame serves no purpose, so if you’re beating yourself up for an active mind, or the inability to sit in a lotus position for hours on end, just know that you in your you-niqueness can meditate just fine, you may just need to do some exploration into what tools for meditation suit you best, and I’m right there with you, always uncovering more gems. 

2. Realize the potential; we want something to support us in our day-to-day life, am I right? Your meditation practice can be that tool, but we have to lean in, and again accept the practice as it is at any given moment. In a stressful event in life, you may lose your precious meditation time, but do you have one minute to spare somewhere? See if you can tune-in for the span of just a minute or two, allowing yourself to be absorbed fully into any sensations you feel, a mantra of choice, or your life-affirming breath. In a minute, you can shift, and there is no meditation too short in my book. This practice has the potential to create endless positive shifts in our lives, let’s lean into that magic and let it permeate even the most mundane areas of our lives.  

3. Welcome, Accept, Embrace; You wear many hats in life I’m sure. The sibling, the child, the coworker, the partner, the friend, and so on. We also have many, many inner parts to us. During meditation, aspects of our life will inevitably rise to the surface and we can view them while poised in a safe container, awake and relaxed. When we notice something that needs tenderness or attention, invite yourself to welcome this to the party, try the mantra, “This too”. If this is where you need to stop because something heavy has emerged, hold that with tenderness and feel free to move on. If we can keep the process going, we can see about accepting this experience as part of our reality, try,  “This is true for me, and I hold it with grace and ease”. Then Embracing, or celebrating what comes up for us, this is for me like wrapping my arms around that thing and holding it with love with the sentiment, “I embrace this as it is and I meet it with love”, or, “I embrace this as it is, and I ask God(dess) to help me carry it”. 

Ahh yes, broad, vast, and mysterious indeed. Throughout writing this, I’ve gotten up several times to move my body, dance with this topic, and then attempt to find words to express my points succinctly, but it’s imperfect and incomplete because this practice needs you. 

Your own expression of meditation, the ways you experience your original self, and your most authentic essence are medicinal both for yourself and for the collective we are blessed to be a part of. I recognize that this guide will never be complete, and I’m more than okay with that, I’m thrilled about it because I look forward to exploring new pathways, gathering more tools along the way. 

My prayer is that some part of this sparked something within you and that you feel your inner flame and its strength drawing you inwards for exploration, rejuvenation, and healing. 

If you are willing, I’d love to learn from you and hear your pathways into meditation. Feel free to share in the comments below!

With Love & Gratitude,

Kayla