I Meditated Every Day for 30 Days and This is What Happened
Prior to Christmas 2020, I decided to try meditating for 10 minutes a day, every day. I knew daily meditation was said to help people manage anxiety more effectively, feel less stressed, be more mindful, improve sleep and more, but I had always found it difficult to quiet my mind and had strayed away from it. At the time, I had just quit my full-time job and no longer had a reason to get up out of bed by 6:00 am to start my day, and was wanting to create a semblance of a daily routine for myself. I also wanted a way to practice self-care and help reduce my stress in a wholistic way, and felt meditation would help me do this.
I started by trying to meditate first thing in the morning, before I got out of bed. I would sit up, pile some pillows behind my back for support, pop in my ear buds, and settle in. I have a hard time just sitting still in silence, so I used a meditation app and alternated between listening to guided meditations, chanting, and ambient music. At first, I preferred the guided meditations as they allowed me to have something to focus on so I would get distracted less. But the more and more I meditated, the more I just wanted to sit in stillness and allow my mind quiet. The guided meditations became a nuisance, the narrator a buzzing fly in my ear. As the days went on, I found a preference for mantra chanting and ambient music with a clear drum beat. These types of meditations enabled me to concentrate on being centered instead of going on a journey in my mind’s eye. When I could sit without the distraction of a voice, I found myself able to enter into deeper states of relaxation and mindfulness.
I must admit, I wasn’t perfect. Some mornings I just didn’t want to sit for 10 minutes in silence, so chose instead to start my day early and then meditate after a workout when I could really feel the endorphin rush, or right before I went to bed. One day I fell asleep as soon as I climbed into bed and forgot to meditate, so I added on an extra day to get a full 30 days in. When I first started meditating, I was concerned with being “perfect” - completely clearing my mind, concentrating the whole time, and sitting with my chakras in full alignment. But this is in complete contradiction to meditation and was just me trying to micro-manage one more aspect of my life. By week 2, I realized meditation wasn’t about reaching a state of enlightenment each and every time I sat down, but more of an opportunity to simply be in the moment, tune in to how I was doing, and let go of my stress. It was an exercise in just letting go.
Sometimes I also incorporated breath work, mudras, incense, chanting, and visualization into my daily practice, depending on my mood. On days I was really stressed, I gave myself a break and just allowed myself to sit still and acknowledge my thoughts until the clock ran out. Other days, when I was feeling particularly intrepid, I would repeat a mantra over and over, really feeling its energy, training my mind to focus.
By week 3, I felt out of balance if I didn’t meditate, especially in the morning. It had become a part of my daily routine and I felt incomplete without it. It allowed me to prime myself for the day and gave me a reason to get going in the morning. I can’t say I feel happier or less anxious, or that I am transported to another spiritual plane when I practice, but I do feel more centered - immediately after I get up and for the rest of the day. I feel meditation feeds a tiny flame inside me - of grounding, security, and hope. I can turn to it when I need to relax and wind down, when I need to wake myself up, when I need some reassurance or to cope with stress, and when I just want to disconnect from the rest of the world.
If you’re stressed, looking to develop a deeper spiritual practice, or just want to disconnect, try meditating and see how it works for you. Leave a comment and let me know how it goes!
Many Blessings!