Is your stress and anxiety building up? Try these relaxing meditation techniques to calm your mind and have peace in your heart.
Meditation and mental health are closely related. In fact, any conversation about treating depression, anxiety, and mood disorders wouldn’t be complete without the mention of meditation as an effective coping technique. It’s a calming activity that you can do anywhere and anytime, and it’s very cost-effective, too!
When practiced daily, it impacts not just your mind but your body. From improved concentration to stress reduction and even help in fighting addiction, it provides plenty of benefits that can improve overall wellbeing.
Just like any activity, there’s no one-style-fixes-everything type of meditation technique. The best type of meditation practice is the type that works for you. With over hundreds of different techniques stemming from different disciplines, you won’t run out of choices to try. The best part? Exploring different styles can be refreshing and fun as you also get to know their history, origin, culture, and spiritual disciplines.
Since we know sorting through the different styles can be overwhelming, we’ve compiled a list of the most popular meditation styles you can start from.
Are you ready?
Guided Meditation
One of the most popular types of meditation today, this is recommended for beginners because a teacher will be walking you through the process. The style will depend on the teacher, so you can choose depending on which technique one you’d like to explore the most and change periodically to find the best one that suits you.
Instead of navigating on your own, you will be listening to the instructions of your guide. This gives you a little bit more space in focusing on your intentions and building proper foundations as you go through the basics of proper breathing technique and quietness with an expert.
It can be done face-to-face, with a group, or also through a pre-recorded message played on an app or a YouTube channel. It’s a favorite among many because it’s very convenient and efficient, you can do it in 10 minutes or less!
Mindfulness Meditation
Keeping up with a day job and responsibilities can be quite challenging; daily routine is made up of to-dos that need to be done because each day brings with it a new list. That’s why it isn’t uncommon to go through your busy lifestyle with a distracted mind. With so many goals to do, bills to pay, and problems to solve, your mind can be flooded with so many thoughts that you’re left going through the motions in autopilot.
This is where mindfulness is most helpful — it can help you become more present. The purpose of mindfulness meditation is to achieve a clear mind and emotionally calm state by enhancing your awareness of what's happening in the moment. This is done through concentrative meditation that taps into your senses that teaches you how to pay attention to the sensory experiences around you. When your mind is immersed in processing the sound of the wind or the different fragrances in the room, it will slowly drain away past problems or future worries leaving you more calm and relaxed.
Mantra Meditation
In mantra meditation, you focus on a specific mantra instead of quieting the mind. The goal is to manifest the mantra into being. This is ideal for those who want a boost in confidence or those who have been wanting a promotion or healing.
Some of the mantras often used in this practice include:
“I am worthy.”
“I am loved.”
“I am healing.”
“I am brave.”
“I will grow.”
Mantras are catered to whatever it is that you need at the moment. They are typically short, so they can be easily remembered and repeated over and over. Through a combination of repetition and relaxation, positive thoughts are reinforced in the mind and become an empowering thought that can promote a healthier outlook in life.
Body Scan
The body is believed to hold negative emotions, toxic experiences, and traumas. Sometimes, stress and tension can manifest into physical discomforts like headaches and muscle pain. Most of the time, we’re not even aware of some of them.
The goal of body scan meditation is to help release those unnecessary tension stored in your body by helping you become more attuned to your physical senses. Similar to mindful meditation, this technique involves paying attention to bodily sensations. However, instead of grounding the mind to the present, you’re attuning your mind to listen to your body and identify specific stress points. You want to learn what kinds of discomfort or pain you’re experiencing, learn from them, and better manage them. Ultimately, leaving you more in sync with your body.
This technique is called body scan because it is similar to visualizing a light scanning your body from top to bottom, moving much like a photocopier.
Vipassana Meditation
Vipassana is one of the most ancient meditation techniques and typically needs a teacher or guide because it requires intense concentration. The meditator practices mindful awareness and examines certain aspects of his/her own existence while in an unreactive and observant phase.
This is also known as “insight meditation” because it promotes self-observation in a neutral stance. While practicing Vipassana, you will be encouraged to “see things as they are without judgments”. The ultimate goal is to contemplate over suffering, impermanence, and emptiness - some key aspects of human existence, and be accepting of its role in your life.
In this method, you will be practicing mindfulness but in a more focused manner by concentrating on a specific image or task, then processing your inner self — emotions, thoughts, and bodily reactions — associated with that.
The proper way to do this is by just going through it. Your inner self is meant to be understood, not to be controlled.
Loving Kindness Meditation
Loving Kindness Meditation focuses on sending positivity and love to oneself and others. In this practice, you visualize a person that you want to send well wishes and love to. Being able to wish goodness on other people, especially those you are in conflict with will teach you to be more kind and compassionate.
But this technique isn’t limited to outward positivity, it works just as well for self-positivity. If anything, it can be a good starting point to channeling a healthy mindset. You can’t share what you don’t have, so learning to extend loving kindness to yourself can help you love others better, too.
A good way to do this is through positive journaling. Writing in a calm manner while focusing on loving thoughts is an effective meditation practice that can add variation to your relaxation practices. Using a notebook or digital journal like Grateful, list down three to five things that you love about yourself, make it a point to read them before you sleep, and right after you wake up the next day.
Daily practice of this type of meditation can be especially helpful in thwarting self-negativity.
Chakra Meditation
Chakras are focal points in the body that are thought to be energy points, and these essential points are linked to nerves, organs and also emotions. It is believed that these chakras should be opened and aligned so that you are able to function optimally and your energy can flow continually. When your chakra is blocked, it can result in physical or emotional turmoil.
Essentially, there are seven core chakras in the body:
- Root Chakra found at the base of your spine. This is connected to your most basic needs: food, shelter, and stability.
- Sacral Chakra found below the navel. This is linked to your creative process.
- Solar Plexus Chakra sitting above your navel and below your stomach. This is associated with digestion, mental health, and spirit.
- Heart Chakra located around the chest. This is linked to emotional connections.
- Throat Chakra seated at the throat. This is about self-expression and communication.
- Third Eye Chakra found above the eyebrows. This is where insight and intuition on spiritual and earthly things is governed
- Crown Chakra at the top of your head. A balanced crown chakra promotes peace, balance, and well-being.
If you’re trying this for the first time, it may be hard to keep track of all the energy centers. So, it’s best to opt for guided meditation at the beginning and build your foundations from there.
THE BEST TECHNIQUE IS THE ONE THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU
It doesn’t really matter when you go for the most popular technique or the easiest one. Ultimately, the best technique is one that provides you with the most benefit and one that you enjoy as you are doing. Most importantly, it should be something that you can sustain daily and for the long-term.
