Mary comments on a listener's email -- how to listen to these meditations. This episode can bring insights about meditation and enhance your experience. Launched in 2018, Forever35 is ostensibly “a podcast about things we do to take care of ourselves,†as it describes itself in its opener each episode.
With mindfulness, you’re not looking to achieve any particular state . Instead, you’re working meditatively with whatever comes up. So, if you're listening to music as your practice, you're discovering what’s happening inside you while you listen to that music. You’re exploring your relationship to the music, as a path of self discovery. Ultimately, insight is what turns any ordinary experience, like relaxation, into a profoundly satisfying experience.
Boasting a library of meditations at your fingertips, this podcast greets you with a new technique every morning. The show’s silver-tongued host, Mary Meckley, introduces a new weekly theme, whisking you away on a journey toward managing your emotions to live your happiest and healthiest life. For example, lower ranges are best for relaxation and pain reduction, while higher frequency beats in the beta and gamma range are useful for memory improvement.
This means finding music that you enjoy listening to—if you don’t enjoy classical music, for example, don’t choose it. You should also look for music that has a slower tempo, and preferably without lyrics, which can be distracting and can engage your conscious mind—the part of your mind that we hope to slow down. As an added bonus, for many people who are beginners to meditation, or who are perfectionists, music meditation can feel simpler and more instantly relaxing than other forms of practice.
Movement meditation is good for people who find peace in action and prefer to let their minds wander. As the name suggests, this practice is ideal for anyone who requires additional focus in their life. Spiritual meditation can be practiced at home or in a place of worship.
Army Research Lab found experienced meditators preferred silence while novices liked music without a distinct melody. A 2017 study at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center discovered the part of the brain associated with internally focused thought lit up most often on MRI scans when someone heard a song they liked . The road to better health doesn’t have to involve major changes to your lifestyle. Making minor modifications, such as following the guided meditations on these health and wellness podcasts, can help boost your wellbeing and improve the meditation sounds quality of your life.
Or, find some time to experiment with mindful eating using a simple food, like a raisin or an apple. Mindfulness meditation is the practice of actually being present in the moment, which in turn trains us to become more mindful throughout the day, particularly during difficult situations. After a few breaths, invariably, the mind will wander again. What’s important is how we respond when it happens.
Instructions from an experienced teacher can help remind us to come back to the present moment, let go of distracting thoughts and not be so hard on ourselves. In addition to basic meditation instructions, we’ve compiled guided meditations for a few popular exercises including the body scan, walking meditation and mindful eating. “Each of the applied mindfulness practices brings alive an experience that might otherwise be more automatic,†said Ms. Brach. One popular mindful listening exercise that kids appreciate is the bell or gong practice.
Meditation is considered a type of mind-body complementary medicine. Meditation can produce a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. It's simple and inexpensive, and it doesn't require any special equipment. Don't get too caught up in what you must do, though. Take the time to assess your life and ask yourself if you feel fulfilled. If you don't, try to figure out what you can do to be more fulfilled and enjoy your life more.