How to get your meditation practice back on track
Staying consistent with your practice is probably the biggest challenge most meditators face. Many of us finish the four-day course feeling determined, inspired and excited to continue doing this thing every day. We often make grand proclamations that we’ll never miss a meditation, that’ll come hell or high water, we will sit down twice a day and get out practice in.
Then life happens.
We get busy. We get tired. We forget. Pretty soon, you’re meditating once a day, or maybe not at all. Cue the flow of negativity and self-judgment and before we know it, weeks have passed since we last sat down and thought our mantra.
Supporting students whose practice has slipped is a big part of my job, and I have a million different suggestions and ways I help them (I’m sharing a few below). However, at the end of the day, I’ve found that there comes a time when you just need to sit your ass down and meditate. We kinda have to put our big girl/boy/non-binary pants on, notice the resistance and say, NO! There’s a fire in that, alchemy that takes place when we generate a little heat within to push past the excuses and get it done.
So please, implement as many of these tips as you need, plus anything else that helps you (and reach out if you need some personalised support) but know that ultimately, we need to get in the chair and just do it.
MAKE IT A RITUAL
No, you don’t need incense, crystals or a cashmere blanket to meditate, but they sure are nice. Creating ritual adds meaning, consideration and reverence to things, and when they feel beautiful, light up our senses and add enjoyment, we might find it easier to show up when trying to make something a habit. Rituals are deeply personal and different for everyone, so think of tiny things that light you up. It could be as simple as having a beautiful incense station, reading a page from a treasured spiritual book or lighting a candle. Keep it micro and accessible.
Another thing I often suggest to my coffee-loving students is to have your coffee stuff waiting for you on the bench post medi. Depending on how you make it, you might put it on to brew, or you might get your favourite cup out and have it ready. You then do your meditation and at the end, are rewarded with a cup of hot coffee.
READ SOMETHING TO RE-INSPIRE YOU
Sometimes all we need is a little talking to from those luminary folks who are a little further along the path than us, and who have penned words to inspire our next step. There are so many incredible books out there to re-kindle a connection to the journey that is self-development. My current favourite is Meditation for the Love of It by Sally Kempton. Here’s a quote I love from the book:
“Meditation is the basis for all inner work, We might struggle conscientiously to change our limiting qualities; we might saturate ourselves with instructions and help, both concrete and subtle. Yet in the end, it is the direct, naked encounter with our own Awareness that shifts our understanding of who we are and gives us the power to stand firmly in the centre of our Being. No one else can make this happen for us. Meditation does.”
REMEMBER YOUR WHY
We all come to meditation for one, some or all reasons. There’s usually a tipping point, something that lights enough fire underneath us for us to go, “Ok, it’s time. I’m ready to make a change. I want to feel different.”
Over time, it can be easy to forget that initial why or it might have changed. I highly encourage you to check back in either by simply contemplating these questions in your own mind, or by journalling your answers to them. When we have a stark remembering of the life we envisioned for ourselves, and a reminder of how we want to be, it can help to connect us back to the whole point of doing this meditation thing.
What was the catalyst that prompted you to sign up for a meditation course?
Where were you mentally, physically, and spiritually when you first learned to meditate?
What do you actually want to get out of a meditation practice?
What differences do you notice in yourself when you are meditating regularly versus when you are not?
What are the blocks or barriers getting in the way of you meditating twice a day? This could be scheduling, confidence in practicing, or mindset-based.
What are two small changes you could make to help with those barriers?
As always, you can attend group meditations and re-sit the course with me anytime. Get in touch to join our meditators’ Whatsapp group for regular updates!