A year and a half ago I sat down, crossed my legs, and began meditating for the first time. I had no expectations, no idea what the point was, or if anything interesting would be revealed. Rather I simply wanted another way to feel rested besides napping. But as my sessions grew longer and more frequent I began learning things and today I want to share my experiences thus far.

But before I discuss the benefits and effects of meditating, let me explain HOW I meditate. First, you must know that meditation doesn’t necessarily have a goal or method behind it. All you’re trying to do is calm yourself and see where it takes you:

  • Close your eyes and spend time focusing on your breathing. Feel your heart slow down. Once you’re relaxed, begin to tell yourself things like:
    • “Clear your mind”
    • “Release your [fears, worries, stress, and anxiety]”
    • “There is nothing but empty blackness”
    • “Your mind is quiet and calm”
  • Whenever it feels right, begin imagining the muscles in your body relaxing. Once you feel very relaxed and your mind is clear, you can begin to experiment:
    • Focus on the blackness behind your eyelids
    • Focus on soft music or natural sounds
    • Detect all the different feelings in your body
    • Or even let your mind wander and see what you think about

And remember, meditation isn’t about accomplishing some specific goal. It’s about relaxation and inward focus. Just flow with wherever it takes you.

So why would anyone go through the trouble of meditating? The first benefit is obvious: relaxation. Meditating is like napping. It feels good, recharges you physically and mentally, encourages a positive mood, and helps calm you down. But this also extends deeper and gifts you what I call “mental clarity”. After meditating my mind feels sharper and my thoughts more clear. I’d also bet creativity is boosted along with your ability to focus. You’ll also begin to experience calmness. Meditation will wrap you in a blanket of warmth and comfort. Irrational thoughts, mood swings, frustrations, anger, etc. will dissolve and leave you feeling serene. If you accomplish anything through meditation, it will be this.

Next is the ability to detect your state of mind. After a number of sessions I began to grow aware of how different I am prior to, and after, meditation. My mind exits refreshed and ready for new challenges as opposed to the tired and weakening mind before. This was especially apparent after chatting with my sister about work and finances. I shared my worries and agreed to pursuits that were contrary to my goals and it wasn’t until after meditating that I realized how different my perception of reality was. I was weak and irrational, and the moment I woke up from my inward journey, I saw it clearly. That I had failed to maintain my composure and strength. And that’s when I realized how different we are during different states of mind. There is a “Sam” that exists that is strong and motivated, a “Sam” that is weak and scared, a “Sam” that is fun and extroverted, and a “Sam” that is quiet and shy. Meditation unlocked that realization and made it obvious from then on. This is a very powerful effect and one I hope you discover.

Another useful effect is the ability to discover internal conflict. When I mentioned allowing your mind to wander, this is the reason. I’ve often found that the thoughts arising are those of worry and stress. This is a perfect opportunity to address them rationally. And when you’ve allowed yourself to cycle through them, making a plan or even solving them, you’ll awake extremely content and ready for the world. Additionally, you may discover problems you weren’t aware of. This can tremendously reduce stress as often times just rationalizing problems helps a lot.

There are also experiences like blinking or flashing lights, mental images, strange thoughts and emotions, and something I call “detecting the subconscious”. Now, I have no idea what is actually happening here, but based on what I know and can guess, it is an experience similar to racing thoughts. It happens after my mind has reached a point of relaxation and the frontal lobe reduces activity. I can “unfocus” my mind and watch as my thoughts fly by. If you’ve ever smoked marijuana, you may have experienced an effect like this. Generally what I’m “viewing” are images and sounds all meshed together. It’s not a visual trip I would imagine you get from psychedelics, but rather like vivid imaginations. It also results in either drifting asleep or feeling immensely relaxed.

So what about productivity? When I first began I was concerned that meditation might be a waste of time. That virtually any other task, whether work or pleasure, was more productive. That was until I realized how much it could restore your willpower. My workday rarely ends at 5 PM because I enjoy what I’m doing. But let’s face it, sometimes I’d rather load up a Steam game or League of Legends. These are times when I turn to meditation. The lights turn off, soft music fills the room, and I escape into a calm, serene world. Upon exiting I feel motivated and refreshed and I pursue tasks at hand with a renewed vigor.