Meditation and Mindfulness

[Deleted User]

I wondered if anyone had ever tried meditation or mindfulness and what your experience has been? I completed an 8 week course of mindfulness-based stress reduction in November-December and, without sounding naff, feel like it's changed my life! My new year's resolution was to meditate every day using guided meditation MP3s and so far, I have stuck to it. I love mindfulness and am hoping to complete an MSc in it come June. It'd be great to hear other people's experiences.

FelinePrincess

Hi,

I'm hoping to do a 8 week mindfulness course very soon as well! It's good to hear you had such a good experience, if you don't mind me asking, where abouts did you do yours? The one I'm planning on doing is at Bangor University so just wondering if you did the same one

I'm also intending on doing a transcendental meditation course later this month as well. I haven't actually done any meditation or mindfulness in the past so both will be a new experience for me.

Sorry if this sounds like bit of a silly question, but did you find the mindfulness easy?

[Deleted User]

Hi there,

It's great you're thinking of doing a mindfulness course. I did mine in Glasgow at a yoga centre. However, I have a friend who is doing the MSc in mindfulness in Bangor and sings its praises. Bangor uni is kind of the 'centre' of mindfulness in the UK from what I can tell. A lot of research is conducted there and I did wish I lived closer so I could attend some of their classes.

I actually had a little experience when I began the course. I went to Swansea Uni to do a masters and took part in the free 8 week course offered there but didn't follow the homework practices and as a result, didn't find it beneficial. I decided to do one when I returned home to Glasgow when my MSc finished, mainly to meet new people as I'd been away from home for a while, and because being back home was stressing me out and I needed to find a way to cope with that. I not only met some wonderful people but the course itself was amazing. The teacher was just great, so serene and peaceful, and I learnt a LOT about dealing with suffering and life in general. I met amazing people from all walks of life who each shared their experiences.

Admittedly, mindfulness and meditation take a lot of getting used to and my mind was chattering away like an old woman at a bus stop during the first few weeks but eventually I got the hang of it. You may (or may not) find this a bit frustrating during the first few weeks but hang in there, it's completely worth it. I have since attended a retreat which was included in the course (it was basically a day of mindfulness practises. We did a body scan, walking meditation, mountain meditation and lovingkindness meditation as well as mindful eating. I felt so amazing afterwards and everyone in the course said the retreat was one of the best days of their lives). I have since signed up for another retreat day and can't wait for it. Mindfulness is slowly changing my life, that's no understatement. I am becoming more resilient, beat myself up less, am less anxious, depressed and tense and am starting to see the world from a different perspective. I have a long way to go but I am enjoying the journey. I'd love to hear how you get on with the course and please feel free to ask me whatever you like. Do you mind me asking what you are hoping to achieve by going to the meditation and mindfulness courses? xx

FelinePrincess

Thanks for taking the time to give such a helpful reply It's really inspiring to read how wonderful you found the course to be!

I have a few reasons for wanting to do the courses, but they all kind of tie in together.. Firstly, want to do the courses for personal reasons.. to help with anxiety and mild depression, to help my mind switch off a little, to achieve more calm and to connect more with source energy. I am very interested in the law of attraction and I believe meditation and mindfulness would be a big help with that.

Secondly, I am looking to do a career change to become a law of attraction/self improvement/positivity coach and I feel that an awareness and understanding of meditation and mindfulness would be very important for this.

I'm very lucky that Bangor University is right on more doorstep so it's easily accessible for me.

Many thanks for your kind offer to answer any questions, I'm sure I will have lots along the way!

Armchair23

I completed the eight week course at the beginning of December, taught by someone who trained at Bangor.
I'm not someone who goes in for a lot of 'self-improvement' books or classes but I can say hand on heart that Mindfulness is an amazing process and I hope it will be part of my daily life forever.

You will need to practice every day both during the course and after. I started the course at a time of very great stress and anxiety in my life, and the knowledge that I had simple ways of defusing the panic whenever I needed was amazing.

[Deleted User]

I agree Armchair, it's such an amazing process but really needs a lot of practise. I try to do 40 mins a day but some days, I do over an hour. I don't necessarily feel happy and full of joy afterwards but I certainly feel more calm and centred, less reactive and more peaceful. I definitely think mindfulness and meditation will help in a major way with the issues you mentioned FelinePrincess. The main thing is not trying to be perfect or achieve some goal but just doing the practice and enjoying the benefits that result. I'm looking forward to hearing about your experience in the future...

joyfull

Ooooh, you lot are inspiring me! I spent over 20 yrs involved in a meditation group in my younger life. It's not something I 'do' now, however I still get periods of much mental upset and anxiety & it would be great to get grounded in something that will help when those low times come visiting. Cannot afford a course, so will look for any free stuff on the net. Any recommendations anyone please? Many thanks

Armchair23

It's never quite the same on your own, but a book called 'Mindfulness Finding Peace in a Frantic world' has an 8 week course and CD
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mindfulness-practical-guide-finding-frantic/dp/074995308X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326212518&sr=1-1

That would be a good place to start.

Devils_Custard

Armchair23 wrote: »

It's never quite the same on your own, but a book called 'Mindfulness Finding Peace in a Frantic world' has an 8 week course and CD

That would be a good place to start.

I've been a long time lurker on these boards but had to join this evening to highly recommend this book too.

I've downloaded the guided meditations onto my phone too and use the 3 minute one quite often whilst sitting in the car... I do look rather odd though as it is easier if you close your eyes, so I sit there in sunglasses (even in the rain)...:eek:

lostinrates

Deleted_User wrote: »

I wondered if anyone had ever tried meditation or mindfulness and what your experience has been? I completed an 8 week course of mindfulness-based stress reduction in November-December and, without sounding naff, feel like it's changed my life! My new year's resolution was to meditate every day using guided meditation MP3s and so far, I have stuck to it. I love mindfulness and am hoping to complete an MSc in it come June. It'd be great to hear other people's experiences.

I'd be interested in what mp3s/CDs people find good. I used to meditate a lot, but find it harder now and think guided CDs would be really useful to me.

[Deleted User]

Hi everyone,

I personally think that anything written by Prof. Mark Williams (who wrote the book Armchair23 recommended) is worth a look. The CD of guided meditations which accompanies his book The Mindful Way Through Depression is among the best meditations I have listened to and his voice is so relaxing. A study was also conducted using the meditations in this book vs anti-depressants and mindfulness was associated with reduced relapse rates in comparison with the medications. If money is tight, there are also some great free guided meditations at this site: http://www.mindfulselfcompassion.org/meditations_downloads.php They focus on self-compassion and being kind to oneself, which is really good for mental health. I am off to do some meditation now. Glad there are others interested in meditation and mindfulness. I think if more people got involved, we'd be a nation of people with great mental health! xx