Me Time Monday - Meditation

Well, I'm two weeks into my new self-renewal plan and am loving the difference in my attitude, my energy level and the way I feel. In case you missed it last week, I'm doing a three week cleanse (no sugar, gluten, meat/dairy, coffee or alcohol) from the book Crazy Sexy Diet. But more than a diet, it's a lifestyle plan. I am learning to make time for myself and as a result, I'm beginning to feel balanced again.

Today, I thought I'd share the first in a lengthy list of tools in what I like to call the "self-renewal" part of the book - meditation.

I've tried meditation in the past but never with any great commitment. Each time, I understood the concept that your brain needed to build up to exercise just like a muscle would, but I never stuck with it long enough to find out. I'd do it for a few days and quit when I found myself to just be building mental "to do" lists in my head the whole time. The idea of quieting my brain definitely appealed, but I just didn't know how to get there.

But the way to get there, as with anything else, is apparently just practice. So I made the decision to devote 10-20 minutes to meditation each morning before I did anything for anyone else. I know that I do best with a guided meditation, so I downloaded one from Kathy Freston. Every few days though, I do try the meditation techniques outlined in CSD so I can build up to doing it on my own.

Not every day goes smoothly, but with a lot of help from my husband (and from a DVD movie on the days he's not home), I've been able to take this time for myself almost every morning. Putting myself first, something I couldn't even imagine just a few weeks ago, has been very empowering. It's something I know that I've needed for a long time yet have never made a priority. I'm so glad to be finding a (physically, mentally and emotionally) healthier me.