Five Ways to Deepen Your Meditation Practice

Five Ways to Deepen Your Meditation Practice

AUTHOR: Lulu Picart

For centuries, people have known that meditation promotes mental and emotional wellbeing and can help with many physical ailments such as high blood pressure, chronic pain, anxiety, and insomnia.

One of the best things about meditation is that you can truly practice it anywhere, from the top of a mountain to a crowded airplane —  not to mention your living room. You can achieve a meditative state with nothing more than a space to sit.

Growing your meditation practice is easy and can be incredibly rewarding. Here are some ways to enhance and complement your current practice, no matter where you are in your meditation journey.

Use props to maintain your meditation posture.

Sitting with proper meditation posture is key for long practices. By sitting on the edge of a meditation cushion, you ensure your hips are higher than your knees, which helps with blood circulation. It also allows your spine to be elongated and straight, reducing any slouching or curving.

There are several shapes of meditation cushions (rectangular, circular, v-shaped, or bolster), and one may work better for you than another, depending on your proportions and flexibility.

No need to buy something specific — look for cushions and pillows around your house that are firm enough to keep your hips from sinking down. And if you need back support, try leaning your back against a wall or sitting in a chair.

Incorporate sound healing and singing bowls.

Sound therapy uses the vibrations of sound waves to shift the brain into a relaxed state and to affect fibers deep in the body.

It can improve:

• Sleep disorders
• PTSD
• Depression
• Pain management, including menstrual pain
• Anxiety
• Stress

Sound healing therapies can include specific sounds like white noise and binaural beats, or implements such as chimes, tuning forks, and singing bowls. If you’ve ever used a sound device for sleep, you’ve tapped into sound healing. Some people respond to the sound of ocean waves or rainstorms, while others will find their focus through instrumental classical music.

Singing bowls are an ancient sound therapy tool that can boost your meditative state and promote relaxation. They are often used in yoga classes or as a part of a sound therapy program.

On the Healing Heroes Podcast, sound healing therapist Nicole Kim describes the effects of a session: “When you have a sound bath or sound experience, you’re able to find that inner calm and clarity. And I think the clarity is the most powerful because you’re resting and restoring, and your mind is clearing of all of that stuff.”

You can purchase your own singing bowl and learn to play it yourself, or you can attend a professional sound healing session (like a sound bath) for an immersive, meditative, and deeply relaxing experience. You can also experiment with meditation, focus, and yoga playlists to find a soundscape that resonates with your practice (pun intended).

Practice yin yoga.

Yin yoga is a slow-paced, passive, meditative practice where postures are held for long periods of time in order to reach the connective tissue that runs throughout our body, called the fascia. Through breathing techniques, stillness, and patience, poses are held for up to five minutes — or more.

Yin yoga is much slower and less dynamic than other forms of yoga (“yang yoga”). While yin yoga is a simple practice, it requires focus, energy, and patience. It’s passive, but not lazy. The long poses can be challenging both physically and mentally, but the intentional and meditative nature of the practice can also be very rewarding.

Start a meditation journal.

Writing about your state of mind and emotions before and after meditating can be cathartic, and it can offer you insight into your meditation journey. Do you find it easier in the morning, afternoon, or evening? How does the length of your practice affect you?

If you’re not a natural writer, don’t fret — a journal is whatever you want it to be. It can be three short words describing your mood (“hungry/frenetic/proud”), or each entry could simply be a color. Make it creative, or make it minimal — your journal is your own.

Try a guided meditation.

Guided meditations can be used at any stage of your meditation practice. Some studios and meditation centers offer group meditation classes. You can also find guided meditations on several apps and YouTube. Allow yourself to sample a variety of guided meditations with many different voices, as you’ll respond differently them.

If you have a meditation partner or group, a guided meditation can be perfect for doing together.

Because these meditations have someone leading you through it, they can be easier to access, especially for beginners. However, even people who have meditated for decades enjoy guided meditations.

As you deepen your meditation practice, your physical and mental wellbeing will reap the benefits.