mrs. neal's not-so-conventional MEDITATION [CLASS] for TEENS...

Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation.

– Psalm 5:1

 

About The Guided Meditation

Let’s review. Here are a few things you might want to keep in mind before beginning a meditation. Some of this information has been discussed in detail elsewhere in this book; if you are unclear about what any of this means, go back and re-read it.

 

• Above all, always remember that you have the gift of free will. You get to choose how much you participate in this exercise.
   
• Your body and brain will resonate with the frequencies of your environment. If you are in a noisy room with loud music, you will find it difficult to relax. Find a quiet place to sit or lie down before you begin this meditation.
   
• If you would like, burn incense, or use essential oils to scent the air with a relaxing scent. Your sense of smell is powerful. By inhaling scents such as lavender, sandalwood, or musk, your brain will release serotonin to help you relax.
   
• Music is incredibly powerful. Lyrics to songs are fed into your subconscious mind, so be aware of the music you choose. When meditating or reducing stress, listen to music with no words. Again, remember that your mind and body will resonate with those frequencies around you.
   
• If you would like, you can block the frequencies around you, or close your circuits. By that I mean — bring your fingertips together, cross your ankles and touch the tip of your tongue to the roof of your mouth, just behind your front teeth, on that “ridge-y” part. (This is one of the pressure points that help with relaxation.)
   
• Sit up straight. There is a trick we learned in etiquette class way back when I was in school — pretend there is a string tapped into the top of your head and pull up on it. This helps to align your body, and opens your chest. Also, relax your tummy muscles so you can breathe deeply.
   
• Keep in mind that as your brain waves slow down, there will be a release of a chemical in your body that may make you feel tingly, floaty, or detached from your body. This is called sleep paralysis, or pseudo paralysis, and it happens naturally when you go to sleep.
   
• If you have been in one of my classes, you know that we begin with a lesson before doing the meditation exercise. You can go back and read one, or just think of what you want to get out of the meditation before you begin. If you are doing this with friends, have a discussion about one of the lessons!
   
• A side effect of meditation is that you may fall asleep. While you are learning, practice this someplace where that won’t be a problem!

 

— ♦ —

OK! Let’s get to the part that all my students like the most:

The Guided Meditation

First, sit up straight! Take a few nice deep breaths, breathing in through your nose. Relax your belly muscles so your lungs can fill completely. Don’t just pant or breathe shallowly with the top of your lungs. Breathe deeply into your lungs. By inhaling through your nose, air rushes past those nerve endings in your nasal passages and stimulates them sending a message to your brain to release a chemical that  helps to relax your body.

You should feel yourself begin to relax a bit.

NOTE: You can do this simple movement — close your circuits and breathe deeply — anytime and anyplace that you need to induce the relaxation response.

— ♦ —

Now, you will begin to intentionally slow your brain waves down. This is nothing your body doesn’t already know how to do. Remember that your brain waves are fluctuating throughout the day, and they slow way down every night when you go to sleep — in meditation, you’re just doing it with awareness.

Start this process by getting your breathing into a rhythm. Counting can help with this — count to four as you inhale deeply, then pause a moment, and count to eight as you slowly exhale.

It is important to find your own rhythm — to find what feels natural for you. If that means counting to three as you inhale, and to six as you exhale — do that.

Stay focused on your breath. Be aware of how it feels when you fill your lungs with air, then how it feels as your body releases the air and it leaves your body.

Continue to count in your head as you get into a rhythm with your breath.

As your breathing falls into a rhythm, your heart rate will begin to slow down, and your brain waves will begin to slow down — natural body processes.

Now, to slow your brain waves down a little more and deepen this state, try to visualize a place where you would choose to go to find some peace and quiet, calmness, serenity, solitude — a place where you can relax.

Use your trigger to recall your place of peace that you created in chapter 26.

Remember that your subconscious does not distinguish between what is real and what is not, so you can have whatever you want in this place, and it will be real to your subconscious.

This is a place that you create and you control — this is a place where no one and no thing can get to you. This place belongs to you — and in this place, you are safe.

Breathing deeply and exhaling slowly, stay focused on your breath and visualize this place where you find peace, where you are safe.

 

Breathing becomes rhythmic, your heart rate slows down, brain waves slow down…

When distracting thoughts come into your mind, or you hear distracting sounds, come back to your breathing. Stay focused on your breath and that place where you find peace — where you feel safe.

— ♦ —

Now, to slow your brain waves down a little more and deepen this state even further, you will begin to relax your body. Rather than trying to do the whole thing at once, we’ll break it down and do a little bit at a time.

 

Begin by bringing your attention to just the muscles in your feet. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax just those muscles. With your next deep breath, let the tension or tightness drain from your feet, and imagine that the tension or tightness is going through the floor and into the earth — imagine it is draining away from you.

 

Now bring your attention to just those muscles in your lower legs. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax those muscles. With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any tightness or stress drain from your legs and move through your feet, and imagine it is going through the floor, and into the earth.

 

Staying focused on your breath, visualize that place where you find peace — where you feel safe.

 

Now bring your attention to just the muscles in your upper legs. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax those muscles. With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any stress or tension drain from your upper legs, and flow through your lower legs, move through your feet, and go through the floor, and into the earth.

 

Next bring your attention to just those muscles in your lower torso — your tummy muscles and lower back. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax those muscles. With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any tension or tightness drain from your lower torso, and flow through your legs, move through your feet, and go through the floor, into the earth.

 

Now, bring your attention to just the muscles in your upper torso — your chest, your upper back, and especially those muscles across your shoulders where we tend to carry so much tension. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax those muscles. With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any tightness and stress drain from your torso, flow through your legs, move through your feet, and go through the floor, into the earth.

 

Staying focused on your breath, visualize that place where you find peace — where you feel safe.

 

Next bring your attention all the muscles in your arms and hands. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax those muscles. With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any stress and tension drain from your arms and drip off your fingertips, drain from your torso and flow through your legs, move through your feet, and go through the floor, into the earth.

 

And now, bring your attention to your head — all the muscles in your head. Focus on just that part of your body, then consciously relax your scalp, forehead, eyes, ears, cheeks, tongue, jaw, neck…

With your next deep breath, as you exhale slowly, let any remaining tightness, tension, stress drain from your head, flow down your arms, drip off your fingertips, drain from your torso and flow through your legs, move through your feet, and go through the floor, into the earth and drain away.

 

When you have completely relaxed your body, stay focused on your breath.

 

Recall the trigger you have set for your place of peace. Visualize that place where you find peace, where you feel safe.

Step into this place.

When you come to this place, you plant the seeds into your subconscious that you want to harvest into your life.

Consider any goals you want to achieve, habits you want to change, problems you want to solve, obstacles you want to overcome, prayers you want to send — you choose.

 

You come to this place, sit and be still.

 

— ♦ —

 

You choose how long you stay in this state of relaxed meditation, and how you use it. It always should be your choice.

And, you should feel free to modify any part of this to whatever feels comfortable to you.

If you prefer not to use music, don’t use it. If you prefer not to use scent, don’t. If you prefer to do this exercise outside, by all means, do that! (Personally, I love being outdoors to meditate.)

— ♦ —

You may have noticed that my relaxation exercise has a sort of rhythm to it — there’s a reason for that. This is one way of moving your life force (chapter 25) and remaining grounded, so to speak.

It also brings your awareness to your body.

— ♦ —

In class — because of time restraints — I am silent for one minute after I say, “Sit and be still.” That one minute seems like a much longer time to most students.

When you bring yourself to your place of peace — to that place of stillness within you where you find inner silence — you will discover how much your mind can process in a very short amount of time.

 

Your mind is so amazing!

 

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A Few Benefits...

Meditating can help to relax you, calm you down, help stimulate or train your mind, sharpen your focus, help you study, release creativity, and so much more — all while remaining aware of your surroundings, and staying in control of your mind and your body.

 

As mentioned earlier, one of the side effects of meditation is that you might become so relaxed, you fall asleep.

Considering that most teens don’t get enough sleep, I don’t see this as a bad thing!

Many of my students have commented over the years on how spending just five to ten minutes a day in a quiet meditation can change a person’s whole day — or even their life.

 

(me, smiling.)

 

Because I have received so many nice comments from
my students over the years, I have included some of them
in this book. I am always so humbled
by what my students share with me!

— ♦ —

 

THINK TIME:

Meditate. Sit and be still...

 

THE PRACTICE
OF MEDITATION

 

Let the words of my mouth,
and the meditation of my heart,
be acceptable in thy sight,
O Lord,
my strength, and my redeemer.

— Psalm 19:14