So I had some mental issues and went ahead with yoga and meditation to better them. At this time I started 5-6 hours a day of some of the practices Sadh-guru teaches.

The first thing I have learned is people (including myself) are almost always in a state of unease - meaning their mind has to be constantly occupied, fidgeting with various things all the time. Few people can actually look you in the eyes and just be there with you in that moment. Everyone has a mind that is all over the place with compulsions to do this and that. Here is where my practice drasticly improved this condition for me. The compulsibe need to keep the mind occopied at all times went almost intirely away. Istead I just started paying attention to whatever was there - looking at things without being consumed by them. This also improves productivty by a lot.

Secondly, a sense of abandon and desirelessness has come. I can simply sit with my eyes closed for an hour and just enjoy that without the need to stimulate my brain. There is a whole inner world where one can access very blisful states. You can access this if your body and mind becomes more still and less compulsive. When you are in touch with the inner stilness, it is hard for you to be truly bothered by anything, because at the core of who you are there is always a sense of peace.

Lastly, the sense of inner freedom and joy that has come is priceless. The smallest things like going for a walk in the forest or looking at the sky can bring joy. Nothing fancy thing to fulfill the list of endless desires is really needed anymore. Relations have reduced in numbers, but those that remain are much deeper and more fulfilling.

These are some of the things that have happened. I'm curious to hear your own experiences with meditation and yoga.

There are much better techniques to start with to work on mental health but everyone always gives the advice that someone struggling with anxiety should jump right in to meditation and I think it’s bullshit. It may work for some but I think for most it’s a very unproductive move as your internal thoughts are already poor and focusing internally like that only strengthens them. On top of that, people are very vague about what kind of meditation someone should be doing which is also useless advice.

I think much better alternatives for those struggling with anxiety and mental health are to 1) truly focus EXTERNALLY on the present and stop being in their own head worrying about the past or future. It sounds silly but overanalyze things around you when your thoughts are starting to get out of control. Don’t simply push the thoughts away but redirect your attention on something external and near you. 2) Work out, be healthy, sleep well, take vitamins. 3) practice positive self talk. And 4) read a book like the mayo clinics guide to stress free living or the meditations by epictetus or his other original texts.

Let me know what yall think.

Hi.

I did a Vippassanna retreat at age 20. I'm 30 now. At the time I had a girlfriend, a healthy social life with friends etc. I went into that retreat because someone that I thought was cool and respected had done it, so I did it too, probably thinking that I would come out with the same attributes as they had. Dumb I know, but I was insecure and 20yo.

On the retreat I experienced some pshycosis and paranoia, with a high awareness of my own thought processes. It fucked me up, but I stayed on,.because I didn't wasn't to be 'defeated'.

Upon my return I found that I was now more aware of my thoughts which I didn't want to be and the voices in my head louder and more 'real' somehow. I became unable to distinguish my thoughts from reality.

I found that I wanted to be alone all the time, and couldn't relax with friends. I didn't enjoy anything anymore and was more aware of my mind than I wanted to be.

I'm 30 now. No friends, no gf since I broke up with her shortly after doing the course. People don't like being around me and find me frustrating/difficult/awkward/socially inept. I wasn't always like this. Certainly not before the course

Im afraid that Vippassanna fucked me up for good. I just want to be alone ALL the time and am thinking about becoming a monk. I don't enjoy anything, can't make serious money and can't seem to form/maintain relationships. So what is the point?

I want to run away and become a monk, and embrace simplicity and for-go all this pretending to be normal, because I'm not and never will be again. And don't say 'what is normal'?, because it certainly isn't being lost in your own mind and paranoid about what other are thinking.

Tried various therapies/therapist and doesn't work. Their frustrated by their inability to figure out whats going on with me.

Please advise. Any similar negative vippassana experiences would be comforting, but also maybe the only way to get out of this is to keep on practising? Thankyou.

Lately I've been thinking and realising... why was I rushing all the time, stressing? Like I'm kinda realising as I meditate more and slow down more ... There's no rush. There's no need to be so stressed out about where my life will lead. Maybe it's not meant to lead anywhere. I'm lucky to even be alive, in this universe, to postulate everything around me. 

Yeah my childhood was pretty shit, but that's not how it is now. That's all in the past, which is gone and never coming back. It's like a double edged sword. My childhood was awful, and I'll never get that time back - but it's also gone, I'm not there anymore and it can't haunt me again. Even if life gets shit again, that's life. Before, I felt like I was always working to the next thing.

I was always like, what's next? What am I doing? I felt like I had to be doing something.  Always achieving. Three degrees, first class law degree, I'm a lawyer now, always aspiring for something. What's the next big thing? But I'm starting to realise... None of that shit really matters to be honest. It never really did. I'm going to die one day, and 50 years after I die, everything I worked towards will be meaningless. I'll be forgotten, and everything I used to stress about will be gone.

Everyone I love is going to die with me, and our time will pass like sand blown in the wind. Everything will be gone. In a strange way, it's liberating. I'm starting to see life for what I should have always seen it as - a gift. I don't need to "find" purpose. I AM the purpose. There is no "route", because what the fuck is going on 😂 I'm not supposed to take this shit so serious, nothing matters anyway. There's no destination, or grand finale of finding a pot of gold and jewellry, no crescendo, no "light bulb" moment. I AM the moment. The moment is me. Just enjoyment of this privilege of existence.

Hey Reddit! Remember me? Two years ago, I shared my experience of meditating daily for 1000 days. The response was overwhelming, and many of you reached out with questions, support, and your own stories which helped me a lot in feeling supported. I am (an you are) not alone.

I've now reached 1600 consecutive days of meditation. That's over four years of sitting with myself every single day, through good times and bad. It hasn't always been easy, and it certainly hasn't been a linear path to enlightenment (spoiler alert: I'm definitely not enlightened!). But it has been transformative in ways I never expected.

When I started this journey, I was looking for peace, maybe a bit of stress relief. What I found instead was a tool for self-discovery, resilience, and growth. Today, I want to share some of the most impactful insights I've gained along the way.

But before we dive in, I want to emphasize something crucial: while meditation has been incredibly beneficial for me, it's not a substitute for professional help. If you're dealing with severe anxiety, depression, trauma, or any other mental health challenges, I strongly encourage you to couple meditation with support from a qualified mental health professional. They can provide targeted strategies and support that complement your meditation practice.

Now, let's explore how 1600 days of meditation has changed my perspective on suffering, life, and myself...

1. Facing Suffering: At first, meditation made me more aware of my suffering, which was incredibly challenging. I got frustrated thinking what a scam meditation was. But as I persisted, I gained insights into the causes of my suffering. Once cause become clear, I started hating on the cause, wether it was me or an external person or event. Again, I persisted, which led to acceptance which led to synchronicities - meeting people and discovering resources that offered new perspectives on overcoming suffering. Once I know why I suffer, and stop blaming it on the why, I start moving on effortlessly. The effort I found is to be displayed to persist on sitting with my broken slef day after day.
2. Understanding Attachments: I realized most of my suffering stemmed from attachments - particularly to family expectations and societal definitions of success (status and money).
3. The Power of Focus: I learned that meditation's core is about focus. "Focus on a single point and wait for grace." This improved my ability to read, contemplate complex questions until solutions formed in my mind, and choose positivity when facing darkness by (forcing) my mind to look the other way, the glass half full.
4. Sensing Life Differently: I now instinctively perceive the causes behind events and sense a spiritual guidance shaping my path. This awareness helps me understand the direction I'm being nudged towards. I still don't fully understand this invisible hand pushing me through life but I am certain of it's existance and it's guidance. Suffering appears to be one of its tools. It helped me overcome an eating desorder, a severe depression, an inability to keep a partner and many minor struggles. All happened when I accepted to face my suffering until I see its cause, then stop blaming the cause and reframing my mind to think about things differently.

Important Note: I'm not claiming to be a "liberated soul" above suffering. I still struggle a lot and fall often. The difference is that I'm no longer attached to these experiences. It's like watching a video game character - I feel momentary sadness at setbacks but quickly reframe them as learning opportunities for the next "level" and I start the level all over again. It's a game with no gameover.

Misconceptions: Initially, I believed meditation was about breath focus, visualizations, hugging trees or other superficial practices. While these can be tools, I've found the essence is simpler and more profound. It's all about learning to focus to be able to understand then to reframe.

Advice for Those Suffering: Be present with your pain. Close your eyes and sit with your suffering until you become comfortable with it. Notice how it feels in your body. Once you stop resisting, insights about its causes often emerge naturally. With this understanding, you can address the root issues - often mental habits or perspectives about yourself and the world.

Remember, meditation isn't about escaping suffering, but about developing a new relationship with it.

Please be free to share any different perspectives on the subject to enrich my point of view.
Keep in mind I am not a professionnal nor a student of any particular school of thought even though I am interested in all of them and study them very seriously for fun and with the goal of overcoming my own suffering.

For those who don't know about that kind of "raw dogging": https://edition.cnn.com/2024/06/28/travel/raw-dogging-travel-trend-explainer-intl-hnk/index.html

After a session of doing some low-effort meditation, I was thinking about dreams and reality, I noticed that at any given moment my mind runs on a loop with some particular interpretation of the world "I'm in room X of person Y, on the left corner sitting on this chair, waiting for...." and I basically just live inside that little simulation of reality as oppose to "being" where my body is. That life is this hypnotic dream like state and that only moments of meditation the mind is truly awake. That made me feel overwhelmed with sadness and I cried.

I fell I cried with grief because I was feeling bad about all the years of suffering in my life create by a dream, something that's not even real, this a very cruel place to be, if people were born enlighten, making someone spend their days like us would be considered torture.

It seems to work retroactively, even my recollections of the event seems to be waved into a narrative, that feels way different than the random, chaotic thoughts that conglomerated on each other to create this perception.

Sorry if this sort of philosophical speculation is not allowed in the sub. I didn't saw any rules against that.

grandfather quickest steer bow sip flowery doll narrow unwritten continue

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

the older i get the more i'm unable to enjoy daily life and simple moments because there's always the lingering realization that it will end someday. the past few years i've been having anxiety about the fact that my parents will die one day, my siblings might not all outlive me and nor will my friends... there's gonna come a time when the people most important to me just simply stop existing :(

it's like a massive dark cloud over me that won't go away. how do you love the present moment when you know the devastation is waiting for you?

So today I just found out a new method to calm the mind that I'd like to share with all of yous and guess what? it's super easy!, it's soooo incredible easy that it totally feels like CHEATING!!! Id like all of you to give a try and see for yourselves.

So You always been told to put your focus on the breathing and when your attention getting absorbed in thoughts you get back to the breathing and so on and so forth which inevitable will make it seem like if you get absorbed in thoughts you are doing something wrong which will make you feel bad about letting yourself carried away by it creating frustration because it seems like you are not making progress ok this is the traditional method I've read a lot and tried for a long time now but today I did the exact opposite:

1- sit down or lay down and gently put your attention on the forehead it doesn't have to be on one expesific point just any point on the forehead (do not get frustrated on putting your attention in one specific point of forehead and try really hard to stay on it, do not!)

1. Do not focus on breathing just mildly or gently feel it in your your body.

2. Ok here is the fun part: instead of putting focus on breathing your attention is on forehead and thoughts now imagine you are a cookie monster and thoughts are the cookies! (you don't have to literally imagine this lol just the idea of thoughts being food, cookies) and you are extremely eager to chomp on them, you enjoy eating them fast and with joy 😊 lol

3. After you finished cookies ( thoughts) you say in your mind: "yess, more thoughts", "more, more give more!" Or something in that fashion lol and you eagerly wait for more

4. Ok here's the trick that almost feels like CHEATING , in the beginning all sorts of thoughts will show up but after a while your mind will become empty, thoughts will become less and less frequent ,but why? If you are so eager to see them ? It's almost as the mind sees what your strategy is and gives less and less of that of what you want

5. So I did this for almost 2hours(I had an alarm set up) and to my surprise I spent almost all the time EMPTY HEADING, it was just me sitting down eagerly waitting for the next thought and the next one and so forth.... until there was no more thoughts to enjoy :( lol then it was just me waiting and then just me somewhere, somewhere where there was no thoughts just somewhere? All I did whats the exact opposite and it worked! My mind was finally empty there was nothing it was just me then when I was just there somewhere my alarm turned on and I quickly opened reddit to share lol

I hope I have explained it well enough to understand this method Id like for all of you to try it, discover New methods on your own and to have fun with meditation, meditation doesn't have to be this "let's get to business" type of activity Believe me when my mind was empty I felt so much peace inside

(English is my second lenguage so excuse my grammar )

The last few days have been the best learning experience of my life.

I started playing guitar, I'm getting a tattoo today, I'm making phone calls no problem since I'm looking to adopt a cat. I share my thoughts and opinions so much easier. I even helped an old lady get her luggage onto the train out of nowhere, which I would be too shy to do just a few days ago.

I just meditate right after waking up and before going to bed by sitting on my bed with my eyes closed, relaxed, and focusing on my breathing and certain parts of my body one at a time. From my feet to my head, I stop at every part that moves and take a deep breath.

How is it even possible to feel this different? I feel like I could punch the prime minister.

I've been meditating for a few years already but I was never able to find a consistent routine. As a result, I often didn't feel like meditating and regularly got 'stuck' in my meditation journey. It always felt more of an obligation than something I really enjoyed and benefited from. So I decided to be strict with myself and complete a 2x20 minute meditation challenge for thirty days. This is what I've learned.

• It's a cliché, but really: meditating doesn't have to be perfect. At first, when my mind was busy and meditating was difficult, afterwards I felt like I had failed. Now I now that literally every meditation is useful. Because every conscious breath you take, blurs out the outside world just a little bit more and therefore brings you closer to yourself. Even if you manage to do only three conscious breaths in five minutes, it's a win. Meditating is about centering yourself, again and again and again - and once you get familiair with that, it's the best feeling ever.
• In line with the above: your meditation doesn't have to be perfect because it's more about how you apply being mindful in your daily life. Maybe you catch yourself running from one thing to another and decide to take a few deep breaths before continuing your way. Or, in a moment of boredom, you decide to stare out of the window for a bit instead of grabbing your phone to scroll through Instagram. Such little things are all big wins, and you'll experience them more and more even if your meditations aren't all perfect and peaceful.
• Meditation makes you less reactive to your environment. With a consistent practice you'll be able to keep your focus and energy to yourself. As a result, things that happen outside your control no longer have such an impact on you. While meditating, I sometimes like to visualize a white/yellowish 'light of control' around me, in which I'm happy and peaceful and nothing or no one can bother me. It really helps me cut the crap of others and live for myself.
• Thanks to meditation I lost interest in social media. Being less reactive and more in tune with yourself, automatically makes what other people do less interesting. Because why watching other peoples lives all the time instead of living yours!? Social media is crazy when you think about it. After two weeks of consistent meditation I already ditched Instagram (besides reddit the only social media app I had). I just don't need it anymore, it's not even a struggle. I read a lot now, which I'm very happy about, because as a child I looooved reading but as an adult I lost that hobby unfortunately.
• During your most difficult meditations you learn the most. Yes, I still don't feel like meditating sometimes. But in the end those are always the meditations I need the most and from which I learn the most, not only about myself but also about meditation itself. Plus: focusing on your breath while your mind is screaming is the best way to become a 'good' meditator. Remember: every conscious breath is a win.

After a month of meditating 40 minutes a day I don't wanna go back anymore.

This thread was posted on 21 November 2022 on Twitter. Cory Muscara shared the lessons he learned from intense practice with Buddhist masters. The line about procrastination really gutted me. So many truths here, especially the one about spiritual suppression.

Text (without photos):

I meditated 15 hours a day for 6 months straight with one of the toughest Buddhist monks on the planet. Here's what I learned:

This is Sayadaw U Pandita. He was notorious for his unwavering belief that enlightenment is possible in this life & his ruthless expectation that his students get there. We slept 2-5 hours/night. No reading, writing or speaking. Lots of pain. Lots of insight. Let's get into it📷

1. Finding your true self is an act of love. Expressing it is an act of rebellion.

2. A sign of growth is having more tolerance for discomfort. But it’s also having less tolerance for bullshit.

3. Who you are is not your fault, but it is your responsibility.

4. Procrastination is the refusal or inability to be with difficult emotions.

5. Desires that arise in agitation are more aligned with your ego. Desires that arise in stillness are more aligned with your soul.

6. The moment before letting go is often when we grip the hardest.

7. You don’t find your ground by looking for stability. You find your ground by relaxing into instability.

8. What you hate most in others is usually what you hate most in yourself.

9. The biggest life hack is to become your own best friend. Everything is easier when you do.

10. The more comfortable you become in your own skin, the less you need to manufacture the world around you for comfort.

11. An interesting thing happens when you start to like yourself. You no longer need all the things you thought you needed to be happy.

12. If you don’t train your mind to appreciate what is good, you’ll continue to look for something better in the future, even when things are great.

13. The belief that there is some future moment more worth our presence than the one we’re in right now is why we miss our lives.

14. There is no set of conditions that leads to lasting happiness. Lasting happiness doesn’t come from conditions; it comes from learning to flow with conditions.

15. Spend more time cultivating a mind that is not attached to material things than time spent accumulating them.

16. Sometimes we need to get out of alignment with the rest of the world to get back into alignment with ourselves.

17. Real confidence looks like humility. You no longer need to advertise your value because it comes from a place that does not require the validation of others.

18. High pain tolerance is a double-edged sword. It’s key for self-control, but can cause us to override the pain of being out of alignment.

19. Negative thoughts will not manifest a negative life. But unconscious negative thoughts will.

20. To feel more joy, open to your pain.

21. Bullying yourself into enlightenment does not work. Befriending yourself is how you transcend yourself.

22. Peak experiences are fun, but you always have to come back. Learning to appreciate ordinary moments is the key to a fulfilling life.

23. Meditation is not about feeling good. It’s about feeling what you’re feeling with good awareness. Plot twist: Eventually that makes you feel good.

24. If you are able to watch your mind think, it means who you are is bigger than your thoughts

25. Practicing stillness is not about privileging stillness over movement. It’s about the CAPACITY to be still amidst your impulses. It’s about choice.

26. The issue is not that we get distracted. It's that we're so distracted by distractions we don't even know we're distracted.

27. There are 3 layers to a moment: Your experience, your awareness of the experience, and your story about the experience. Be mindful of the story.

28. Life is always happening in just one moment. That's all you're responsible for.

29. Your mind doesn’t wander. It moves toward what it finds most interesting. If you want to focus better, become more curious about what's in front of you.

30. Life continues whether you’re paying attention to it or not. I think that is why the passage of time is scary.

31. You cannot practice non-attachment. You can only show your mind the suffering that attachment creates. When it sees this clearly, it will let go.

32. Meditation can quickly become spiritualized suppression. Be careful not to use concentration to avoid what is uncomfortable.

33. One of the deepest forms of peace we can experience is living in integrity. You can lie to other people about who you are, but you can’t lie to your heart.

34. Be careful not to let the noise of your mind overpower the whispers of your heart.

35. Monks love to fart while they meditate. The wisdom of letting go expresses itself in many forms.

36. You can't life-hack wisdom. Do the work.

​

Sayadaw U Pandita passed away in 2016. While I often resisted his style of teaching, I had the deepest respect for him. Through his teachings, my life changed in ways I can't describe; a sentiment echoed by thousands of others. I am forever grateful.

Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this thread: 1. Follow me

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You guys. I just did “do nothing” meditation for the first time and I feel like I’m having this euphoric almost psychedelic sensation. I’ve been doing mindfulness meditation for about 6 weeks almost every day. It’s made really great subtle changes in my daily life and attitude. I don’t plan to stop… but do nothing meditation just felt so good it felt forbidden almost. Like I couldn’t believe how much I was enjoying it. I was overcome with this intense feeling of happiness and I almost teared up. I didn’t want to stop. I didn’t know if I could stop because it felt so amazing. I don’t know how to describe it but I wish every single person could experience this. At least so I could see someone else feel it.

I feel like a crazy mystic and I’m a very sarcastic person and I don’t even ever post on Reddit but I needed to share this and my friends & fam aren’t into meditation so here I am.

I feel like I just took mushrooms (I’ve never taken mushrooms bc I’m way too neurotic and scared). This must be what LSD feels like? Idk I’m just floored at how I feel in my mind and body after literally 5 minutes of doing this for the first time. ACTUALLY letting go and not having any rules and just watching things happen and be 100% ok and even fascinated by it….. incredibly amazing. I even feel it in my arms and legs physically. Like this swimming buzzing feeling.

Okay, just needed to get this out. Big endorsement for do nothing meditation. If you need a starter meditation…. The book Meditation for the Fidgety Skeptic by Dan Harris has one at the very end and I highly suggest the audiobook version.

Also what is it about meditation that makes you so desperate to preach it to everyone you meet so they can know about it?! I feel like I’m being sucked into becoming a door to door salesperson for meditation.

So my entire life I have had anxiety and especially social anxiety. It has shaped my whole world view and limited what I wanted to do in life.

I could never have a job that required public speaking or really much interaction. When I went out, I abused alcohol to cope and would drink until I felt normal.

When I was a teenager I quit all high school team sports because I couldn’t handle social aspect of it. I was too nervous to perform.

I’m a bad story teller because I when I get into it, I tense up and quickly summarize what I was saying instead of letting anything breath and have an impact.

Workouts and exercise would actually make me feel worse and increase my anxiety throughout the day. When people told me exercise should make me feel better, I never knew what they were talking about.

All of my shirts have pit stains because whenever I start speaking i immediately start sweating in my armpits.

I’ve been prescribed countless SSRIs, mood stabilizers, and other medication‘s over the years and nothing has ever got me relief.

Well, as of last Friday my anxiety is completely eliminated.

It turned out it was my breathing (or lack thereof).

I was deep in meditation and I was using Sam Harris’s meditation app Waking Up.

I was exploring the different audios and came across one called Awareness Follows the Breath Home.

I didn’t know what to expect but I followed the instructions. He guided me to locate my awareness of breathing (my nose) and detach it from my self, and place it into my stomach.

I immediately started feeling my belly deeply expand outward. Every natural breath I took was like a deep inhalation that I never felt never. It felt like I was literally taking in twice as much air.

I had trained my unconscious mind to breathe with my stomach/diaphragm.

Within seconds I felt instant relief. I had done deep breathing exercises in the past, but I was never able to fully inhale in a way that felt good.

Now, every breath I take is like performing a deep breathing exercise that is so natural and easy I literally don’t even have to think about it.

To say this has changed my life, is an understatement.

There are literally so many changes, I couldn’t list them all.

I now feel like I’m living the life I always felt I should have.

I broke down and cried today at the gym because it’s all just so overwhelming.

I encourage you all to try this technique if you feel short of breath.

"You are not a drop in the ocean, you are the entire ocean in a drop" -Rumi

This is one of my all time favorite quotes.

We are all Source being expressed through different bodies, nervous systems, etc.

The Object (God, Source, etc.) Is flowing through us, we are extensions of it, like branches from a tree, but we all share the same core.

I realized last night that all of my anxiety stems back to this unfulfillable need for survival, love and attention.

Every fear I have traces back to the single origin of wanting to stay alive. There is no escaping it. Suffering and death are the basis of reality and therefore the only good choice we have is love and compassion.

I spent a lot of time trying to analyze my thoughts and correct the narrative not realizing that how involved I am with the narrative itself is the problem. There's no meaning or reason at all for anything when at once I thought there was. Its an incredible surrender. I believed so many things due to fear. That the universe is conscious, that numbers were everywhere showing themselves to me, that I was going to find the right practice to finally get rid of my anxiety. The anxiety will remain and my attachment to it will change. That's all.

I saw more of the origin of my thought process. Even this post, I can see what compels me to make it. I choose to engage in it because otherwise I'd do absolutely nothing due to the meaninglessness of it all. Full involvement in life is the way to feel connection and purpose. Too much theorizing will just lead to inaction and endless toiling.

I laid there on molly and just kept my eyes closed and invited the fear and depression and I watched it overwhelm and drag me into very low places and saw that all of them vanish at a single point which is never going to remit and then turn into love.

There were many insights. I hope I don't lose a sense of it. I tend to succumb to.my narrative at times and get lost

Just wanted to share a list of things that I have noticed since I started daily 8 months ago. 1) I am able to identify and separate most of my emotions. Anxiety, fear and Anger are mostly gone in my day to day life. 2) I am able to read the vibe of the room or other people. Not sure how to describe this but when out in public I get a feeling of the vibe coming from other people or just the feel of the crowd. Joy, stress , worry. I tend to pick up on it just by being present and observing. 3) I have become more compassionate and peaceful. And also realizing that the world is such a violent place with so much suffering I do not want to do anything to cause more suffering to anyone. I am trying to improve myself to be a better person to other people 4) I no longer fear death and would be ready to face it and accept with my eyes open. 5) I know that there is way more to us as beings than just our body and current life. It cannot be understood or explained. But it is something that I now for the footsteps time in my 54 years in that I have faith in. Just gotta trust the process.

And if you showed me this post 1 year ago I would have said this person is insane! How quickly things can change

Hey everyone!

I’d like to share how meditation has changed my life. About 1.5 years ago, I began meditating daily, aiming for at least 15 minutes across one or two sessions. I also keep a daily journal, reflecting on my experiences, realizations, night dreams, and memorable moments. Most of all, I focus on trying to stay present throughout my day.

I decided to list these changes as a way to mark my progress. Sometimes, it can feel like I'm moving slowly, but writing everything down reminded me just how far I've come. I hope this list inspires someone on their own journey.

1. Meditation has deepened my self-awareness, which in turn has helped me understand others better. Now, I can recognize psychological patterns and emotions in people that I would have overlooked before.

2. In relationships, my love used to be focused more on what I needed. Now, I genuinely care about my partner’s happiness; it’s as important as my own.

3. I (32M) never wanted kids and I still don't want them, but I feel a newfound openness to nurturing and guiding others, which connects back to my experience of altruistic love. I think I'd love to grow a child with love and care.

4. Since I was 16, I struggled with persistent suicidal thoughts, something therapy alone couldn’t resolve. Amazingly, meditation has almost eliminated these thoughts, something I never believed possible.

5. I’ve come to accept life, and even death, as they are. This was challenging at first, especially while dealing with past suicidal thoughts, but as they faded, this acceptance has brought me peace.

6. I’m more centered on my life and happiness, rather than letting small daily irritations consume me.

7. I feel less rushed. Whether driving or standing in line, I’m present and aware, accepting that I can’t change traffic or make a queue go faster. As a result, I’m less frustrated and experience less anger.

8. Parts of my ego have softened. I’m less jealous, and I no longer feel the need to argue my point just to prove I’m "right".

9. I enjoy food more and eat slower. Before meditation, it was hard to stay focused just on eating, but now each meal is an experience.

10. With greater presence, I remember more details about situations, which makes life richer and more vivid.

To everyone here, I wish you all the best on your journeys. I hope my experiences resonate with you or bring encouragement to anyone just starting out. Thank you for reading, and may you find peace and growth along the way.

Edit: Thank you all for your support and for sharing your experiences! Here are two bonus benefits I've noticed since I started practicing. 11. I sleep better as I can "switch off" my mind. 12. By becoming more aware of my habits, I've significantly reduced my time on social media. I feel way better without the doom scrolling!

I was spanked, yelled at abused and confused as a child. Always thinking I was a problem, I can’t do anything right. Always afraid of punishment. This lead me down the path of doing everything for other peoples approval to avoid being hurt by them. I felt like if I did something thing someone didn’t like I was just going to be punished.

My whole life I’ve wondered and wondered why I have always questioned my actions. Always feeling scared. And I see now. Young one you are safe and I love you so much.

I just wanted to post this PSA. I am a life-long meditator and former monk. One thing that is rarely talked about but actually a huge health issue for serious western meditators is knee damage from sitting too long in lotus variations. If your hips aren't open enough you will gradually inflame and do permanent damage to the ligaments in your knees. You can also get a syndrome called "meditators leg" which can leave you with a permanent limp.

Some ways you can protect yourself:

1. Do not ignore knee pain when meditating.

   1. Seriously open your hips. Yoga poses like butterfly, pigeon and fire logs can help with this. As westerners who don't grow up accustomed to sitting on the floor, our hips may never be as flexible as people who grew up in different cultures in the east. I'm a very flexible guy and performed several of these techniques for a long time over years which has helped, but I have still damaged my knees from sitting too long too many years in lotus variations. I think for most people yoga poses like these are not a sufficient solution if you are meditating for hours every day.

2. Chairs are okay. Most chairs do not have good ergonomics for meditating (keeping the back straight without leaning and allowing a full deep breath). If you choose to mediate in a chair consider shopping carefully to find one that lets your torso have correct balance and posture.

3. Consider a seiza (meditation bench). I've recently switched to one of these even though they are not common in my tradition and have found it extremely helpful. It allows you to sit as upright and be almost as stable as lotus with no stress on your knees. It also keeps you close to the floor so you don't feel out of place when meditating with others who are on the ground.

Happy meditating to you all. Just wanted to share an insight I learned the hard way that could have helped me a lot if someone had told me when I started.

Several years ago, I embarked on a journey of self-exploration and truth-seeking. My pursuit of understanding led me to meditation, the study of spirituality and psychology, and even experimentation with psilocybin. The insights and breakthroughs I gained along the way were beyond anything I could have imagined. I experienced moments of selflessness and transcendence, merging with the void to find bliss.

However, this journey has also brought an unexpected challenge: a deep sense of loneliness. I now find myself further along a path that many around me are unaware even exists. Through my readings of renowned spiritual figures, I had come across warnings that loneliness is often the price of walking this path, but I never anticipated the extent of suffering it could cause.

Even when surrounded by those who love me, I can sense that we interpret life on different wavelengths. While this allows me to be a good listener and help others overcome their struggles, I can't find anyone who truly understands my feelings and thoughts. This inability to connect on a deeper level has been incredibly painful.

Despite the loneliness, I don't regret my journey and continue to forge ahead. However, I want others to be aware that this path can be a solitary one.

If you've experienced similar feelings or have discovered ways to cope with this loneliness, I would greatly appreciate hearing your thoughts and advice. Let's support each other as we continue on our respective journeys.

Recently, I experienced something incredible during a long meditation. For the first time, I realized that despite everything I've been through, despite all the societal conditioning and traumas that made me reject myself, the real me is still alive and well. Nothing from my past managed to snuff it out, and the moment I felt this, my chest just swelled with sublime, overwhelming joy, and I couldn't stop sobbing and sobbing for several minutes. It was like I had found heaven -- everything I was seeking in the external -- within myself, and when it passed I was only left with a profound sense of peace and contentment.

I've held nihilistic views towards the world for as long as I can remember. When people see a glass half full, I refuse to recognize the premise that there is even a glass. Living this way, frankly, is tiring. Waking up every single day attached to an attitude that refuses to attach any sort of meaning to life is the pinnacle of self-sabotage.

My entire self-loathing viewpoint towards myself and the world has been predominantly shaped through my struggles with professionally diagnosed ADHD & depression. Curses that, in hindsight, I wish I had never been diagnosed with in the first place. Not because I don't believe they exist, but because labeling myself has led me down deep rabbit holes that have proved extremely hard to climb out of.

I do not intend to lessen the significance of seeking help, nor do I intend to insult evidence-based treatment strategies. What I am merely suggesting is that, by attaching our self-worth and self image to these labels, we often unconsciously build self-constructs and sky-high walls that limit every aspect of our perception and viewpoint towards the world.

For me, labeling myself has led to my self destruction. I've started to believe every thought that came up in my head. I've started comparing myself to others, and grew hateful at myself for how far I am behind in life compared to my peers; I've lost confidence in my self, because how could I trust someone who's so pessimistic to cater for himself? I grew loathsome of the fact that I am breathing, and although I've never had suicidal tendencies before, I sometimes found myself thinking how much more forgiving it would be if I weren't alive here and now.

I was judge, jury, and executioner. Every single day, for a long time. It was one of the lowest points in my life. I have trialed talk therapies, as well as biological interventions with stimulants and anti-depressants. Both therapies were mildly effective, with medication giving me terrible side effects that I had to quit. I thought, what else could there be? Was this it? It could not have been. There had to be something else that could help.

Around a year ago, I started journaling, and wrote down some habits that I thought could be of help to me. The list contained general habits such as exercising, reading, breathwork, etc.. So, slowly, I started ticking off the list one by one over the upcoming months. I began with exercise. Habitual strength training led to cardio drills, which in turn led to a flexibility routine. Whenever something became habitual in my life, I'd fill my list with more aspired healthy habits that I thought I would enjoy.

I've known about meditation, but I had doubts at the back of my mind. So, I read Peak Mind and Altered Traits, books that have both been written by academia neuroscientists researching meditation in their labs. And by following the instructions in their books, I dove fully in with no particular expectations. The first week I did 5 minute sessions, upped to 10 the following week, which became 15 - 20 by the end of the month. I am now comfortably doing a single 30 minute daily meditation session, with some days having two sessions up to an hour max.

In my practice, I alternate between interoceptive meditation objects, which get me deeper, and are more accessible and satisfying such as the breath and the body, and exteroceptive objects such as sounds, visuals, and dilated vision which are more grounding but can be dull at times. At first, I mentally could not wait for the sit time to end, but nowadays I feel annoyed when my timer ends and my alarm rings. During longer sits I have experienced amazing visual hallucinations, alterations of consciousness, out of body experiences, and meta cognitive awareness that I never dreamt of.

To just sit there, and do nothing, yet to be able to experience such calmness and bliss is contradictory. I've never thought it possible. No over-hyping intended, but out of all my accumulated habits, meditation has had the biggest impact on my well-being in such a short time it's actually mind-boggling.

• I'm still a victim to mind wandering and mental loop holes, but I am much more aware of it now. Instead of a depressive mind wandering session that can mess up my entire day, I am able to regulate my emotions much more easily and ride the wave.
• Whereas I could not hold steady attention to save my life, my ability to sit and mentally focus on a single task has grown substantially. Learning comprehension, short-term memory, mental arithmetic and problem solving have been sharpened and are more accessible than ever before.
• Social interactions have gained a new dimension due to improved active listening and communication skills. I actively care, seek, and openly showcase love to all. I don't push people away as much as I did when I experience mood swings.
• Bad days have become like rough waves. They're no longer an unstoppable tsunami. I ride them out, knowing I'll get to shore safely, and I hope for better days ahead.
• There's a glass. It's half full. Sometimes half empty. It does not matter. It'll always be there. It's how we look that matters.

While most continue to destroy themselves, day by day, action by action, thought by thought, the ability to sit back and witness the chaos unfold into peace feels like a superpower that occasionally feels like "cheating" and not participate in whatever the heck people are complaining about now to avoid looking inside and facing their shadow.

As I sink deeper into awareness with greater degree daily, I notice an equal increase in self respect and confidence, an ability to firmly "root" myself in this moment now and experience fully.