Meditation-on-the-go
By Althea Chadwick
From the April 2006
Issue of Applaud Magazine
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The fundamental intent underlying the practice of meditation is to allow yourself to be present to each moment of your day. Stress has the opposite effect – it causes you to focus on the future, or the past, NOT the “now”. Stop and consider how often we arrive at work, for example, without being truly aware of how we actually got there. Consider: where are all the other missed moments in your life? And remember: The moments we are present are the moments we are actually living. Many seek to develop a mediation practice due to the variety of proven positive benefits. Such as: lower blood pressure, increased clarity of thinking, improved job effectiveness, and increased relationship satisfaction, just to name just a few. However, these benefits are all secondary to the original intent of meditation: being ALIVE in each moment of our lives. The most commonly discussed form of meditation is a prescribed period of silent contemplation with the purpose of coming into a quiet inner calmness. Many shy away from the challenge of a daily, formalized practice of meditation because of the pace & demands of today’s world. I have good news -- meditation does not need to be limited to a 20 minute quiet period separate from your daily life. In fact, there are many ways to integrate meditation techniques into your daily life. And, a life lived “meditatively” is a life being lived, not just endured. Now let’s get to the point of this article. Here are just a few of the many options to choose from for those seeking to meditate “on-the-go”. Try one (or more) of these practices and notice the positive changes that occur in your life. Exhale on purpose: In this technique we focus on our breath. Whenever you have a moment, pause & exhale slowly and on purpose. Exhale so that your shoulders soften, your belly contracts and the heaviness or pressures you may be feeling in that moment, dissolve. Wait for your next breath to come of its own accord. Do this throughout the day. As you are getting into bed, notice what was different about this day. Name the difference. Then exhale the whole day as you fall asleep. This last exhale makes inner space for rest. Evolve: Choose for today a quality you seek to develop in your life (i.e. patience). Then throughout your day watch for moments when you are expressing it and when others express it towards you. You may wish to write the word on a post-it and put it near your phone as a reminder. As you get into bed, mentally scan through moments of your day and notice how the very thing you wanted already surrounds you. Appreciate your success, recognize how you changed - say “Good for Me” three times before falling asleep. Stretch & Release: Choose your hands as your focus of the day. Whenever you notice your hands and how you are using them, take a moment and stretch your palms and fingers as wide open as you can, until you feel the stretch. Focus on the feeling in your hands, and only that feeling. What your hands do, your whole body does. Stretching your palms releases tension throughout your body, mind and spirit. At the end of the day, in bed, stretch your whole body, exactly as you have stretched your palms. Then soften & relax. In bed reflect on all you have experienced throughout this day, then let it all go. By using these simple yet potent techniques, you will quickly develop your own “on-the-go meditative practice”. Once you have mastered each one separately, experiment using all three practices during your day. Just as brushing your teeth or hair is simply part of “what you do”, so too these meditations will become part of your normal routine. Meditate daily, and notice how you have changed your life for the better. Elizabeth “Althea” Chadwick is the founder & director of the (W)hole Point Institute, LLC, as well as The Director of Alternatives in Counseling & Personal Development, PLLC. She has been practicing various traditional, and alternative forms of counseling for over 26 years and currently offers seminars in her newly developed self–empowerment program: The (W)hole Point Wisdom Model. She is a Psycho- therapist & Spiritual Life Coach, Author & Workshop Presenter who works with individuals and couples to help them find and achieve their life’s dreams. Contact Althea at: The (W)hole Point Institute, 603-895-4530, or, visit her website, www.SanctuaryNH.com for more information.