How to Meditate Daily For Beginners

Meditation is an ancient practice used for thousands of years in multiple religious traditions (including Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism) to attain a state of perfect mental clarity, awareness, and emotional stability. 

It uses various techniques to do so, such as: mindfulness (the act of purposely bringing back your attention to the present moment), candle meditation (also known as candle gazing or drishti), or focused meditation (purposely focusing your mind either on an object, a thought, a feeling, or simply your breath).

Although some of these techniques overlap with one another (such as the type of breathwork done in therapy or acting/singing which is also a form of meditation), their ultimate goal is to help you calm your mind and body, become aware of your experience, and slowly dissociate from your life experience in order to see it more objectively (especially helpful with negative emotions). Today, we’ll look at what are the benefits of meditation as well as how to meditate daily for beginners. 

The Benefits of Meditation 

 By now, there are numerous studies and articles published by scientists, and the general consensus is this: meditation has shown significant changes in the people who’ve participated in the study, all improving multiple aspects of their general well-being.

From religion to spirituality, science to life experience, I can guarantee you one thing: anyone who’s tried meditation for at least a minimum of 30 consecutive days has reported one or more positive changes (myself including). 

So what are the benefits of meditating and why should you do it?

1. Stress Reduction

Meditation and other mindfulness-based practices continue to show the same result, time and time again, when it comes to stress management: there is a significant and evident  change for the better in the mental health of the participants, specifically in the stress management area. According to this study done in the Clinical Psychology Review, there is a very noticeable difference in respondents who tried forms of meditation (guided or not guided) when it comes to stress.

Problem:

Although modern life has increasingly gotten more complex, our ancestral brain has been using the same fight-or-flight techniques since the caveman era. This essentially means that, when faced with any situation that threatens or survivability as a human and as a species altogether, the brain will release a set of hormones in the body – including cortisol – to prepare it in case we need to run or we need to fight the saber tooth tiger. 

Despite our physical survivability decreasing thanks to modern medicine and technology, other areas of life can trigger our fight-or-flight response just as easily: picture a work meeting you have to deliver the next day where your boss, your co-workers, the head of the department, and the CEO are all listening. You’d probably say it’s an average situation most 9-to-5’s face sooner or later, right? Except nothing in that situation seems average to the brain. First of all, everyone is watching so the brain will instantly think that everyone is evaluating. Based on their evaluations, you could either be clapped or disapproved by the end of the speech. Second of all, your brain inevitably enters a black and white area where it thinks that if this speech goes any way wrong, you could get fired. Not only that, but you could be humiliated, rejected, embarrassed, and possibly even bad-mouthed. In a tribe-like environment, this exact situation is life threatening: if you are rejected from the group in the wilderness, you risk dying or being killed by various other external threats. Why? Because humans are a group species (meaning they do better in groups then alone).

Solution:

Thanks to meditation, we are able to get a hold of our panic-y brain just in time before the release of extra cortisol so that it doesn’t interfere with our life. This makes it so you will experience general calmness, better decision making, and a significantly lower stress level when performing daily activities. 

2. Anxiety Management and Reduced Depression

Though they are both mental health issues, these two aren’t necessarily the same side of a coin: anxiety and depression have shown different results in brain scans, although they have both shown high improvement with regular meditation. 

Problem:

Typically, with anxiety, the average person gets a very lit up brain scan showing a lot of brain activity. This, however, is on the extreme side, since the brain doesn’t seem to calm down in situations where we aren’t supposed to be as alert. As a result, you think many thoughts at once (typically negative), you have a bias for black-and-white scenarios, you tend to over exaggerate situations, and you probably don’t have a restful, deep sleep (many people with anxiety suffer also from panic attacks, insomnia, or other chronic issues). 

With depression, on the other hand, you get a brain with not so much brain activity. Again, this is on the other extreme side of the spectrum since this means that you lack creativity, drive, focus, ambition, motivation, a sense of joy and meaning, deep satisfaction, and general happiness. The view is negative here too, although it can easily be masked by “fake positivity” where the person at cause can laugh, smile, engage in activities, and seem generally happy, however – internally – nothing could be further from the truth.

Solution:

Numerous studies have shown a significant improvement in the brain scans of respondents who showed early signs of the above mentioned problems or were diagnosed with anxiety/depression. This specific study from the General Hospital Psychiatry shows that people who participated in the study and continued regularly practicing meditation over the course of three years, saw significant positive, long-term changes in their mental health. 

The reason meditation is so effective is because it helps us teach our brain how to go to a safe zone, reduce cortisol and hormonal imbalances, and release tension or trauma that could otherwise be stored in the body. Doing so leads to our parasympathetic nervous system re-beginning its activity in times where stress or focus is not needed.  

3. Increased Concentration, Memory, and Focus

While some people may not necessarily be actively seeking these benefits out, we can all agree that an improvement in our brain’s capacity to focus, remember, recall, and be fully present is desirable. 

These benefits (shown throughout many studies) have all been possible due to one exercise only: regular meditation. Whether the meditation is guided or unguided, of short duration or long duration, with a candle or without, one thing is for certain: you will experience an increase in these cognitive skills by practicing meditation regularly. 

Problem:

Think how hard it is for anyone who’s suffering from ADHD, ADD, or other attention deficient disease. Although society has made it easier to have access and tools to the latest practices one can do to improve their quality of life, the truth is – if you have any of these issues, it’s hard to run away from them in a context where everyone else is “normal”.

Take for example bullying, which is a common problem in schools. Unfortunately, no matter how well trained the teachers are or how appropriately moms try to solve this issue, it is hard not to get hurt by other mean children, especially if what they’re saying happens to be true and happens to be a problem your kid is facing.

I, for one, had a smart, friendly, very well-educated friend at school who was the subject to bullying multiple times. The problem? She had autism. Or she barely had autism, as both her parents and the teachers took serious steps to help her improve her condition.
By the time she was in high school, you couldn’t even tell she had autism. But out of the many techniques tried and tested, meditation was the one habit she did regularly that she claims has helped her the most.

Solution:

Keep in mind that meditation doesn’t have to be an hour long or in consecutive days just to work. Like in the case of my middle school friend, all it took was 5-minutes per day to try to sit down with her thoughts and manage her attention in one direction only: usually her breath or a candle.

Whether you are practicing candle gazing meditation, closed eyes meditation, sitting meditation, or walking meditation, you can still reap the remarkable benefits of this practice, should you want to commit to trying it out for at least 30 days.

How Long Should You Meditate For 

This question usually has a unique answer, as it is difficult to assess how much meditation one needs in their life. However, if you meditate for at least an hour a day, you are sure to see great results within a much shorter time period than if you meditate 5 minutes a day.

Nonetheless, even a short 5-minute daily habit will definitely start producing changes in your neural structure. I’ve had positive experiences from both short meditations as long as long meditations.

What I will say is this: keep in mind the level of experience you have with meditation and start from there. If you are a beginner, start with 5 to 10 minutes of meditation a day. If you are a seasoned or experienced practitioner, you can go as long as you want to. The sky’s the limit. 

Here is a helpful tip to have a better practice: if you notice your mind slowly drifting back to other thoughts, scenarios, or events that are happening in your imagination, simply bring back your attention to your breath (or candle if you are doing a gazing meditation) and continue your practice. However, if you see yourself getting lost in thoughts many times in a row, then I suggest you stop as you won’t experience many benefits in that moment. This is because the mind is distracted and sometimes the best way to bring it back is by focusing on a more engaging task.  For example, maybe a guided meditation would be better suited for you in this case.

Types of Meditation Practices

In my personal experience, all kinds of meditation work, but each has a set of different results. 

• With breath meditation, I generally experienced a better oxygenation in my brain and an ability to control my anxiety.
• With guided meditation, I experienced an increase in my ability to detach from and not be so affected by emotions or situations that were perceived negatively by my brain.
• With candle meditation, I experienced an increase in my ability to focus, to problem-solve, and to be more grounded. Overall this was the best tool that I’ve used in order to learn more effectively during exam periods in college and retain information quicker. 

Whichever way you prefer to do this, they all bring wonderful results that you will definitely love or benefit from! 

How to Meditate Daily for Beginners

Believe me when I say – I’m no stranger to multiple failed attempts at meditating properly. However, when you take on the practice of meditation, you generally do it so that you can experience some end result (internal or external). 

So if you’re just starting out or have tried meditation before and gave up on it, here’s a quick guide on how to meditate daily as a beginner so that you won’t give up.

1. Set a specific time to meditate. This can be the same time every day, or at the same time of day (morning, noon, evening). Most people prefer meditating in the morning as it gets them in a good, refreshed, energized state, ready to tackle the day. However, some people prefer the evening so that they can calm their mind and their body, stop the train of thoughts running through their head, and have a good, restful sleep. 

There is no right or wrong answer here. We recommend you try multiple times of the day to see which one fits you best. 

2. Choose a meditation style. After you’ve chosen when you’d like to meditate each day, choose an appropriate meditation technique according to that. 

For example: if you are meditating in the morning, breath meditations and visual meditations might be suitable for you. These tend to work certain parts of your brain involving focus, creativity, and imagination, all of which can bring you energy in return. So doing them first thing in the morning is ideal, instead of doing your practice before going to bed.

On the other hand, if you are looking to relax, unwind, de-stress, and calm your mind before bed, then a candle meditation or a soft, guided meditation may be more suited for you.

Experiment with ones that peak your curiosity and see what benefits they bring in your life. You can always adjust this list based on your experience and preferences!

3. Find a quiet place and a comfortable position. Ideally, a quiet, uninterrupted place will help you bring the most out of your meditation practice (even if it’s just for 5 minutes!). Find a place that is comfortable and where no one or nothing can interrupt you from your practice. That also means cellphones off!
4. Close your eyes, cross your legs and begin your session. Depending on the style of meditation you chose (guided, unguided, candle gazing, breathwork, etc.), you’ll be prompted to do a set of specific instructions.

Generally speaking, you’ll follow along with the voice of the app (or video) and focus your attention on each area that is mentioned (this could be your third eye, your heart, your breath, etc.) 

5. Once you finish, take a moment to gently open your eyes and come back to all your senses. Do NOT rush this part! The goal of meditation is to help you learn how to reduce stress and anxiety, not to reduce it for 5 minutes while you meditate and then get back to your previous state. 

You’ll know what I’m talking about once you start meditating more regularly. Some days you’ll feel great for the whole day after your session, other days you will feel as anxious as before your session. 

The goal is to remember the feeling you had during your session and extend it to the rest of the day. 

So don’t rush to get up quickly and get back to your tasks, or else you’ll be back in stress in no time!

6. Simply repeat the process outlined above on a daily basis in order to make it a habit. That’s no easy task, however, we recommend you start with 5 minutes a day, every day, for the next 30 days. This simple action should propel a snowball effect that creates momentum and you’ll soon notice it’s hard NOT to do your practice!

If you skip a day, that’s alright. For best results possible, we recommend only skipping 2 days a week at most, and never consecutive days. If they are 2 days in a row (meaning consecutive), it becomes harder to pick up the practice again and you’ll soon feel like you are picking up from the beginning instead of from where you left off.

7. Practice makes perfect! Be gentle with yourself and remember that there is no right or wrong way of meditating so long as you follow the instructions presented at hand and you don’t put yourself or anyone in deliberate danger. 

Conclusion

Take a moment to realize how far you’ve come. Even if you are just starting out with meditation, to get to this place where you have decided you want to try meditating is a big leap in and of itself. Celebrate this moment and every occasion you have since pretty soon meditation will become a normal part of your life and it might not be as exciting as the starting phase.

However, if the excitement wears off in time, remember to celebrate yourself for doing your daily meditation habit and be gentle with yourself whenever you skip a day. 

Hope you found this article helpful and we’d love to hear your experience!

Namaste,

The PurelyCalm Team.