Meditation & Mindfulness Articles

One of the most common complaints I hear from my students is that they regularly nod off whilst meditating. These poor souls worry that if they fall asleep then they won't get the full benefits of their practice. This is what I call a high quality problem. In fact, if...

Have you ever gone out on a Sunday morning, returned home with a gorgeous pot plant, and then watched as it slowly withered away and died over the coming weeks? Perhaps no one ever told you that a plant, like a pet, needs more care and attention than you'd assumed. A...

Innovation and meditation are words that don't often go together. In fact, in some circles, exploration is actively discouraged. The assumption is that the teacher or tradition know best, and that since the teachings and techniques have been around for a few thousand...

Standard mindfulness instructions invite you to pay attention to your thoughts and emotions — but not to get caught up in them. Various metaphors are employed to illustrate this idea. Watch your thoughts like: clouds floating across the sky, or leaves flowing down a...

"A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for." — John A. Shedd A few short years ago there was no such thing as a meditation app. Today, there are hundreds. On just one of them — Insight Timer — you can select from 15,000 guided meditations...

If you're like me, you've probably had days, (and maybe even weeks or months), when you haven't felt that inspired to meditate. Like exercise programs and healthy diets, a meditation practice can seem like a fantastic idea at some times, and a burden at others. And...

Imagine this: you go to bed at 10:30pm but two hours later you're still not asleep. Or this: it's 2:30am and you suddenly wake up, thoughts about what you have to do at work tomorrow queuing up like spam in you head. Or this: it's 6am; you've spent 8 hours wrestling...

I frequently meet people who say they would like to meditate. Of course, they don't actually meditate, and don't really have any intention of doing so. They like to meditate in the same way they'd like to win the lottery (without ever buying a ticket). This makes me...

Meditation is hard. Or so I've been told. But that's not my experience. Most of the time I find it quite easy. I'm not trying to brag here. But I would like to point out that meditation doesn't have to be difficult. I've heard teachers with decades of experience...

Do you have trouble staying awake when you meditate? Do you feel like it's wrong, or bad to fall asleep — or that you'll miss out on the benefits of meditation if you doze off? Does falling asleep mid-practice feel frustrating, or embarrassing? These are common...

There are elephants in the meditation room. One of them looks guilty. It's the one that's not meditating. At least, not as often as it thinks it should. Perhaps you don't meditate as often as you'd like either? Why is that? Some people say they don't have time. Others...

Some people say meditation is boring. They're right. It can be. Indeed, many of the most widely used meditation techniques — you'll probably agree — do sound rather monotonous. Repeat a mantra, over and over again, inside your head. Scan the body from head to toe, and...

When I started teaching meditation, apps didn't exist, mindfulness was a term you'd only be familiar with if you studied Buddhism, and nearly everyone coming to a class worried that they'd be expected to sit cross-legged on the floor and invited to chant Om. Although...

A reader recently asked the following question, having read my article How to make friends with your emotions. What would one do when one has become addicted to so called negative emotions and thoughts and can’t break the habit of rumination that seems to serve no...

Have you ever woken up in the midst of a dream, thinking "I must remember this!" then padded off to the toilet — or to put the kettle on — only to have your dream vanish from consciousness? The same thing can happen in meditation. You might remember something...

Meditation is a very broad term. It’s probably not quite as broad as sport, or music; but is analogous to the degree that there are many different techniques and traditions, practiced for a variety of purposes. And just as everyone has their own preferred styles and...

Do you love your emotions? Do you look forward to days on which a depression visits? Do you eagerly await the arrival of anxiety? And do you enjoy moments of anger, jealousy or shame? Perhaps these questions strike you as absurd? Who on Earth looks forward to feeling...

Meditation is easy. It's easy to learn and it's easy to do. At least, it can be, if you have an understanding and approach conducive to mitigating struggle. Remembering to meditate, or doing it regularly, however, seems much, much harder. It's a bit like climbing...

At the first meditation class I attended I was instructed to sit still for 30 minutes. That seemed like a long time to me. However, that was nothing compared to what was expected on the first retreat I attended. There, the shortest meditation was 60 minutes long and...

I was recently asked to contribute to an article commissioned by Bupa Life Insurance on ways in which to achieve a calmer life. I submitted the suggestions outlined below, but you can read the entire article, including tips from a number of other 'expert advisors' on...

Meditation is hard. I can't meditate. I'm no good at meditation. I find meditation frustrating. Meditation is boring. These are just a few of the comments I commonly hear from people who have tried to meditate; even from people who have been meditating for years....

There are hundreds of different types of meditation. How do you know which technique, or tradition, is right for you? I'd like to propose that this is the wrong question. I don't believe there is a technique right for you, or anyone. There is no method you need to...

It's not uncommon for people to take up meditation as a means of checking-out. Meditation sounds to them like it might be a good cheap way to escape from the stresses and hassles of the 9 - 5 grind. Like going on a Friday night bender but waking up without the...

Meditation teaches you how to relax, how to calm your nervous system, and with practice, how to generate states of mind characterised by clarity and contentment. It works best, however, in conjunction with healthy mental habits. Unfortunately there's no guarantee that...