4 Calming Meditation Techniques
Author: E.C. LaMeaux
Meditation is a great way to relax and quiet your mind. It can even have beneficial psychological and physical effects. According to the Mayo Clinic, meditation is a great stress reducer that can calm you and bring relaxation. Calming meditation can help you sleep better, focus better at work and remain calm throughout the day. You can use meditation for mind relaxation to start your day, midday, to end your day or all of the above. Meditation techniques to calm your mind are easy to learn. Use the following calming meditation techniques to promote mental quiet and inner balance.
Mantra meditation for mind relaxation
According to the Mayo Clinic, the mantra meditation technique is a great calming meditation method. During mantra meditation, you mentally (silently) repeat a calming word, or mantra. The repetition of the mantra will replace all busy thoughts and help you shut out the outside world, thus calming your mind and body. The Mayo Clinic adds that transcendental meditation is another specific calming mantra meditation technique that can be effectively used to relax.
Mindful mediation
The Mayo Clinic recommends the technique called mindful mediation for mind relaxation. In mindful meditation, you increase your awareness of the present moment. You focus only on what you are experiencing in the exact moment while meditating, such as your breathing or the sensation of your feet touching the floor, and therefore keep your thoughts from wandering. Mindful, or mindfulness, meditation can be performed pretty much anywhere and while engaging in many different tasks, such as washing the dishes or walking. This is a great meditation for mind relaxation.
Progressive muscle relaxation
According to the Arthritis Foundation, progressive muscle relaxation is a simple technique that has great calming benefits. With progressive muscle relaxation, you progressively tense and relax the various muscles in your body, either starting at your feet and moving upward, or starting at the top of your head and moving downward. You tense each muscle group for five or 10 seconds and then release the tension. Sit or lie in a comfortable position and focus on your breathing while performing this calming meditation.
Visualization
According to Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life by Shakti Gawain, visualization is a meditation technique that can calm you and ease stress. With visualization, according to Gawain, if you repeatedly focus on an idea and give it positive energy, it will become a reality. You can do this to improve several areas of your life, including your job, home and even health.
In her book, Gawain says to perform this meditation technique, all you need to do is simply focus on whatever is ailing you, imagine yourself healthy, calm and stress-free, and it will eventually become reality. Gawain does add that while creative visualization can be its own healing and calming source, sometimes other techniques, such as physical therapy, can be added to produce positive healing results.
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