I have always struggled with meditation. I don’t think I’ve ever been able to successfully meditate and the advice that people give me does not work.

I have ADHD (Inattentive), autism and OCD/CPTSD and I can’t stop the constant stream of thoughts, it’s like my brain has a problem with authority and is like “oh, you don’t want me to think? I’m just gonna think even harder” so folks advice of “just quiet your mind!” does not work at all.

The other advice I was given was “just let your mind wander” and that’s not an option either. If I let my mind wander, it pivots fast to dark, traumatic, intrusive thoughts and/or replaying every cringe and embarrassing moment of my life, so up to this point, all of my attempts to meditate have never worked out.

If there’s anyone with similar issues to mine that has been able to meditate with success, I’d very much appreciate some advice to help me along.

  • ArchAengelus@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    14·
    5 days ago

    I have pretty severe adhd (combined type). I use the Headspace app for guided meditations, and my favorite course is “Managing Anxiety.”

    Rather than simply accepting the train of crazy thoughts, which is hard, it teaches me to categorize thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations into a few groups.

    1. Thinking or feeling (physical or emotional). Do this for a while.
    2. eventually add “pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral”.
    3. After a good bit of practice, it adds “in a word, name the thought or feeling” and talks you through how to do that healthily.

    This categorization is an active step that helps the mind acknowledge a thought or feeling without being sucked into it or identifying with it. I use a similar labeling method when I struggle to stay calm. This idea is to start labeling the individual feelings and bodily signs rather than feeling anxious or excited: thinking or saying to myself “elevated heart rate”, “sweaty palms”, “rapid shallow breathing”. It’s a grounding exercise you can do anytime to check in with your body and add distance to the emotion, rather than attaching your current state to a lizard brain feeling.

    The broader goal of meditation isn’t to “be zen”, or without thought, but rather to help you separate your thoughts from your identity. Once you learn to recognize the signs of various feelings through regular practice, noting, and labeling, you may learn to use the tools to help reset a little when you’re NOT meditating.

    If you’re like me with a hyper sensory experience (mine is sound), then learning to identify when a sensation is present can also help to ground you.

    Anyway, hope that helps. I can answer questions if you have any.

    • The Velour Fog @lemmy.worldOP
      2·
      2 days ago

      Y’know, I had headspace installed for a while but I never opened it and eventually uninstalled it. I’m gonna give it another try in earnest with your suggestions in mind.

      I never really thought of meditation as separating my thoughts from my identity but I know I need to do that ASAP.

      Sound is also a hyper sensory thing for me, in some ways good, in other ways bad. I could use some grounding in that too 😆

      Thank you for your suggestions and advice!!

      Edit: I had headspace open and was going to use the managing anxiety section but my phone crashed, now upon reopening it everything is paywalled. Ah well.

      • ArchAengelus@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        3·
        3 days ago

        If you’ve never meditated before, starting with their beginner course and doing one every day is your best bet.

        Integrating it into your daily schedule is key. Example: “Oh, I’m getting ready to work, time to do meditation,” or some other time that isn’t the end of the day, and you won’t feel like you have time pressure. Consistency and regular practice are the most helpful.

        There was a study that showed smaller, more regular mindful practice was the best result (something like 10 minutes 5 days a week was most effective at improving mood and feeling clearer headed)

        Even after thousands of minutes of meditation, I still feel a big difference when I do it regularly vs skipping a week.

        The mind is a muscle, and meditation is a form of training. Good luck friend!

        Edit: Another app with a different approach worth trying is FitMind. It focused more science backed approaches to meditation and explains some interesting things. Tried the demo but didn’t buy.