I struggle with body scans. I don't think i understand the purpose of them and I find them hard as F*%k to do. I can never make it through them and they don't relax me. What am I missing? How can I learn more about them.
With many meditations, when (or in my case “if”) you realize your mind has wandered down a rabbit hole of thought, you try to bring it back to the breath or whatever chosen anchor you are using to stay present in the moment. With a body scan it’s giving you something to focus on that is in the moment and internal like the breath and away from whatever rabbit hole the Mad Hatter has lured you into. A variation I use that helps is instead of scanning for “what’s going on in my [body part]?” I use “relax the muscles surrounding [body part]”. I find when I’m stressed it usually causes various muscles to tighten. The jaw, fists, and stomach are easy locations but I personally discovered my eyes would always be the last thing to relax. I learned to use that for basic meditations even more than the breath but whatever works to help avoid counterproductive ruminating. Disclaimer: I have found body scans to frequently precede “nap time” but I recall Sebene pointing out that the Dalai Lama says sleep is the best meditation. Win-win!
Simply perfect, with a touch of humor. Thank you
I struggle with body scans. I don't think i understand the purpose of them and I find them hard as F*%k to do. I can never make it through them and they don't relax me. What am I missing? How can I learn more about them.
With many meditations, when (or in my case “if”) you realize your mind has wandered down a rabbit hole of thought, you try to bring it back to the breath or whatever chosen anchor you are using to stay present in the moment. With a body scan it’s giving you something to focus on that is in the moment and internal like the breath and away from whatever rabbit hole the Mad Hatter has lured you into. A variation I use that helps is instead of scanning for “what’s going on in my [body part]?” I use “relax the muscles surrounding [body part]”. I find when I’m stressed it usually causes various muscles to tighten. The jaw, fists, and stomach are easy locations but I personally discovered my eyes would always be the last thing to relax. I learned to use that for basic meditations even more than the breath but whatever works to help avoid counterproductive ruminating. Disclaimer: I have found body scans to frequently precede “nap time” but I recall Sebene pointing out that the Dalai Lama says sleep is the best meditation. Win-win!