Meditation is one of the best ways to connect with yourself and whatever higher power you believe in. It calms the anxiety of your mind and heart, and gives you the space to rest in grounded calmness.
But oftentimes, getting to the point where we can sit in silence and stillness, and actually stay that way for an hour, 30 minutes, or even just 10 minutes is the true challenge of meditating.
And that’s because it can be boring and uncomfortable. Your mind starts to drift, your lower back hurts, 5 minutes feels like years—there’s nothing to be embarrassed about, we’ve all been there.
I know it may be tempting to simply force yourself to get comfortable with meditation by jumping right into until you get it right, but it’s OK to rely on external tools and resources to help you get into the groove.
You don’t have to go all out or look to far, either. Here are four necessary wellness investments that’ll make meditating a whole lot easier for you.
Back-Supporting Chair or Cushion
One of the biggest complaints we have about meditation is that sitting on the floor with perfect posture is a bit of a daunting task. And to be perfectly honest, I can’t say I completely disagree with this sentiment.
Sitting on the floor, legs crossed, and back elongated is not very easy when you can’t do anything for the next hour except focus on your breathing. So the solution for this is simple—just invest in a meditation chair.
A meditation chair can be a legit thousand-dollar piece of furniture or it can be a $30 floor pillow with back support.
No matter what you decide to invest in for yourself, having something to sit on while meditating is actually game-changing because it gives you a level of comfort that allows you to focus on the task at hand.
Tibetan Singing Bowl
Tibetan singing bowls, or standing bells, are bowls that vibrate a rich, deep ringing tone when they hit or are played. The purpose of these special bowls is to deepen meditation and promote relaxation using sound frequencies.
Traditionally, singing bowls were used as tools to reduce anger, improve blood circulation, increase mindfulness, and even help you sleep. So basically, it’s the one tool used specifically to take your meditation to the next level.
If sound therapy is your thing, consider swapping out your zen playlist of nature sounds with the sound of your own voice reciting affirmations over the rich ringing of the singing bowl to deepen your meditative state.
A Guided Meditation Subscription
Sometimes meditating is hard because you don’t really want to do it alone. All of us aren’t so lucky enough to find a class of good vibe people to join us on our journey to peacefulness and enlightenment.
However, this doesn’t mean that we should count out the idea of assisted meditation altogether. In fact, it would actually be a great idea to invest in wellness apps and platforms that offer guided meditation in audio form.
Trusted platforms like Headspace, Calm, and even free channels on YouTube offer guided sessions to boost energy, promote mindfulness, and improve sleep using instructional meditation and some pretty chill music.
Essential Oil Diffuser
Aromatherapy is the use of aromatic materials, like incense and essential oils, to improve mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. The basis of aromatherapy is that choosing the right scent can change the entire vibe.
So imagine what a difference it would make if you took meditation up a notch by utilizing an essential oil diffuser to better set the tone of the room, and ultimately put you in the perfect space to achieve the peace you seek.
Whew. Now that’s magical.