Meditation

Stephanie York
Ms. Ruschman
Introduction to General Psychology
18 August 2013
Meditation
Meditation is the act of transforming the mind.   Different meditation practices are techniques that develop concentration, clarity and emotional positivity.   By figuring out one particular technique that works for you can be very helpful with learning how to cope with stress and anxiety. After researching multiple meditation techniques such as guided meditation or mindfulness meditation, I found that the practice of mindfulness meditation can be very useful to me on a day to day basis.
To begin my meditation process, I look for a quiet place, so I can escape all the chaos in the dorms. The place I found was Lake Baldwin.   I take a towel down by the lake, spread it out and lie down so I can listen to the sounds of nature and focus on my breathing.   After I lie down, I begin to try and control my thoughts. At first it was extremely difficult, because I would lie there and think about the ten thousand different things I had to get done.   However, I start to focus on the sounds around me and I begin to relax and then I begin to count my breaths from one to ten.   When I reached ten, I would start back at one.   By focusing solely on my breathing in a quiet outdoor setting, I was forced to forget all my worries and true relaxation begin to set in.   By releasing my mind from all of the tasks I have to accomplish, I felt that my meditation process was above all extremely successful.
The situations in my life, test anxiety and the additional pressure of keeping my grades up create times in which I am overwhelmed and stressed out.   However, after lying down at Lake Baldwin and using my mediation process, I begin to feel as if a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. By finding a way to free my mind from all the stresses of college, I began relaxed and ready to take on the world once more.   Since I have learned about meditation and the benefits of it, I have found that...