Meditation: Cleansing Your Energy

*Understanding How Meditation Aides Positive Thinking

*Scheduling in a Location

*Mental Benefits of Meditation

Recently, I have been reading this book that my grandmother gave me for Christmas. It's title, Sanity Savers: Tips for Women to Live a Balanced Life, by Dr. Dale Vicky Atkins. On one of her passages, she compares stressful moments to a reservoir, drying up, leaving only panic, fear, and anger.

The passage honestly got me into thinking about all of that negative energy she was comparing the water in that reservoir to. Then, I imagined capturing that negative energy into a glass. If the negative energy has been the cause of the drying reservoir, then I began to think to myself, "Can't we just cleanse the water?"

I carried on in reading more about her theories on refilling her reservoir, and I admit, I had to agree on a few things. To start, she helped to identify what you would need to refill that reservoir, in order to stay full and giving. After all, giving IS that minor piece of positive thought that can help you feel better about yourself. If we can't feel the NEED to do so, then we simply cannot fulfill our positive thoughts.

So What Does This Have to Do With Meditation?

Let's get back to that glass of water, shall we? The glass, itself, represents the start of a new day. Our first thought starts to fill our glass with the water from the reservoir: It's a beautiful day, I'm alive, and I'm grateful for the things I have in my life. Each time we fill our glass with the water from our reservoir, we will be gathering a new thought, lesson, idea, or action. Because the muck from the negative energy is mixed within the pureness of our positive thoughts, we are bound to capture the muck in our glass. Do not grow too concerned, though, that muck can easily be cleansed, with time.

Meditation will be referred to as the process we will take in cleansing our glass of water. Without a chance to stop thinking about the stresses, our minds will pack on more and more stress, allowing the water to be more and more cloudy. It's time to sit down and clear your mind and sort through your glass of thoughts.

If you're living the life of a busy body, you may find it rather difficult to find a time and place to sit back and recollect your thoughts. Your place doesn't need to be a place to visit. In fact, some of my processes were done while I was sitting on my bathroom toilet. Our mind can imagine any location we would like to be. Once you have your setting, you are ready to allow your senses to send you even deeper into your place.

For those who have the role of a full-time parent, do not despair about spending about 5-10 minutes to recollect your thoughts, while you send your child to clean his or her room, or make his or her bed. Kids will retaliate at first, especially if you have just started trying to schedule in your "me time," but they will understand the purposes behind them, fast. If you have young ones that don't seem to see when you need your time to yourself, try using an object that could pose as an "I'll get on that, just give me a bit" note.

My favorite one to use for my 3 year old daughter is my coffee cup. Once she sees my cup full of coffee and I'm drinking away to start my day, she knows to wait until that first cup is gone before placing her "demands." She also uses her toys as a way to tell her brother and I that she's under HER time, and would prefer not to be bothered until she finishes playing out her "event."

There are many positive results that can be accomplished while you take the time to meditate. I have decided to share my experiences of each outcome with you, as well as how they have improved my balance in positive thoughts.

1. Out with the old, in with the new. It's true that if you want to think positive, you will need to drop the past and think about the present. However, we are all human, and we still tend to think about what has happened. Instead of storing those thoughts and clouding your mind, meditation can help you to currently think about what happened, contemplate on what you could have done to evaluate other possible outcomes to each event, and find out what you've learned about what actually DID happen.
2. Maintain the balance. Now that your mind is starting to sort out the bad from the good, you're well on your way into determining what needs to be done, in order to feel "happy," again. Don't be afraid to use your journal. Sometimes, the strongest thoughts can occur during times of deep meditation.
3. Go with the flow. Once you send your angers, pains, and frustrations with a source of movement within your place, you will find that what you're venting about will start to help you feel "lifted" the more you privately tell your negative energy to float or fly away.
4. What made me smile? Try to contemplate on the positives, as well as the negatives. Balance them out and see if you find something you've not only done good in, but also see if you can find something that has caused you to smile. After a while, you'll be "craving" that feeling all over again, and you'll find yourself thinking positive again.