Meditation and MDD!

[Hammad]

Well, my Dad has recently taken the initiative to connect with his spiritual self and he's been persistently trying to convince me to accompany him on this 'spiritual journey'. As most of you are already aware that one of the most common spiritual practice is meditation. And as far as I have understood from the video lectures that I have been forced into watching, it is in-fact a way to relax yourself by shutting down your brain, simply embracing nature by focusing on it and cleansing yourself of all worldly thoughts. Even though I find all of this rather ambiguous but I severely lack the ability to focus on just about anything and since it teaches you how to filter all the crap that goes on inside our minds I am willing to give it a shot. I just want to know if any of you ever tried meditating and experienced any improvements? If yes then please also elaborate on how to go about it as I am still very new to all of this.  

[GME]

Hi, Hammad,

In my personal experience, meditation has helped me with my daydreaming, provided I do it in a way that works for me. I'm naturally someone that struggles to "clear my mind", so instead I try to focus on one specific thing. For instance, if I'm trying to calm my thoughts down, I create a picture in my mind of a place that I enjoy - the beach, a flower garden, etc. I try to fill this image with as many details as I can, such as the sights, sounds, and smells. This not only helps to relax me, but it also helps improve my focus. Sometimes I take it to the next level and try to accomplish something while I'm in this state. For instance, if there's some emotion that I need to let go of, I picture myself taking an object (representing the energy of that emotion) and letting it float down a stream. In this way, I'm taking my natural inclination to daydream and using it as a tool for inner work.

However, if I'm out in nature, I hold off on the mental imagery and instead focus on being in the moment. I allow myself to take in the different sensations I experience from my surroundings. I don't try to analyze these feelings - I just let them pass through me. This is a good exercise when you need to be grounded in reality. 

In the beginning, meditation isn't easy, especially when you're a natural daydreamer. But you really just have use methods that work for you and keep at it. Eventually, it will become easier. If you're looking for a place to start, I would recommend you begin with guided meditations. There are plenty of good ones on YouTube you can try. I personally use ones from The Honest Guys channel.

Good luck, and I hope this helps!