[VistaULTIMATEdownloadaPro]

I've been trying to do mindfulness of breathing mediation, but I don't seem to be very good at it. My mind seems to wander an awful lot, then I get bored, and I don't seem to be making any progress and it gets me frustrated. Has anyone else ever had problems like this starting out?

[SingleMan]

I definitely have had these sorts of problems.

I've found that slowly working your way up in small increments is quite effective. Try meditating for only 5 minutes at a time and perhaps try to meditate for a total of 20 minutes for the entire day. Once you get comfortable try increasing your increments to 10 minutes and perhaps either increasing your total amount or keeping it at 20 minutes.

This is how I started meditating. I now do 10-15 minute increments for a total of an hour each day. Just stick with it!

Jckendr

[hapasaparaz]

It's very normal.

Doing a very simple an unexiting activity like watching the breath is intended to show you what the mind is really like, then it's a process of bringing the mind back again and again after each time it tunes out. Watching the breath is like a mirror or baseline from which you can know the state of the mind and you can train it and watch it's progress, it's frustrating at first but look past the frustration and stick with it.

[Texdolley]

Hi white_wolf,

Goofaholix has given a good advice. Be patient. Keep practicing. The mind that has never meditated lives in wilderness, entangled. It is not easy to tame it.

Try not to have a fix schedule when you start to meditate if you meditate at home. Try to sit at different times and as spontaneously as possible and chose different rooms until you start to feel the need of meditation.

I changed from Zazen to Anapanasati. Sometimes I do zazen and others Anapanasati. Anapanasati has detailed stages. It has several tetrads, so try just to practice the first one and do not get too exited about having achievements.

Here is some information about Anapanasati that can be of some help:

Anapanasati Sutta

Anapanasati: Mindfulness with Breathing

Now is the Knowing

Now is the Knowing-Pdf.

[phinno13]

You've been given good advice. I would add that when you meditate you shouldn't have a goal in mind. This only sets you up for failure. You cannot calm your mind by trying to reach a goal because that just causes more thoughts about the goal and your failed efforts to reach it.

[P3bWjm1j]

I have had similar problems. I get distracted by sounds a lot, and my mind almost always wanders to what I need to do later. Just keep trying, keep bringing your focus back to your breath. And of course, take the good advice given above

[yatrahnualenu]

I had a strange experience this morning. I'm not sure if its a sign of progress or not. I managed to focus my thoughts on my breathing for several seconds at once, which was an improvement. I noticed that as I was doing this I started naturally taking deeper longer breaths. Then the weird stuff began. I started feeling lightheaded and felt a uncomfortable feeling in my chest it almost felt like I couldn't breathe, but of course I could. It was strange

[Grieryaliny]

One of the most effective techniques is specifically concentrating on your breath and the feeling it produces when "flowing" through your nose. This concentration is great at blocking out exterior thoughts, and as you get deeper into your meditation your need to do this lessons.

-Wilson

[AmfitNom]

...then I get bored...and I don't seem to be making any progress and it gets me frustrated. Has anyone else ever had problems like this starting out?

hi White Wolf

generally everyone has these problems when starting out. even if the mind stays with the breathing, it can get bored. the task is to be with whatever arises; without judging or grasping it. but a point can come when the boredom dissolves. when this occurs, mindfulness of breathing mediation will bring a refreshing peace

I'm not sure if its a sign of progress or not. I managed to focus my thoughts on my breathing for several seconds at once, which was an improvement. I noticed that as I was doing this I started naturally taking deeper longer breaths. Then the weird stuff began. I started feeling lightheaded and felt a uncomfortable feeling in my chest it almost felt like I couldn't breathe, but of course I could. It was strange

imo, these are signs of progress

1. the breathing becoming longer is a sign of progress

2. feeling lightheaded is also a sign of progress (but also a sign of unbalanced effort, i.e., some over-exertion with deeper breathing)

3. uncomfortable feeling in your chest is probably also a sign of progress, i.e., conscious breath entering into a dormant stress formation

our bodies have stress/emotion formations stored within them. when practising mindfulness of breathing, the conscious breath penetrates into these hidden stress/emotion formations, in order to cleanse/purify them, in exactly same way breath breathes in clean oxygen into the body and breathes out toxins of carbon dioxide out of the body

best wishes

BREATHING AWAY EMOTIONS

To summarize these first steps: it is possible to regulate, control, limit and manage the emotions by using the breath. We can make the emotions correct, useful and beneficial through the breath. Through our knowledge of the breath we develop the ability to control the breath itself. If we can train the breathing then we can control the emotions, that is, cope with the happiness and pain of our lives. Practice until you can feel this. Your practice is not complete if you cannot see this clearly.

When you are sitting in meditation and a mosquito bites you, you develop an emotion. How can you get rid of it? The way to drive it away is to improve the breath. Make it long, make it fine, make it chase that emotion away. This is the best way to solve the problems. This is another example of the beneficial knowledge and abilities that we are training.

Anapanasati: Unveiling the Secrets of Life

[LSg44PDu]

If you find yourself being too distracted to meditate your mindfulness is weak. One method of strengthening mindfulness on the breath is to start counting the out breaths. Just start counting each out breath from one to ten and whenever you notice your mind has wandered off, gently bring attention back to the breath and start counting from one again. After a few weeks of daily practice you could then try doing away with the counting and try meditating without it. Try to identify with your breathing rather than simply watching it and don't worry about any background thinking (mental gossiping) - just let the thoughts come and go without any special effort to stop them or to follow them. Your meditation should be as effortless as possible - like butter melting in the sun.

[gvataler]

One method of strengthening mindfulness on the breath is to start counting the out breaths. Just start counting each out breath from one to ten and whenever you notice your mind has wandered off, gently bring attention back to the breath and start counting from one again. I'm absolutely rubbish at meditating but I find this really helps a lot.


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[VarenHokalos]

Though I think it is good to have some strength in terms of being mindful on whatever it is that we use as our meditation object, sometimes a bit of a breakthrough early on is to even recognize when we are being mindful and when we are not. I think a lot of times we confuse these 2 things during our practice.

Whatever the focus of our meditation is, we should simply return gently to it once our mind has wandered and we should not conceptualize our object of meditation but rather use it as an anchor for the mind. Sometimes the technique itself can be a distraction to meditation.

Terma

[Blelidupgerie]

Howddy,

Although I have just joined, feel I can post in this. I had alot of trouble at first with the whole mediation thing, and yehhh it does take patience, but what really helped me get used to it and not get distracted is listening to meditation music through youtube-if you just type in "meditation music" you will be able to find tones of stuff! really worked for me! what also helps is listening to sounds of nature.

[envenonearo]

i do have to say if i've been bad-girl for a bit and holding all tight down inside me i am DOOOOOOOOOMED when i sit down to medtate.... i get totally flushed over with the noise/etc. oh yay

but thank goodness i just let it go over (and through) me until the stuff has all been rinsed out of me.... i think it helps to just be patient and wait it out....

nameste