Cut Through The Noise

We would perhaps all agree that life today is extremely hectic and most often leaves us very little or no scope for downtime. And while the new circumstances of the current pandemic have led to many of us working from home, families gathered under one roof for a whole 24 hours at a time; we perhaps find ourselves unable to enjoy the value of this arrangement as the lines between professional and personal time have become smudged or even erased. For homemakers like myself, being a mom to two small tots, these lines have become blurred over a few years now and the repercussions of NOT ‘consciously making time for myself’ have become clearly apparent.

With everything now ‘on the go’, our lives have become packed with ‘digital multitasking’. Be it juggling endless work calls and project completion, or unceasing requests for food, trying to manage basic essential house keeping (that appears to morph into an eternally growing mountain of ‘dreaded mandatory’ chores), amidst trying to fulfil the emotional and developmental needs of our kids; we build up too much brain clutter. Brain clutter that leaves us feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, anxious, emotionally charged and less effective, less functional. In this state, I have found myself feeling angry for the most part of each day and ultimately frustrated and even lonely at times. I would have to take an emergency walk to calm down from the overwhelming emotional buildup of growing responsibilities and no personal down-time. Even worse if you happen to be a perfectionist by nature, because not a lot of what you manage to do would meet your perfect expectations.

I only recently truly realised the importance of every individual getting some amount of downtime each day. Of course I would make a b-line for the most enticing and easily accessible escape – my sinking soft sofa and my favourite TV series, or option B – I would end up mindlessly browsing the internet. I would, with great difficulty and very rarely at that, manage a brief walk or some exercise, maybe once in three weeks. And even when I had managed to get some or any of these, none would come even close to helping me clear my head enough to tackle the tasks ahead of me. None, until I gave meditation a try.

Meditation – an essential lifeskill

Growing up as a convent school student, I was introduced to meditation between my 8th and 10th grade. However, the sessions held for the same were few and far between. I never really gave meditation another thought thereafter, although I have heard it mentioned among my friends interested in exercising regularly. So my assumption about this practice was that it is a matter of preference. Fast-forward to 2020 and I now find myself taking it up occasionally but I am increasingly convinced it will have to be made a part of my daily routine.

This is why. One evening I decided to put my anxiety over the tasks yet to be completed for the day aside, and dive into a 15-minute guided meditation session that I found over the internet. My exercise mat rolled out and a comfortable pillow cradling my head, I put my headphones in and got into a relaxing position. Before I knew it, despite the chaotic shrills of my little kids playing in the background (which usually would leave me feeling un-nerved amidst all the clutter of tasks competing for priority in my head), I was able to disconnect and drown out the chaos, the juggling thoughts. I was able to focus on my breathing and just be. I couldn’t remember when last I was able to do just this .. just exist. Without judging or evaluating myself. It was calming and liberating, and best of all the effect actually lasted for days. It enabled a subconscious change in my perspective of everything and everyone around me. It enabled a change in the way I would react to the chaos and noise in my home. I could take all my kid’s mischief with a pinch of salt, and even chuckle to myself about it while addressing it appropriately. I was able to relate to my kids once again, be there for them when they were troubled without much emotional effort. I was thrilled!

However, after a few days the effects wore off and I was back to ‘overreacting’ to the constant screaming and shrieking, and never ending demands for food that every home with tiny tots experiences. I decided I needed to practice meditation every day (even twice a day, if possible).

So here I am encouraging you to give it a try as well. It only takes 15 minutes at the very least and for me, every minute has been worth it. I do not find it to be the same as self-reflection or even physical exercise or a social activity. I find it most effective when it is individually personal and intimate. It does not involve you having to think about engaging your muscles or senses deliberately, except for your deep and conscious breathing that eventually becomes subconscious as well. It allows you to ‘just be’. And trying to meditate for less than 15 minutes just doesn’t cut it for me. But I suppose that would depend on how cluttered my mind is at that given time. I will keep you informed on my progress with meditation, how I am making it a daily practice and incorporating tiny portions of it into our family re-creational time as well. I will also discuss the beneficial impacts of meditation on human immunity and how meditation is an essential lifeskill for our digital age, so do stay tuned!

I must specify here, that as a beginner and considering how overwhelmed I have been, I find that using a ‘guided meditation audio‘ to help me through my meditation has been more effective than me trying to meditate on my own. I suppose it’s easier as it forces me to pay attention to the coach’s voice rather than my own existing brain clutter. I have included a link to a guided meditation channel that I follow online should you need some help with getting started (follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9YKY7fdwyg). I have also personally found some spiritual guided meditations (that are available online) useful as well; so do look out for those that suit you.

I do hope to teach my kids to meditate as well and hopefully they will be able to build it up to be a life-long practice. I sincerely believe meditation is an essential lifeskill that will enable us to declutter our minds and cut through the noise.

If you already practice meditation regularly or plan to do so please do tell us about your experience in the comments section below. There is much to share and learn from each other.

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