Has anyone seriously tried meditation for anxiety.

[soultrain]

Has anyone seriously tried meditation as a treatment or cure for anxiety?  If so, what were your results?  The reason i ask is because i practice meditation and have some good results.  When i meditate regularly using deep stillness techniques , using the breath and incorporating chants my results are very good.  Making meditation a regular habit (whether i want to) is my challenge.  The positive results i have experienced encourages me to go deeper. 

Does anyone else have any positive meditation experiences? 

[Bama21]

I had some positive results, but I didn't stick with a regular routine.  My experience is that it is very therapeutic for a limited time.  I suspect that, had I been disciplined enough to do a regular, twice a day meditation schedule, it could help significantly in the long run.

The main thing for me was how it clears the mind.  Most of the time I am scatterbrained and kind of all over the place.  The meditation (I did a Christian meditation) made me relax in both body and mind.  I found it good to do just before sleep.

[mybrian]

i agree, i do a christian meditation for about 20 minutes or so, I feel it is working to create stillness and a positive attitude, it is helping me to refocus my thoughts on positive things and then throughout the day i say these positive thoughts all day when i can .

[Abnormal-Mindset]

i just try and slow down my whole day. and practice. although meditation can help, but sometimes if i sit and have time to think it will surface. in other words i keep myself busy but not at a rat-raced insane pace like the rest of the world. only you know what works for yourself.

[Russ]

I use guided imagery CDs instead.  I think that they really help if you keep it up.  My thoughts are just too nonstop to control by meditating but if someone is guiding my thoughts I do much better.  Has anyone ever tried any good guided imagery cds I am looking for some options so I do not get bored of the ones I have.  Thanks  Russ

[tokyopiglet]

Breathing helped some level so far - (counting 4 seconds beathin, hold it 2 seconds and let breath out 4 secounds, and pause and continue) I try to visualize myself on top of mountain when I went hiking at school.

also bezo type medication works sometimes for sudden stress shock..I am trying to incooporate with SAM-e.

[KKLB1314]

I would love to get more info on these "guided imagery" cd's too.

[0681012]

I recently read the book Over coming Anxiety for Dummies.  It has a whole chapter on different meditation methods.  I have read a lot of books on anxiety and this book seemed to be a collection of the best ideas that worked for me.  You might be able to find it in your local library.  Good luck.

[markidee]

When I begin to meditate I feel like my brain is filled with a bunch of monkeys throwing bananas at each other.

When I am finished I feel more aware of the "incredible lightness of being." I don't know what happens in between, but I know it's how the Divine Voice--the Holy Ghost, perhaps--chooses to speak to us.

I need to shut out the noise of the world before I can hear "the still, small voice" of God.

[rooster1106]

hey soultrain,
nice topic. i do insight meditation and practice theravada buddhism seriously. i got into it because of my anxiety and found it has helped immensely. i agree with people who say meditation clears the mind. i'll add a few things:
-- it really needs to be done regularly
-- i think it works better in concert with buddhist principles because they give a way of looking at the world that is less anxiety-producing, there is a lot you can read
-- find a meditation center near you, it helps to have a community of like minded individuals
-- do a meditation retreat to get really into it
-- meditation is a lot more than a relaxation technique
-- check out the new book "the mindful way through anxiety" by orsillo and roemer:
http://www.mindfulwaythroughanxietybook.com/Mindful_Way_book/Home.html

[gj13]

I have tried meditation to some extent, my brain starts bouncing all over the place, then I get anxious because I'm not calming down, and the more I focus on being relaxed makes me even more jittery, and then I give up.   I can sit still, but it takes too much effort for it to be relaxing. 

I truly wish it did help me.

Vigorous exercise helps, so I could say that exercise provides meditative moments.

[bryan3000]

Thanks for the solutions-oriented thread.

Yes, I've tried to incorporate meditation and mindful breathing and I think it's helped. But, I'm in the infantile stages of
meditation. I still have a lot of trouble doing anything but guided meditations. But, those help... and simply listening to them
during the day can be relaxing.

To me, if you're dealing with anxiety/panic... it's pretty much mandatory that you try to incorporate SOME form of mindfulness
meditation, breath meditation or other form to your daily routine.

[anna300]

I take medicine for my anxiety disorder and yes, it helps but you just have to find the right medicine that won't make you hyper or anything. You can't completely depend on the medicine though because it won't take away everything.

[jen2213]

Anna,

That's great that medication is working for you. But they are talking about mediTation, not mediCation.