Stress Management: a Sidenote on Meditation

As a believer in Christ and a Latter Day Saint, I feel that every thing we do should be centered around the Master and His Gospel. Why? Because I know I can't go wrong if I follow His teachings and the teachings of His prophets. (If you want to know more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and our beliefs click here). I also know that I will be able to discern when something is bad for me through prayer and feeling. God knows each of us personally and can often help us find what we need better than we can help ourselves. I've lived without God in my life and I know the difference that He makes. He is worth taking time to get to know. So, one type of meditation can involve the scriptures. My personal favorite is the Book of Mormon. Pray. Read. Ponder. And when we invite the healing power of Christ into our lives change is much more effective and so much easier.

Using the scriptures as a base and prayer as a medium for discernment ensures that we wont be led astray by harmful beliefs or ideas that are negative or damaging to life and the soul.  Also, it is easier to find helpful forms of meditation that exist beyond the range of our own religious experience.
I believe that meditation should be deeply personal. It should be a time when you are completely vulnerable so that you can learn who you are and learn to trust yourself. That being said, meditation should be safe, gentle, kind hearted towards self, and purposeful - with good intention.

By being vulnerable we quiet the ego, we set all strivings aside and take time to be delightfully calm so that we don't get in the way of ourself. I believe that there is something lovely inside each of us that remains unchanged by time and circumstance - something that is eternal and that resonates with memory when we embrace goodness and truth. When we take time to look inward without the ego getting in the way, we can be reminded of just how beautiful we are and how much truth already resonates within us, even though we may have things that trouble us, habits that cloud our vision or tendencies that dim our light.



Another type of meditation is the stereotypical kind of deep breathing and visualization. I don't like anything that makes me feel like a weirdo so I try to keep it simple. :) Deep breathing is naturally calming (which helps with stress). Visualization is VERY powerful. So is positive thinking. Especially if positive thinking is difficult for you. I've really liked this book "The Book of Chakras" by Ambica Wauters. Simple and doesn't get in the way of itself with too much Eastern Philosophy. This book has written out meditations that are pretty easy to follow and are a good basic start.

Essential oils can be an excellent addition to any meditation, even scripture reading. They can assist anything from making difficult changes to having more clarity when learning.  I highly recommend the book "Butterfly Miracles With Essential Oils".  The author, LaRee Westover, has studied and lived natural medicine for over 30 years.  I know her personally and she is a lovely person.

You can always try an audio meditation where someone is verbally guiding you as well. Use caution with this and be sure to avoid hypnosis. Hypnosis weakens agency, or the ability to choose for ourselves and if used improperly can give the hypnotist the power to strongly influence your choices and actions.

Ultimately, visualization and positive thinking can do wonders when trying to change or lift oneself out of negativity. Having a moral guide, such as the scriptures, helps us see where we need to make changes in our behavior so that we don't fall back into the negative pattern.