Do you know the situation - your head is constantly rattling and not necessarily productive, constructive or philanthropic? It's annoying, but how do you get out of the barrage of thoughts and associative digressions? Like a kittycat  that hashes after everything that moves, the unfocused "kittycat-mind" follows every stimulus, no matter how insignificant.

It is in the nature of the human mind to seek external stimulation, to react to external stimuli and to produce comments. In scientific studies investigating brain activity, the average number of thoughts is estimated at around 60,000 per day. Many of these are not only repetitive or banal, but even have a detrimental effect on our emotional experience. They lead to stressful emotional reactions and the release of stress hormones, which can then unfold their destructive effect on the physiological level.

The healing power of meditation has been known for thousands of years and is already mentioned in ancient Vedic scriptures. Since the 80s of the last century, the positive effects of meditation have also been the subject of increasingly intensive scientific research.

Meanwhile, based on many longitudinal studies, there is a scientific consensus that regular meditation improves attention performance and stress management. The positive effect on anxiety patients is also proven, in which the brain scan shows a decrease in the substance density of the amygdala, which correlates with the triggering of anxiety reactions. The reversal of damage caused by permanent stress (e.g. by a high cortisol level) in individuals who had started meditating for a longer period of time was also proven.

Meditation is thus a way to harmonize the activity of the nervous system and thus to bring about changes in experience, behaviour and health status. 

What happens during meditation?

In the state of meditative relaxation, the parasympathetic nervous system is dominant, which ensures peace, relaxation and positive self-regulating processes in our system. Unlike the everyday action or stress mode (sympathetic mode), the parasympathetic mode builds up energy and promotes calmness. Meditation changes the processing of stimuli in the nervous system, stress resistance increases.

The more often one gives one's organism the opportunity to return to a balance of activity between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, the less susceptible it is to numerous mental and physical illnesses.

Meditation can therefore bring the brain and nervous system to rest. Thinking becomes clearer, the psyche more balanced and harmonious, the body more relaxed and the behaviour can be consciously controlled more easily. We more often act in accordance with our higher convictions and values. The security of our intuition, our gut feeling increases. People who meditate regularly are not only significantly more relaxed than the average, but also healthier, more concentrated, more socially acceptable and more satisfied.

What are the basic principles of meditation?

They are very simple: It is about switching from an external focus of attention to an internal one. Sit down, close your eyes, consciously acknowledge your breath and other body sensations. Observing thoughts and feelings, acknowledging their presence and letting them move on without getting stuck. Shutting down. Recognizing that one is the space of consciousness in which thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations appear and disappear again. Relief. Expansion. More conscious self-determination, freedom.

Are you curious to experience meditation yourself?

Guided meditations are perfect for beginners. Whether you try a guided meditation in the form of a podcast, video, or meditation group, you can simply let the experience work on you and try different ones. The many guided meditations available, e.g. on YouTube, have very different focuses. Just google and find out what might suit you.

The meditation I recently uploaded to Youtube was developed by me, inspired by the concerns most often mentioned by my clients. It can also be accessed from this page.

All guided meditations have one thing in common: the implicit assumption that in the state of internal attention focus there are many more resources available than in the mode of the externally oriented mind. The subconscious mind, the natural body intelligence and all accumulated life wisdom can be used much more easily as a source of creative solutions and self-healing.

At first it was not easy for me to shift my attention from an external focus to observing internal conditions. To be able to observe physical sensations, feelings and also thoughts in their coming and going.

In the meantime I have developed my own style of meditation but my first step into a regular meditation practice was guided meditation. I see it as a valuable tool for beginners to tune the body, the nervous system and the brain into a functional mode, in which relaxation, recuperation and a general re-set can adjust naturally. And one can relax and feel at home in oneself again.