Common Meditation Experiences: What to Expect When Starting a Practice

Meditation is supposed to relax you, but what does that really mean? Research shows that meditation has many benefits for physical and mental health. But even with all these meditation techniques, not many people know what to expect while meditating.

This can be strange territory, especially for beginners in meditation. Much markets meditation as a panacea for all the stressors of modern life. But to actually practice meditation, you have to be prepared for what you may or may not experience when you sit down to meditate with your eyes closed.

Many people do not immediately feel relaxed. This can be a difficult exercise for some. Some people may even have to go through difficult emotions and feelings in order to make breakthroughs in their practice.

These are normal experiences while meditating. By learning more about what to expect when you start a meditation practice, you will prepare yourself to be successful as a regular meditator.

benefits of meditation

Stress reduction is one of the biggest draws of meditation. Especially for those who work 9 to 5 in big cities. Secular meditation practices in particular tout the relaxation benefits of meditation and how long-term, regular meditation can improve productivity, creativity, and collaboration.

Here are other observed benefits of meditation:

Help manage depression and anxiety

Improves heart health and lowers blood pressure

help you sleep better

Promotes faster healing and cell regeneration

reduce chronic pain

Increase productivity and creativity

Help you work better as a team

Let you live longer and age gracefully

Give you a feeling of lightness and happiness

how to start meditating

You can start a secular meditation practice on your own. There are many apps and YouTube videos to help with guided meditations, and it only takes three minutes to get started.

The simplest meditation practice involves sitting comfortably in a place where you will not be disturbed and closing your eyes for a few minutes.

Some meditation techniques focus on mantras, positive affirmations, or intentions. Others can guide you through relaxing visualizations, or even show you pleasing photos or videos. In some places, you can relax by listening to the sounds of nature or pleasant music.

Some meditative practices are more active, such as mindful eating, forest bathing, or twilight.

There are many relaxation meditation techniques you can try. But the one guideline that holds them together is to keep practicing. Meditation is a skill, you cannot master it in one sitting. Even many meditation masters and teachers will say that you may need hundreds of lifetimes to meditate.

When you start meditating, the right frame of mind is to just do it a little at a time. Just a second of calm is already a successful meditation practice.

Common and unexpected experiences while meditating

When you start meditating without the guidance of a traditional teacher, you may be surprised by some of the experiences you experience the first time you practice. Don’t expect to enter a state of calm and relaxation right away.

Other physical and mental sensations may arise while meditating, and the following are some common experiences you may experience.

monkey spirit

The monkey mind is a Buddhist teaching that means your mind is constantly restless, full of activity and thoughts. These are distractions designed to calm down practices like yoga and meditation.

This part of your mind is most closely connected to your ego, so the more you try to push it away, the more it needs to be heard. For beginners, this can be very frustrating. This may be why you want to practice meditation in the first place.

It’s important to remember that meditation is not about completely quieting your mind. It’s as pointless as training the stomach to stop producing digestive enzymes. But meditation can train your mind not to be distracted or consumed by those thousands of thoughts.

Rotating Lights and/or Synesthesia

Some people report seeing swirling lights while meditating with their eyes closed. Some people even say they start to experience synesthesia – when you perceive sounds, numbers or words as colors.

According to research, people who are exposed to sensory deprivation environments can also experience these mild hallucinations. One hypothesis is that when the mind is quiet, it’s not used to it. So it creates its own auditory and visual experience and other weird sensations.

These, like the thoughts in your monkey head, will eventually calm down so that you can enter a still state of meditation.

body tingling or pressure

You may also feel tingling in different parts of your body when you start meditating, or feel like someone is poking you or pressing down on a certain part of your body when no one else is there.

These are also thought to be mild hallucinations created by your brain to compensate for the lack of sensory input it is used to. It could also be your system releasing the conditioning, stress and trauma stuck in your body.

cold hands and feet

After sitting still for a long time, the body temperature will drop slightly. This may be more noticeable on your extremities, hands and feet.

According to some meditation teachers, this is also a sign of kundalini r