Nappin' Ain't Easy 9
Meditation ain't easy 1
In a conversation about stress management, it usually isn’t long before the topic turns to meditation. I believe this is an extremely broad and loaded word that means a lot of things to a lot of people — but as a general matter, the commonly cited benefits of meditation often include improved moment-to-moment attention and awareness that, in turn, help one foster and maintain equanimity, compassion, and mental and emotional stability. All worthy pursuits, to be sure.
But is meditation the best path to stress management?
Dan Harris, meditation app entrepreneur and former ABC news anchor, has written two great books about meditation: 10% Happier and Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. In the latter, he tackles the most common reasons he’s heard that various people don’t meditate, regardless of the many studies that show its myriad benefits. I’ve been meditating off and on for 20 years or so, and many of the reasons resonated with me. But I think the explanation is much simpler.
In broad brushstrokes, I believe that most people don’t maintain a meditation habit because they don’t achieve the immediate (di)stress reduction they seek, so they don’t keep at it long enough to experience the longer term benefits that can take years to develop. They’re looking for a painkiller that will kick in on the spot, rather than a vitamin that will take weeks, months, and years to kick in.
This likely touches on the debate around whether pursuit of a goal is somehow antithetical to meditation. More tomorrow.