Meditation is an excellent practice for those who experience and suffer from anxiety. For this reason, this practice is also great for individuals who are going through addiction treatment and recovery. However, some rookie meditation mistakes could increase anxiety. Here are six common meditation mistakes that can increase anxiety.
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6 Common Meditation Increases Anxiety
You are Expecting Instant Results
The first mistake that you can make when starting to meditate is expecting amazing and life-altering results from it right away. It takes time to receive positive results from meditating, and you may not see these effects on the first or even tenth meditation session. It is essential to recognize this and take your meditation slowly in the beginning. You will see results soon, don’t worry.
You are Pressuring Yourself
The next meditation mistake that can increase anxiety (1) is putting pressure on yourself while meditating. Pressuring yourself to feel a certain way while or have a specific experience while meditating will likely only make you feel worse.
You Use Self Punishment During Meditation
Using self-punishment about your thoughts, the length of time you are meditating, or anything else during your meditation session could increase anxiety. For this reason, you should never practice self-punishment during meditation or at any other time. This is especially true if you are relatively new to a sober living home.
You Quit Meditating Before You See Results
The next meditation mistake that could increase anxiety is not giving it a chance and giving up on it before seeing any positive results. Like with an alcohol or drug detox, meditation involves a process that is done over an extended amount of time before seeing any positive effects. “If clients elect to transition to a long-term rehab center, meditation is an integral part of the treatment to ensure long-term sobriety,” says Mat Gorman, CEO at Detox Center Austin.
You Are Meditating For too Long.
It would help if you started slowly when it comes to meditation. That means that you should make your meditation sessions short in the beginning and extend this length of time slowly over time. Meditating for too long too soon into your meditation journey can increase anxiety.
You Are Overly Controlling of Your Thoughts
The final meditation mistake that can cause or increase anxiety is overly controlling your thoughts during meditation sessions. This could be pressuring yourself to have no thoughts, positive thoughts, or an epiphany of some kind. Doing this will only make you feel worse, and it is not likely to give you the result you want. Instead, you should try to relax and allow your thoughts to happen freely and naturally.
Conclusion
Meditation can help with reducing anxiety when practiced correctly. Many recovering addicts are encouraged to take up meditation because of this. However, some meditation mistakes can increase anxiety. These include doing things like meditating for too long too soon after beginning the practice, quitting before any positive results can be seen, and overly controlling your thoughts during a meditation session. In addition to this, using self-punishment during a meditation session, expecting instant results, and putting pressure on yourself can increase anxiety as well.
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