The most powerful meditation to ease anxiety and fear.
As an entrepreneur and creative professional, I quickly realized that if I wanted to keep my businesses (and my sanity!) afloat, I’d better become good friends with clarity.
Throughout my experimentation with clarity, I found out that it is a practice of every moment.
Like everything else, being mindful is not a goal we reach, it is a continuous state of mind and a way of being.
It’s a practice of every day. And meditation is a big part of this practice.
I meditate every morning. Every day is different, sometimes with a mantra, sometimes just focusing on my breath.
It’s my little trick to stay sane.
And when I feel extra anxious, or when fear creeps in, I use a special meditation that I will share here today.
This article is my most read on medium.com. I suppose it means people found this technique helpful, and this is why I am sharing it here today.
I am loving awareness.
I had heard this mantra in a song by Krishna Das. It felt right, so I just started repeating it in the stereo of my brain.
“I am loving awareness. I am loving awareness. I am loving awareness.”
You can also say it out loud; I find it helpful to do so when my mind has difficulties settling down. It works like a lullaby.
How did the mantra “I am loving awareness” shifted things around?
I am loving awareness…
And everything else dissolved.
By focusing on my very deep nature, an awareness loving everything and everyone, all the drama of my life felt meaningless and small.
“I am loving awareness” de-dramatizes whatever drama is making you miserable.
All the questions and the doubts became secondary.
The gravity of all my meandering ruminations suddenly shrank. I did not have the answer to my questions, but they suddenly seemed less of a monster.
Why so?
Because I got back to what mattered the most: I am loving awareness. Presence.
And when we’re present, there’s no more room for anxiety or fear, which are feelings that come when we project into the future.
By doing so, you get back to the parasympathetic brain. This is the state of your nervous system where it is relaxed. It is the opposite of the “flight or fight” part, the one that allowed our ancestors to save their life when a lion chased them. Today, since there’s no more lion to escape from, being in the “flight or fight” mode translates into stress and anxiety: physical energy that is not consumed.
And when we are in a state of fear or panic, there’s no more room for creativity, clarity, vision, or planning. There’s just survival.
Meditation takes us back into the “rest and digest” state.
Having mindfulness practices in your life enables you to live a stellar life versus life in automatic mode.
2. “I am loving awareness” creates the silence that allows answers to rising.
I focused on the specific life decision that was making me particularly anxious.
In that space of silence and inner peace, Clarity could finally speak, piercing through the veil of fear, social pressure, financial anxiety, illusions, and fantasies.
The answer was clear. It was structured. I could feel it coming from the perfect blend of mind and heart.
Our power lies in finding that perfect balance between mind and heart.
As I am writing this article, I have made my decision based on that moment of clarity. I’ve backed it up with discussions with my coach and people whose opinion matter to me.
It has been now two weeks since this meditation, and I am still happy with the decision I took based on it.
Simple yet potent – the power of mantras.
The “Loving Awareness” mantra has been powerful in calming my anxiety, my mind chatter and recollecting myself to my center.
Even more, it is a potent tool to find the clarity I can use as a foundation for my life decisions.
I now use it every time I feel the monkey mind starting to jump from a branch to another.
And you can do so too.
If you’re new to meditation, here are some tips.
First of all, here is the link to the song with the mantra. You can use this song to help you get into the mood.
When you’re about to get into meditation, these steps can help:
Sit comfortably: use a cushion or a chair. The most important thing is that your spine is straight (yet, not tense). You can also lie down.
Be in silence: be sure you won’t be disturbed and that the room is quiet
Setup an alarm: if you’re restricted in time, set up an alarm to let you know when you have to end the meditation. This way, you don’t have to think about it during the meditation. Try and choose a soft alarm to not surprise you when it rings.
Start with focusing on your breath: it’s always a good way to start. Deepen your breathing and imagine that you’re arriving in the pose you’re in. “I’m here”.
Eyes closed: that helps, yep!
Watch out for tension in the body: I’m sure there’s room for more relaxation in your body — check your shoulders, they’re generally tense. Belly, back, jaw (I like to open my mouth, maybe force a yawn.)
Start repeating the mantra: “I am loving awareness”. As I said in the article, you can start saying it out loud as it helps you focus on it to hear it. Maybe at some point, you’ll feel more like lowering your voice, maybe coming to a murmur, until you repeat it internally without saying it out loud. It’s not mandatory at all, and this will evolve with your practice.
Trust yourself during the meditation: since the meditation is not guided, all you’ve got to do is to listen to your inner voice. Let it guide you through the practice, telling you what to do next, and what to focus on.
Be the observer: during meditation, try to step away from your feelings and thoughts and watch, without judging, what is happening within. Emotions and maybe answers will come up; watch them as they are, and give them space to express themselves.
Leave meditation slowly: please, don’t be like “ok, need to go now!” and stand up in a second! Give your body and nervous system time to get out of this relaxed state slowly. Lower your head, open your eyes slowly. Maybe stretch a bit before you stand up. The slower you get out, the longer you can keep the effects of the meditation with you.
“I am loving awareness” works better than any relaxing adaptogen/pill/tea/essential oil I’ve ever used.
Try it, and let me know how it went!