Meditation is more often associated with states of deep relaxation, but it can also be an effective way to rejuvenate yourself and boost your energy. Fatigue and sluggishness often result from a constant flow of negative, chaotic and stressful thoughts through our minds. We may not even be aware when these types of thoughts begin taking over our focus � we just know we suddenly feel like we've got a thousand-pound weight sitting on our shoulders and we have no energy to attend to our normal activities.
The following steps will walk you through a simple process for releasing negative thoughts and boosting your energy through meditation:
1) First, purge the negative stuff.
There are a couple of ways to do this. You can either write out your dominant thoughts on a sheet of paper and tear it up, or simply close your eyes and imagine the top of your head opening up and all negative thoughts flying out and disappearing. Spend as long as you like on this step of the process, but for most people a few minutes should be plenty.
2) Shift to more positive thoughts.
Once you've purged the negative thoughts from your mind, it's a good idea to consciously work on adopting more positive thoughts � otherwise, negative thoughts will just come creeping back in.
There are a few ways you can do this:
First, think of something or someone that makes you feel happy. Think of your spouse, children, best friend, beloved parents � even your pet. Go over the reasons you love them in your mind, or recall a funny story that makes you feel uplifted.
Another option is to engage in some positive self-talk and build yourself up with encouraging words. One unfortunate side effect of negative, chaotic thinking is that we're usually picking on ourselves without even realizing it, which makes us feel even worse. Turn that tendency around by mentally or verbally listing the things you love about yourself. Think about your skills, talents, achievements, positive characteristics, and so on. Feel good about yourself and you'll find yourself feeling good about everything else too!
If neither of those options work for you, think about what does make you feel good. Spend a few minutes thinking about something that makes you feel happy or excited. It doesn't matter what you focus on, as long as it shifts you into a positive state of mind and emotion.
3) Give yourself a boost.
Those first two steps alone will go a long way in reducing fatigue and irritability, but you can take it a step further by generating some great energy to rejuvenate yourself. If possible, stand up and slowly stretch your entire body. Reach as high as you can toward the ceiling and imagine your legs stretching down with your feet planted firmly on the floor. Imagine a current of energy running up from the earth into your feet, up your legs and buzzing through your entire body. See this energy burning off any lingering fatigue and feel yourself filling with limitless energy and motivation. Smile and say aloud, "I feel fantastic!" Take a few deep breaths to clear your mind and ground yourself, then continue on with your normal activities.
These steps are incredibly helpful in a pinch, but they can be even more effective if you do them on a daily basis. Start each morning with this type of activity and you'll quickly find that you have an abundance of energy to carry you through the day.
