Many people associate meditation with sitting on a mat, pillow or chair. However, meditation, especially mindfulness meditation, can be practiced almost anywhere, including the shower or bath.
Most of us have busy lives, and going through our day to day activities it’s easy to lose our awareness of the present moment. For example, instead of experiencing how it feels to cleanse and refresh ourselves in the shower, we can become caught up in thoughts about problems, future demands, or adding tasks to our mental “to do” lists. Not only do we lose the experience of the shower, but our thoughts can make our already cluttered minds even more cluttered.
Why not spend your shower time cleansing both body and mind? By cleaning your mind, I mean being mindful of what you’re experiencing in the moment rather than being caught in an endless stream of thoughts. And because you’re doing this in the shower, you’ll also experience the healing effect that being in water can bring. Not only will you free up your mind, but you’ll become more in touch with your body.
When to Use This Technique
Though this meditation is intended for the shower, you can use it in many everyday situations, such as when you’re washing dishes or cleaning the floor.
Why this Works
If you can take your awareness from your thoughts for even a few minutes, your body will react by stepping down the stress hormones, and you’ll more fully experience the moment. In additional, water has a calming effect for many people, which is one reason we feel revitalized and refreshed when we take a shower.
The Technique
When you’re in the shower this week, take the opportunity to practice mindfulness and make a commitment to experience the act of taking a shower. Focus on the sensory aspects of this simple act.
Participate fully in your experience. Don’t engage in thoughts. Thoughts will appear, but you can ignore them and bring your focus back to the sensations of showering.
There is no right or wrong way to practice this meditation. Simply be aware of the experience of showering instead of allowing yourself to become lost in your thoughts. Allow yourself to experience non-effort. By that I mean don’t attempt to make anything happen. Just pay attention to whatever is happening right now.
If your thoughts intrude, imagine that they are being carried away by the flowing water, and then return your attention to the experience of the shower.
Following are a few ideas for what you might notice:
- Feel the water streaming off your body. Notice if thoughts slow down as you focus on the sensation of the water on your skin.
- Listen to the sound of your breath.
- Listen to the sound of the rushing water filling the air.
- Smell the scent of the shampoo and soap.
- Feel the sensations of your bare feet against the shower floor.
- Focus on the feeling in your scalp as you massage the shampoo into your hair.
- Observe the water as it glides over your body.
- Feel the texture of your washcloth and soap as it glides across your skin.
- Observe the water as it flows down the drain.
- Watch water drops splatter as they make contact with the shower floor.
Do you feel lighter? Notice how your awareness opens up as the flowing water removes the clutter from your mind.
What We Learned Today
You can enjoy meditation, and gain the benefits of a daily meditation practice, without taking time from your schedule. As you gain practice with this mindfulness meditation, you can apply the technique to other ordinary tasks, such as washing the dishes or hand-washing clothing.
Follow up to Shower Meditation:
Question That Comes Up Is
When I tried this shower meditation, I couldn’t stop my thoughts. What do you recommend?
Allow and accept all your thoughts, even the uncomfortable ones. Accept your thoughts as they come, and keep bringing your attention back to the physical sensations of the shower. The thoughts will eventually lose their power to attract and hold your attention. The only power our thoughts have comes from the attention we give them.
To your health,
Connie
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