Meditation is one of the essential components of recovery and of living a spiritual life. Meditation quiets the chatter in our heads and allows us to gain perspective. You will find that practicing meditation will ease your emotional and physical pain and assist you in staying clean. The Eleventh Step in twelve-step fellowships talks about prayer and meditation in terms of using these practices as bridges to build a relationship with a power of one’s own understanding that is greater than oneself. In this context, prayer is often thought of as a way to talk to one’s source of spirituality, while meditation is a way to listen to that source of spirituality. One form of meditation is based on mindfulness—that is, enhancing your conscious awareness of your internal experience. Sitting in a comfortable position with your eyes closed, let yourself relax and take note of body sensations, thoughts, and feelings. Notice them without judgment. Let your mind settle into the rhythm of your breathing. If your mind wanders (and it will), gently redirect your attention back to your breathing. Through meditation practice it is possible to face emotional and physical pain as well as uncomfortable and painful thoughts and feelings, and to learn simply to accept the pain or anger or sadness and let it pass without obsessing on or trying to change it. We strongly encourage you to find a meditative discipline that works for you. This blog post is an excerpt from Pain Recovery – How to Find Balance and Reduce Suffering from Chronic Pain by Mel Pohl, MD, FASAM, Frank Szabo, LADC, Daniel Shiode, PhD, Robert Hunter, PhD; Published by Central Recovery Press (CRP).
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