Are there any words (tips/advice) you would like to share with those who are considering starting and/or to current members?
My biggest tip would be to be as consistent as you possibly can be. It can be difficult, but especially on the days that you don’t feel like meditating you should just do it. You will feel so much better for it. Just showing up is a reminder that you are taking care of yourself even if you don’t feel particularly invested, motivated, or productive that day. Also, be honest with your helper about how you are feeling. If you feel off or have been inconsistent as of late, sometimes you may just need a refresher of the levels you have already completed. For me, these reviews are good reminders of how far I’ve come and why I am here.
How did you hear about us and why did you start?
I have always been a super restless, type-A person. Add on top of that a diagnosis of C-PTSD from childhood trauma and abuse, I was constantly severely depressed with unpredictable bouts of extreme anxiety. I would bury myself in school or work, cut myself off emotionally from otherwise, and daydream constantly. I had frequently recurring suicidal ideations and everything around triggered a reaction. By this point I had been on medication for years and had been seeing a therapist. The medication was not helping significantly anymore, and I knew I needed something else. I had been attempting to meditate through apps on my own for a while after a general suggestion from my therapist, but I was finding it difficult to hold myself accountable with no help from the pandemic. Finally, due to a lack of work due to the pandemic and increased stress from starting a graduate program, I began researching ways to hold myself accountable with meditation. The little meditation I had done before felt great, but I needed to find a way to sustain it. That was when I began researching and came across Main Line Meditation in August 2021.
What benefits or realizations have you experienced? What are some before and after changes?
There are so many. The biggest realization I have had is that what has happened to me in the past is not happening to me at this moment in time and therefore it does not need to impact my actions and reactions now. Because I have thrown away so much of my false mind, I am able to live now without the influence and anxiety of past events that are false. And, because this process of throwing away the false has become so fundamental in my routine, I do not hold on to nearly as many things after a moment has passed as I once did. If something frustrates me at work one moment, I am much more able to let that frustration go and adapt and move forward. Yes, whatever had frustrated me possibly changed my game plan for the day, but I do not hold on to the frustration. This was huge as I worked through a masters program and currently work through a career transition. While I still consider myself very hardworking, I feel less anxiety and stress as a result of my work. It defines me less. Everything that has happened to me defines me less and I just am. This removes a lot of constraints that I have put on myself because of personal and external expectations.
