Do you ever find yourself wanting to meditate (or even just find time to relax) but feeling unable to do so because, “There just isn’t time and I’m too busy”.

If this is the case, you’re not alone. It happens to lots of us, given the speed of the world, and despite being a coach and supposedly knowing better, I have to put my hand up and ‘fess up to having this problem sometimes as well.

But help is at hand

The good news is, there’s an easy, simple and free way to overcome this problem, that I discovered by accident, but have begun to use more and more.

Whenever you next have this problem, just do the following.

1. Sit down.

2. Take a series of regular breaths, preferably where your in-breath, outbreath and pause between each in ans out phase of breath is roughly equal. So for example, you might breath in for a count of a particular number, pause for a count of the same number, breath out for a count of that number, and pause before the next breath for a count of the same number. The trick is also to do this just until you feel relaxed, which should only take three or four cycles of this at most.

(As to how long your count should be, or indeed, whether this exact sequence will be right for you as an individual…I can’t comment, but can only leave you to decide this for yourself.Only choose to do what feels comfortable for you as an individual. Some people will want a count of three or four, I happen to like six, and some people might even want eight. Or to make the count different for different phases of the breath. Or to breathe in a different way that suits their health and ability. Consult someone who knows your medical history, if in doubt).

The point of this phase is simply that you have a means of breathing and concentrating on it that works for you.

3. This third stage of actually meditating, then magically takes care of itself. Having persuaded yourself to sit down and do the breathing, “because after all, it’s only a few breaths and therefore a minute or so”, you’re then suddenly in a state where meditation seems a much more feasible and attractive idea, whether you carry on with breathwork, or any other type of meditation that you care to name.

Do try this, and check out how it goes for you. As a way to get round your conscious and “busy” mind, it may be one of the simplest tricks yet that actually works.

Hope this helps

More soon

Clare