Blogcast: Meditation, Concentration, and the Neurodivergent Mind
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Blogcast: Meditation, Concentration, and the Neurodivergent Mind

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Episode description

This is a blogcast episode, an audio recording of the latest Body Theology blog posted on Feathermane Soul. Now you can listen on the go, and this also makes the blog more accessible.

Meditation is a great way for me to tune into my body. When I start to feel anxious, I focus on my breath, usually for no more than five minutes, and this helps me understand where the anxiety is coming from. Once I have this knowledge, I can move forward.

The problem is too many people think they’re meditating wrong when they can’t quiet the mind. So in this short blog, I discuss why those “returning to the practice” moments are really the heart of meditation and why if you’re doing this, you’re meditating exactly right.

Want to learn more about this show? Visit Feathermane Soul to learn about the podcast, see how you can support it and become a guest.

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(Transcribed by TurboScribe. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) You're listening to Feathermane Soul Wisdom, a podcast

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for those looking to rediscover their wild spirit

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in spite of life's challenges.

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If you're living with a chronic illness or

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neurodivergent or consider yourself disabled, and you're looking

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to connect with your own inner untamed essence,

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then this show is for you.

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Your host is Kit Kaelstoe, Wild Spirit Storyteller.

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Thanks for listening and now onto the episode.

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Meditation, Concentration, and the Theology Blog Meditation has

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been my go-to in order to help

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regulate my nervous system and calm my overactive,

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neurodivergent mind.

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I'm not talking about spending hours sitting in

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lotus pose or repeating a mantra, but rather

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a tool that I can return to, maybe

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for 15 minutes at most, to bring me

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back to center and to soothe my anxious

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thoughts.

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Many people think that meditation means keeping the

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mind completely quiet, and that's just one type

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of meditation.

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Instead, I hear a lot of my neurodivergent

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community talk about how they can't quiet their

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mind, that they have to keep bringing it

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back to the focus, whether it's on the

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breath or just stillness, or anything else, really.

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They think that they're doing meditation wrong when

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they couldn't be further from the truth.

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If you're bringing your mind back to your

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practice, then not only are you doing meditation

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correctly, but it's working.

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If you're noticing when your mind wanders, I

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like to think of it as a dog

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off sniffing something when you're trying to go

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for a walk, then bringing it back is

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exactly what you're supposed to be doing.

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A gentle, let's return to the practice, getting

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back on track, and if you need to

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do that a hundred times, then you have

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correctly practiced meditation a hundred times.

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In Pantajali's Eight Limbs of Yoga, dharana, concentration,

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comes before dhyana, meditation.

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Thus, returning your mind to its task is

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simply the preparation for resuming your concentration and

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meditating.

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My preferred forms of meditation are a focus

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on the breath, even if it sometimes means

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thinking to myself, I am breathing in, followed

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by I am breathing out.

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I'll often pair this with the Reiki precepts,

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which begin, just for today, I will not

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worry, which is usually where I focus.

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While yoga nidra isn't specifically meditation per se,

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it is a form of it, and I'll

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often bring my mind back when I'm going

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through the sense rotation, focusing on various body

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parts, because I'll finish my arm, get to

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my shoulder, and then whoops, off goes the

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mind.

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I'll encourage you to explore various ways of

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meditating and to think about the different ways

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and how they work with your mind.

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It's not just about being quiet or silencing

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the thoughts.

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It's about finding a focus and concentrating on

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it, even if that's just for a minute

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or five.

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I'd love to talk meditation with you.

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If you have a way that works for

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you, or problems that you've experienced, let me

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know in the comments below, or reach out.

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You've been listening to the Feathermane Soul Wisdom

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Podcast, hosted by Kit Kaelstow.

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Learn more about Feathermane Soul at feathermanesoul.com.

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As a wild spirit storyteller, Kit is passionate

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about helping those who are neurodivergent, disabled, or

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living with chronic illness rediscover their own inner

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wild spirit.

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Visit feathermanesoul.com to receive free gifts or

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book a free call with Kit to discuss

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how wild spirit storytelling can help you.

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Music is Running With the Horses by Purple

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Planet Music.

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This podcast is hosted on the MuseTarmer Media

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Network.

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Find out more by visiting feathermanesoul.com and

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following the links to the MuseTarmer Network.

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Please don't forget to like, subscribe, or follow

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wherever you're hearing my voice, or tell a

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friend who may be interested.

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Thank you.