How to meditate when you have kids, dogs, families, and other distractions.

Do you meditate? I have been meditating and practising mindfulness for about fifteen years. It hasn’t always been easy. In the early days I had far too many expectations and would often set myself up for a fall when I didn’t receive the amazing, insightful experiences that I read about in self help books.

What was wrong with me, I used to think? Why couldn’t I experience a connection with a higher world, or meet my spirit guides, or have an epiphany?

Meditation in the Real World

Eventually I learned that meditation is mostly about calming the mind. The idea is for us to stop whatever we are doing that keeps us busy, slow down our body, and our brain will gradually relax. We spend most of our lives rushing from one task to the next, whether that be parenting, the school run, work commute, grocery shopping, caring for loved ones, and a whole range of other activities. We are bombarded with messages on TV and social media telling us to be kind to ourselves, take a break, have a rest, but when can we fit that in? When exactly do we take five minutes for ourselves, except to eat a quick lunch so we don’t collapse from exhaustion?

Last week I tried to meditate the day before my children returned to school. They were still in bed, so I took the opportunity to sit comfortably in my meditation chair. Less than five minutes into my session, the door burst open and my younger daughter bounced into the room. Our dog got excited, my other daughter appeared, and they both demanded breakfast. That was the end of my meditation session! Fortunately, I returned to the reiki room with my reiki teacher later that week, and I did manage to meditate in a calm, peaceful environment with no distractions. I had to book that time for myself, because I knew it was a rare opportunity to practise self-care.

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