Hello Jodie and Angela
It’s a great question that you both ask. Yes just like any other skill, meditation improves with practice. Of course you have to have the right practice. 😉
We always hear “focus on the breath” and it can be so frustrating to feel as if you are really doing that … but your mind seems lost in a million thoughts only microseconds later. AAAaaarrrrrghh.
So I hope the Meditation 101 will help. It really is an enormous topic. When it comes to finding resources sometimes you just need to find a book that speaks to you. That will change for everyone. However nothing can substitute for your hours of practice (wherever that happens – a few moments here and there right up to a whole 90 minute class and beyond).
Recently I created a Pose Tutorial that spends a lot of time on meditation. It’s called Savasana and Meditation. It may be interesting to you too because it has some specific skills to practice.
Another thought I had is to take a look at this very helpful thread. Lost My Mojo Even Though I Didn’t Take A Break. This will help you find ways to renewing your focus.
There are million things for you to pay attention to. You can start with 1 or more specific things in a class and track for your ability to sustain that attention. Hint: The breath is what every teacher will tell you to do but could be one of the harder ones for a number of reasons. An easier one is to utter (silently to yourself) a mantra. The Mojo link gives you some great examples that other students have used or are using right now. Maybe you have your own to contribute.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂
