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By Gina Fox, Head of Naturopathy at Fertile Ground
5 Top Tips for making meditation part of your daily routine
1. Do just that – make meditating a routine. Sit at the same time each day and your body will start to want to do it. First thing in the morning is best and you can take a piece of that calmness into your day. Make an intention to yourself to remember this quiet space if you start to feel frazzled later on.
2. Choose a place and make that your meditation place. When you go to sit or lie there your body and mind will already know what’s coming and start to relax even before you’ve begun.
3. Even if you hear yourself saying “I don’t have time for this” or if you start going through a long list of what needs to be done. Just decide to do it – even if you sit for 2 minutes. Ideally 10-20 minutes daily but 2-5 minutes is good too.
4. If you tend to get bored mix it up a bit. You can follow your breath (see the suggestion below) count your breaths up to 10 and start again, follow a meditation in an app. like smiling minds or One Giant Mind or if you are trying to conceive or pregnant try one of our special fertility guided relaxations. There’s also a wonderful meditation for sleep if you tend to have insomnia or wake during the night.
5. To get the most benefit out of your meditation or guided relaxation it’s best to open your eyes slowly and not to hurry into an intense conversation or task. Become aware of your surroundings, have a gentle stretch and take that mindful awareness of really listening and seeing into your day.
Focus on the breath – a simple meditation exercise to relax and renew
Just become aware of your breath and breathing, with the breath coming through the nose or focus on the rise and fall of the abdomen.
This basic breathing exercise is a natural tranquilliser for our nervous system:-
1. Exhale completely pulling in your lower abdomen
2. Inhale slowly through your nose to a count of 4 or 5. Your lower abdomen should expand out followed by your chest, keep your shoulders relaxed.
3. Hold for a count of 2
4. Exhale through your nose for a count of 5 first exhaling the air from your chest and then pulling your lower abdomen in as the air is expelled.
5. Repeat 3 times
Gina Fox is a naturopath with over 15 years’ experience. She trained under Francesca Naish (author of Better Babies) and has a Masters in Reproductive Medicine. As well as being an experienced clinician she is a speaker, naturopathic lecturer and student clinic supervisor.
Gina is highly skilled in providing naturopathic care for women’s health issues, pre-conception health, infertility, IVF support, pregnancy care and through menopause. She treats a wide range of issues including recurrent miscarriage, thyroid, auto-immune antibodies and she has seen good results working with men to improve sperm quality. She also enjoys the post birth appointments with mother and baby, maximizing wellness for the whole family and educating parents on how to manage many common childhood illnesses. Her professional approach involves working in collaboration with doctors and specialists to create an effective co-ordinated treatment.