10 Meditation Mistakes And How To Prevent Them

If anyone told you that starting to meditate is easy, they were wrong. It is hard to start any new habit whether is physical, mental, or spiritual.

If you are starting the journey, welcome. If you are in the middle of it, keep going. If you are an expert, it is normal to still struggle.

Here are ten of the most common mistakes when meditating and how to prevent them. I hope you find this helpful for moving forward in your meditation practice.

Stop Making Judgements About Your Thoughts

Having thoughts is human nature. We cannot control them, but what we can do is control how we deal with them.

Assigning goodness or badness to our thoughts is derailing our meditation practice.

When you are meditating, thoughts will come up. Thinking “that was a bad thought” will not help you be able to get back to your practice.

If you are noticing yourself assigning goodness or badness, practise stopping it. Allow your thoughts to naturally come and go on their own.

Stop Obsessing Over Your Thoughts

Maybe you are not having thoughts that you think are good or bad that are affecting your meditation but you are obsessing over specific thoughts.

Stop this.

If you continue to think about something it will linger and this will make your attempt at meditation very difficult.

When you notice yourself thinking something that distracts you or takes you away from meditating, notice it and allow it to transition away on its own – similar to how a leaf would float down a stream.

It may be helpful to imagine your thoughts this way, knowing that they will float by so that you can return to your practice.

Stop Assuming You Are Not Doing It Right

There is no wrong in meditation.

When you feel like you’re doing it “wrong”, remind yourself that whatever works for you is right.

You will adjust what you find works well over time and know the things that take you away from your meditation and you will be able to avoid them.

But meditating or being pulled away from it should never be wrong. It simply is what it is.

There is no “wrong” way to sit, breathe, or engage in meditation.

There are best practices but no wrongs, and you get to define this for yourself.

Mindfulness and meditation are person-centered practices.

Stop Feeling Like You Need To Go Longer

You may not be able to tolerate a one hour meditation session.

That’s okay!

Even if you are just practicing for a minute or a few minutes, feeling like you should be doing better or going longer will make you want to avoid it.

Similar to thinking that you’re doing it wrong, any amount of meditation is good meditation – and better than not meditating at all.

You don’t need to practise for hours to receive its benefits or to do it “right”.

Stop Forcing Yourself To Meditate

Forcing yourself to meditate will make you never want to practise it.

It’s like when you were forced to run the mile in middle school and then never wanted to run as an adult until you realized how wonderful it was. Being forced to do something never helps you love the thing you’re supposed to do.

So meditate when it feels right.

You may assign yourself a schedule to practise consistently, but if it isn’t feeling right, it is okay to stop and engage in the behaviour when you feel better about it.

Stop Sitting In Positions That Are Not Comfortable

If you are trying to cross your legs as if you are doing some kind of yoga practice, that’s wonderful – but only if it is comfortable!

There is no need to put your body into positions that are not comfortable just because there are ideas and images out there promoting this concept.

Whatever position feels best for your body will help you be successful meditating.

Generally it is a good idea to be in a position that feels grounding but you should play around with whatever position is best for your body – because if you are not comfortable it will be very difficult to focus on your breathing and being present.

Stop Listening To The Same Guided Track Over And Over

If you are using a guided meditation track for support, that is wonderful.

But you should not use the same one every day, because it will get boring and feel repetitive.

Meditation isn’t about repetition – it’s about connecting with yourself in whatever new moment you are in.

Remember, you never get to live that moment again.

So, find a new track. Find several new tracks and switch them out.

You may even find there is a whole world of guided meditation out there that you never knew about because you were playing the same track.

Experiment with different hosting platforms. If you use YouTube, explore the app store and see if there is an app you are interested in downloading. Try to join a group that meditates live.

Switch it up a bit.

Stop Being Inconsistent In Your Practice

Inconsistency will not help your meditation.

While it may not always be realistic to practise at the same time every day because life happens, try to stick to a routine.

You cannot expect your meditation to serve you in your most vulnerable moments if it can’t serve you at your baseline daily life.

Remember that practice makes things as close to perfect as they can get. Meditation is no different. It should be a habit and a lifestyle.

Stop Being So Inundated With The Media

The media is very stressful right now. The news rarely shows anything good going on in the world, despite the daily good doings that are happening.

If you are glued to your phones, iPads, news stations, and other media, it will be very difficult to calm down and focus on your breath when you need to.

You’ll have a hard time stopping thinking about whatever trauma you just were exposed to on the news. You will have a hard time slowing down your thoughts if you are constantly inundated.

So, turn off those alerts on your phone. Definitely be aware and know about what is going on, but stop diving in so much. It may help you in your practice.

Stop Having Expectations

Above all, stop having expectations for yourself about your meditation.

The only time you will be let down in the world is if you expect it to give you something specific.

Whatever will be will be and that is okay.

Of course, you can make improvements and changes as needed. That’s great. But if you wake up this morning and expect that your meditation will be the thing that saves your day after a bad dream, you may be let down.

It may not work so quickly and easily. But it will over time have positive benefits for you.

If you can quiet down your expectations for meditation and all aspects of your life, you may find you derive more joy from the things that you do.

Conclusion

We all make mistakes, and meditation will be no different.

You will get lost on your way to figuring out what works best for you, and that is okay.

I hope that recognizing some of the above problems will help you in finding your way sooner.

May your meditation practice be full of life and love and wellness!

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. Guided Breathing Exercises
2. Meditation For Beginners
3. Mindfulness Course