Mind Over Matter: How To Use Meditation For Addiction And Cravings

There are many pleasures available to us in life, from food, to sex, to alcohol, to sporting and leisurely activities. And while having regular doses of these things is a good thing, as it keeps us happy, sometimes the frequency of these desires becomes beyond what is normal, to the point of desiring them without really thinking of the possible consequences. This is when simple desires become an addiction, and addictive cravings can be very hard to resist, especially when both the mind and body are hooked. There are many ways to deal with addiction and cravings, but one such way you can do on a regular basis is “mindful meditation.”

Why are cravings strong?

Depending on what is being craved for, a craving is strong because it comes from the subconscious, after consciously satisfying the body and mind with a certain thing or activity. And when something is desired by the subconscious, it can be very hard to break free from it.

One of the big reasons why cravings are so hard to break off of is the association between the craving, and the reward. Many of us experience rewards on a daily basis, but addicts and cravers desire the rewards beyond simply just liking them. And that's what makes a craving and addiction so powerful, because many times the rewards are thought to be unreachable through any other means.

What is mindfulness?

Put it simply, mindfulness is exerting effort to focus one's attention towards something specific. Thoughts that may end up distracting the person are deliberately nudged away to be able to focus. This is usually associated with time, focusing one's attention on the present moment, but can be used for everything else.

When mindfulness is used as meditation, that is, contemplating in a peaceful yet controlled manner, the addiction and craving, it can be a very powerful tool. It is composed of three key elements: remembering, being aware, and putting attention to it. The person needs to be aware of the craving they wish to take control of, put all their attention to it, and remember why they want to take control of it, keeping it in its place.

What mindfulness does in terms of cravings and addiction is they become better in living in the present, not worrying about the future rewards when they satisfy their addiction and not feeling bad about the past givings-in to their cravings. This helps them get rid of the wrong pleasant emotions they feel when they give in to the cravings, and the unpleasant emotions of guilt afterwards.

More importantly, mindfulness meditation increases the person's ability to be more aware of the cravings they are trying to get rid of, or avoid, or reduce. This goes hand in hand with their self-awareness, which has an overall benefit for the person, as they are able to be more accepting of themselves, which leads to less stress and anxiety, and give them more control of their emotions, which in turn strengthens their resolve against their cravings.

It is the exact opposite of what a vicious cycle is!

How to perform mindfulness meditation

Mindfulness meditation is done almost like any other meditation method, which we outlined in a previous blog post here. But in general, it involves the following basic steps:

- Sitting comfortably with good posture, depending on the kind of meditation selected.

- Controlled, deep breathing to relax the mind and body

- Focusing on the breath and nothing else (at least in the beginning.) Anything related to the breathing (how it fills the lungs with air, how the air rushes in the nostrils, for example) can be used as focal points.

- When the mind begins to wander, or more importantly, think about the craving, this is when extra steps are to be taken. Depending on your level of mindfulness or control, this can be any of the following:

1. ) gently nudging your mind away from thinking about the craving and focusing on the breathing.
2. ) focusing on the triggers of the craving. Why did you think and feel about the craving despite meditating and focusing on the breathing?
3. ) recognizing the emotions that arise from feeling the craving. Did you feel excited at the prospect of giving in? Do you feel angry or frustrated that you're meditating instead of indulging?
4. ) taking control and telling yourself that you are not your craving and your addiction, and that you dictate whether or not it makes you happy.

Ultimately, mindfulness meditation is really about what the name implies: being more mindful. It is about focusing and recognizing the craving, and dealing with it. Try it for anything that you feel is starting to take control of your life, rather than the other way around, and it can do wonders! To help you, you can listen to a binaural beats track for focus so you can laser pinpoint your craving and take control of it. Like this track here:

Related articles:

Meditation Improves Business Productivity
Meditation for Physical Performance
4 Kinds Of Meditation That Will Bring Your Business To The Next Level
Group Meditation Is The Untapped Team Building Activity To Increase ProductivityTranscending Barriers: Explaining The Religious Ties And Answering The Supposed Dangers Of Meditation 

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The Beginner's Guide To Astral Projection (Part 1)

We have previously discussed astral projection and the silver cord in previous blog posts, but there are still many things that need to be tackled to even begin trying to fully comprehend the concepts of astral projection. And here is a very quick beginner's guide to astral projection that anyone can read and learn from.

What is astral projection?

To put it simply, as the name implies, it is the process of projecting your astral self out of your body, to explore the world or the astral plane, and be free of any physical bonds. Once outside the physical body, the astral body can experience and perform many different things, like flight, visions of worlds unknown, and meeting spiritual and astral beings.

When you astral project, your astral body will be tethered to your physical body by the silver cord, a lifeline of sorts that allows you to come back when it is time. Learn more about the astral plane and the silver cord in our previous post here.

What are the basics of astral projection?

There are a number of critical components for astral projection that need to be dealt with in order to experience it, and anyone who wants to try astral projection for the first time must be fully aware of them.

1. Belief and desire – before even attempting the process itself, one must have the proper desire to astral project, and a certain level of belief that it can be done. This is where it gets tricky with skeptics and believers, with skeptics claiming that astral projection is hogwash, despite numerous accounts of believers and practitioners having experienced it already. If you believe that it is all crockery, even with the desire to have your skepticism broken, it will be very difficult to astral project. On some degree, there has to be a level of “faith” that astral projection is possible, as it requires a fundamental belief in the presence of an astral body, an astral plane, and the metaphysical world which is not normally seen. This is the first hurdle.
2. Concentration and relaxation – these two elements go hand in hand despite being somewhat different from one another. Relaxation is clearing one's mind of any negative emotions and thoughts, while concentration is making sure you are able to focus on certain things without giving in to distractions. Both are key elements in astral projection, and being strong in both aids in pulling the astral body out of the physical much easier. There are many ways to be able to relax and concentrate, as we have detailed in previous blog posts regarding meditation and lucid dreaming, but some of the basics include using a binaural beats track, having the right environment and surroundings, performing a proper mantra, and visualizing.
3. Separation – this is the final element in astral projection, as this is when the astral body breaks free of the physical body and is able to travel beyond physical boundaries. This final step is the most critical, and the most difficult, as it heavily relies on the first 2 elements. Any doubt, any fear, any loss of relaxation or concentration and the separation procedure may be interrupted, or even outright become unreachable for that session. We will discuss the details of separation in the next part of the beginner's guide to astral projection, but what you need to remember is the precursor of separation: a buzzing or vibrating feeling where you can feel like you're breaking free off your skin. If you have felt this while sleeping without even knowing what astral projection is, you might have unknowingly started the process naturally! Once the vibrations begin and takes hold of you, this is when you can “peel off” or “roll over” or “pull away” (terms we will go into detail in the follow up post) and begin your astral projection journey!

Study these three basic components, and use our blog to be able to fully understand them. Once you're ready, go to part 2 of our beginner's guide to astral projection and let's break down the step by step process needed. Also, don't forget to prepare a binaural beats track for astral projection, like this one, to get yourself ready! 

Related articles:

Meditation Improves Business Productivity
Meditation for Physical Performance
4 Kinds Of Meditation That Will Bring Your Business To The Next Level
Group Meditation Is The Untapped Team Building Activity To Increase ProductivityTranscending Barriers: Explaining The Religious Ties And Answering The Supposed Dangers Of Meditation 

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Lucid dreaming guide to the inner self

How To Maximize The Benefits Of Binaural Beats

Binaural beats are music tracks that can yield a lot of benefits, from relaxation and stress-reduction, to increasing your productivity and creativity, to making your focus and work drive much better, and even physical effects like improving your self-healing, increasing your athletic and physical performance, and more. This is possible thanks to how binaural beats work: it is able to reproduce specific brainwave patterns, at desired combinations, which yield the results. But as amazing as binaural beats are on their own, their effects can be improved even more so, by following some guidelines.

Following a schedule

While binaural beats can be listened to right when they are needed, they become even more beneficial when following a schedule. Just like any other treatment, regular use is better than sporadic, once-in-a-while listening, especially when long-term benefits are desired. Here are some suggested schedules for listening to binaural beats to maximize their benefits.

1. Mornings before starting the day – listening to a binaural beats track to increase energy, improve the mood, and lift the spirits are best done at the start of the day, so the benefits carry over to the whole day's activities.
2. During study/work time – binaural beats that help in memory, increasing cognitive capabilities, creativity, and more, are best listened to when you're actually working or studying. This allows your mind to open up, and work at maximum capacity, on the spot for all the information you need to process.
3. 1 hour before physical activities – tracks that help improve athletic ability, increase calorie burn for workouts, and heighten the libido and sex drive, are best used an hour or so prior to the activity. This will give the proper mental boost for your mind to be able to control the body properly, whether subconsciously through muscle memory, or consciously in learning new physical skills.
4. 1 hour before eating – tracks that aim to curb appetite or control the diet are best used before eating.
5. Before and/or during sleeping/meditation – tracks that help with insomnia, promote lucid dreaming, or calm the mind during meditation are listened to before or during the activity. This primes the mind to either keep clear of all thought, promote visuals and imagery, or simply lull you to sleep.

As mentioned above, don't simply use these when you need to or sporadically. Try to have a regular schedule for long term goals to maximize the benefits of binaural beats tracks you have.

Proper setup (equipment, venue)

To be able to enjoy binaural beats properly, you need to have the right equipment and a venue that is suited for the track.

First, binaural beats work specifically by delivering two differing tones to the brain, with one passing through each ear to be combined by the brain. So it is essential to have the right pair of headphones or earphones for the task.

Headphones that are not too tight, too heavy, or too cumbersome are the best. A pair of headphones that is not comfortable will distract you constantly, and can hinder the mind from absorbing and processing the tracks.

Next, make sure these headphones have a full range of bass, treble, and frequency capabilities. The best headphones will go as low as 20Hz bass, and up to 20kHz treble. These frequencies are the lowest and the highest our ears can truly hear, and with binaural beats combining a wide array of tones, it is imperative that these ranges are reached.

And then, make sure these headphones or earphones are durable. Since you may end up listening to tracks while you sleep, a pair with poor and fragile wiring will break eventually, so it is important to make sure the wires are durable. Not just the wires themselves, but where they are attached or attaching to.

Finally, listen to your favorite music track (doesn't have to be a binaural track.) If it sounds perfect for you, then the headphones are right for your ears.

In terms of venue, the best places are those that do not have any outside noise that can distract you from your listening experience. If you have your own office, you can place curtains on the windows and doors to reduce outside noise, or if you have a cubicle, you can opt to find a conference room that's unused, and have your short listening session there. At home is much easier, but pet dogs and cats, neighbors, and other things can cause noise and distraction. A good way to prevent this is to get noise reducing or noise canceling headphones instead. A bit pricier, but well worth the money.

Lastly, don't listen to binaural tracks when you cannot sit or relax comfortably. Even at work, sitting on a proper chair helps a lot instead of sitting on the cold floor with nothing to lean back on.

Being in the right mindset

Lastly is having the right mindset. While binaural beats can work wonders to a willing mind, an unwilling mind is much much harder to treat. What we mean by this is that, a binaural beats track for relaxation and stress is a very potent track, but if the mind is actively wanting to think about many different things and focus on the distractions instead, the track will have a reduced effect. Same can be said for tracks that promote other things, like athletic ability. A mind that is not thinking about what it wants to improve, and instead loses focus and thinks of an athletic diet, may end up receiving little to no benefit at all.

Using a binaural beats track means keeping an open mind and letting the process take its course. Let it, and you'll enjoy the benefits very soon!

Try it for yourself! Here is a binaural beats track for study and work focus. Listen to it on your work or study break, and feel the difference!

Related articles:

Binaural Beats For Athletic Performance 

Benefits of Binaural Beats for Anxiety Treatment

Bitrates And Binaural Beats: Why Does It Matter?

What Are Binaural Beats? How Does It Affect You?

 

 

 

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