Ever try meditation?

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I've very interested in meditation just to calm and quiet my mind. I feel a lot of the time my mind is very busy and not loud per se but if ever you're at the mall and it's crowded, just stop and listen. You'll hear a lot of incoherent noise - almost a white noise. That's kind of like what's going on in my mind. So many thoughts at once popping in, questions, thoughts, ideas, memories, visions and stuff.

From what I understand, meditation is all about sitting comfortably with your legs crossed and your hands clasped with your eyes closed. You just let yourself breathe but don't make yourself breathe, just let yourself breathe the way you let your heart beat. Just focus on your breath, the ins and outs trying to ignore your thoughts in your mind.

I hope I can do it.

Not meditation per se, but I have had some good results with guided imagery. I have used it for stress relief, to improve concentration (yeah, just making it that much better), and for running and archery. It is a lot more portable now on my iPod than when the media was cassette tapes. My husband uses something called pzizz to get to sleep. I have found that you have to sample techniques to find one that will work well for you. I don't have the patience to tame my "monkey mind" for meditation, but you may be more disciplined.

I've done this, off and on, most of my life, although I don't sit cross-legged, because that gets uncomfortable for me. There are various ways of doing it, depending on who you ask.

I just sat here for ten minutes and let my mind go blank, after reading your post, and I feel very refreshed. I do think it takes practice, though. If it's like a crowded shopping mall in your mind, don't be surprised or worried if thoughts keep popping into your head when you are meditating. It will happen, and you just gently push the thoughts aside.

There are some pretty good books out there about meditation, but some of the not-so-good ones can be kind of dogmatic about the right way and the wrong way of doing it. It can be difficult to let your mind go completely blank, especially if you aren't used to it, so using a mantra can be helpful, like "om", or trying to hold one specific image in your mind, like a single flower.

It's definitely worth doing, though. In fact, I wish my AS son would give it a try, but he won't.

there are many types of meditation. i have tried meditation and it helps to relax me buti do not have as succesful an outcome as others. there seems to be a lot more electrical energy in some of us AS people....and so it takes more to relax. i am the same with exercise. it is a good de-stressor but i have to do loads more than most people to achieve the same level of calm and then for me it is only fleeting, whereas for others it seems more lasting.

i know someone who is an acupuncturist. he knows i have AS and i get freebie treatments when i start to get so stimmy that i am wrecked.

I tried meditation, and I think it's a crock. Multiple times, I sincerely wanted to try it. So I sat in a quiet area in my apartment, and tried to meditate. Sitting quietly didn't work. Repeating the word "peace" didn't work. Reciting the names of prescription painkillers worked a little bit, but I think it was power of suggestion, not meditation. (In a similar experiment, college students who listened to alcohol-related words repeated many times took more risks afterwards than "non-listeners".) At the end of my attempts, all I felt was anger and frustration, not the tranquility that everyone talks about. Twice, I even had a headache after an attempting to meditate. What got rid of my headache both times was medication.

It may work better with some kinds of brain than others. I am not very fond of the empty-mind, breathing kind of meditation; but I am quite good at imagining things... I close my eyes and create a world around myself--as prosaic as my childhood bedroom, or as fantastic as floating in the middle of intergalactic space. When I do this, I completely forget where I am, or where my body is; there's just the landscape around me to explore.

I guess that counts.

I just have to convince my counselor, who is convinced that deep breathing is better, that this is my style, it works for me, and that I'm not very fond of counting breaths and thinking about nothing.

You know there are books on this subject if you want to get some better indepth information before you start you meditation project and there are many meditation centers that offer classes and conseling all across the country. I'd do more research into the subject before just doing breathing exercises.

yes, mindless breathing alone does not work for me. But imagery does... like imagining a flower blooming, and bright light shining out from it. Focusing on that does calm me down better.

I get what the OP means, personally if I could I'd simply use that buzzing in your head and write stuff and let it all flow out, because you don't know the next time that might happen. It's a good idea to let it all flow out in the form of writing or something, rather than trying to quench it....

EDIT: no, OP I haven't..

I tried it in the past and found it helped calm me and centre myself somewhat. I found self-guided meditation quite difficult, but I came across these online guided meditation sessions:

http://www.buddhanet.net/audio-meditation.htm

If you scroll down until you see the audio files by Malcolm Huxter, these are really good, quite simple, and effective meditation instructions. Don't worry either, it says 'Buddhist Meditation' but none of his guided meditations are at all religious, nor do you need to be Buddhist to enjoy or follow these....

I can 'empty' my mind in a moment - but I'm hopeless with any kind of meditation.

I'm way too hyper and bubbly to sit still somewhere for an eternity, at worst having to listen to some annoying music or voice that's droning on about something that I think is total nonsense.

No attempt to teach me or to learn meditation has worked a bit so far.

Yes, have tried meditation methods as described by Emile Coue, Jose Silva, etc. and have looked at sacred writings such as the Psalms of David of the Old Testament. Some of the ideas I found educational and slightly helpful but, for me, the right medicine for ADHD has worked the best (not a cure) to pay attention a little easier for hours at a time.

Yes but it was usualy against my will.

This worries me.. I doubt I would ever be able to do such a thing.