By Sheldon Smith
As people look for coping mechanisms to combat the myriad struggles of 2020, meditation is at the forefront to help ease people’s minds.
Meditation is a practice that has been around for thousands of years. It can help with everything from stress to anxiety, clearing one’s mind, enhancing self-awareness, improve sleep, while being a trusted practice for mental, emotional, and physical health.
The beauty of mediating is that anyone can do it, anywhere, at any time.
Amanda Siebert, author of The Little Book of Cannabis, who’s been consuming cannabis since her early 20s, likes to have a purpose with her cannabis use and mediation.
“I enjoy it before I sit down to do some writing and to clear my head and drop into that space of no inner chatter,” she explained, adding that cannabis helps her with stress and anxiety.
She likes to meditate in the mornings as well as before bed, though not as often as she would like.
“It helps me achieve that feeling of peace that I can acquire from cannabis use, but within my own being.
“Meditation helps hone that practice of silencing the mind,” she said. Siebert is among many people who have also created a space where they meditate.
“I have this corner of my living room called the ‘Zen Den.’ It is a nice rug and couch with lots of plants, and is a space where I can go to get peace and quiet,” she said. It’s beside her office, so if she’s feeling overwhelmed on a project, she can hop to her Zen Den to feel less stressed.
It can be hard to let go of your thoughts at times. Cannabis can help to focus one’s mind, enhance experiences, and can be a vehicle to getting into the right mental state of mind for meditation.
For people curious about expanding their meditation practice or tapping into different areas of spirituality, cannabis can be a useful tool.
As a plant that has been around for thousands of years, cannabis has connections to many spiritual purposes and is applicable to the health and wellness movement.
There are many different kinds of meditation for people to explore, from breath awareness meditation, mindfulness meditation, body scan, zen meditation, and transcendental meditation.
Siebert also believes cannabis and meditation can work harmoniously together for outdoorsy folks.
If you are someone who likes to be outside in nature, it can be hard to feel connected if you live in a city or dense area. Cannabis can help facilitate that feeling of being in nature and find that place of quiet, Siebert said.
People are free to explore the different types of meditation, and find what works for them, as there is no right way.