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How Meditation Can Help You Grieve the Loss of Your Pet

Meditation is an effective way to deal with stress. This is what makes it perfect for helping you grieve the loss of your pet.

About Meditation

Meditation is the practice of shifting your attention from one reference point to another one. It involves focusing on your breathing and bodily sensations. Many people use a mantra to help them with meditation, especially if they are easily distracted.

Meditation can be done anywhere and at any time. All you need is a place where you can tone everything out around you and concentrate on you. This is what makes meditation great for just about anyone.

Studies have revealed meditation can help you reduce your stress levels, which can make you healthier and happier. For example, Dr. Herbert Benson in the 1960s discovered that meditation treats physiological problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and migraine headaches. It can even help sufferers of autoimmune diseases (diabetes and arthritis).

Mental issues can also be treated with meditation. It can help people stop or reduce obsessive thinking, anxiety, depression, and hostility. Since many people experience these symptoms after their pet dies, this is why meditation is great for dealing with pet loss.

How to Do It

Meditation is simple. When you try it for the first time, you may feel like you’re not doing it right. Trust us, though. The more you do it, the more you’ll see that you really are doing it right because it’s working for you.

Step #1:

Sit or lie down comfortably.

Step #2:

Close your eyes.

Step #3:

Breathe. Do not try to control your breathing – just breathe normally.

Step #4:

Focus on your breathing. Pay attention to how your body moves as you inhale and exhale. Notice your chest, shoulders, rib cage and belly. Again, just breathe normally and pay attention to those breaths and your body.

If you’re mind wonders as you are focusing on your breaths, gently bring it back to the breaths. This can be hard to do, but give yourself some time to learn how to meditate properly. For those who have an especially hard time concentrating on their breaths, they may want to try the mantra. This can be a hum or a word you say repeatedly. It can sometimes drown out your thoughts.

Do this for two or three minutes to start. As you get better at meditation, you can increase the time.

Use this exercise to help you grieve. You will find that it can be effective at helping you take control of your thoughts and feeling during this difficult time.