Meditation for Neuro-Spicy Folks

Noticing as Meditation

I do not propose to be a meditation expert; let me say that first of all. This is my own experience as a person who has tried a number of meditations techniques over the decades, always seeking the elusive calm-er mind.

To me, the key to any form of meditation is noticing. And you don’t have to be sitting cross-legged on a special cushion in a special room that is completely silent to do that (or sitting at all!). And, honestly for those of us particularly afflicted with an extreme kind of “monkey mind,” that "regular" advice is really just a recipe for disaster, I think. 

What I have found that works better is just trying to take some time, some moments, away from the distractions around me—look up from my phone, my book, take out my earbuds, etc.—and look around. Really observe the world around me. 

For me lately, this takes the form of sitting on my porch, at first just lightly looking out, at nothing particular, but then some small movement may catch my eye: perhaps a bee hovering around the blooms on the Rose of Sharon bush (it’s practically a tree!) in my neighbor’s yard that grows up over the fence. Then in my periphery, I notice a fly checking out my plants. Then, one of the many urban birds that we share the neighborhood with appear, alighting on the edge of the rooftop two buildings over. It has caught my attention and I watch him hop around a bit, then coast down to the next door garden, where he pecks, looking for whatever little bugs are in the soil. I keep my attention on him, letting the background noise of my brain subside a bit, while he swoops up dramatically to the top of the fence then into the tree, where a friend has joined him. 

While this is going on, a part of me notices that the monkey is also quietly observing the bird, my breathing has slowed, my body is still. It doesn’t have to be a long time, and of course usually once I’ve noticed, it breaks the spell, but that’s ok. I can go back to looking, or noticing other things that are happening—the breeze gently blowing the prayer flags and the shadow they make on my porch floor, or the plane flying overhead, or the faint sound of a distant neighbor’s music. While, yes, most of these (and more!) are things that I would generally take in as a person who possesses an ADHD brain, the key here is to pick one and focus in on it. To try and push the rest of input to the background. It is a skill—one that can be developed, with time and practice. For our busy brains, developing the ability to quiet even some of the constant stimulation that surrounds us in modern life is a skill very much worth building. 

By gently helping our minds practice (like other types of meditation it is also a “practice”-- in that it is not something that just happens, you have to do it deliberately and intentionally and keep practicing, although there is no “perfect”), we can become less of a prisoner of our mind’s own rhythms— not that we want to evade or ignore the natural ways our minds work, mind you, but being able to steer it in a certain direction is a key to living on your own terms. Practicing the balancing of directed attention with the ability to zone out, and also the gentle guiding of observation to something in the natural world especially, in the midst of a time of quiet relaxation, I think helps us learn how to work WITH our unique mindscapes. I really do think that it also helps us be purposeful in our rhythms, understanding how and when to harness things like creative daydreaming and hyperfocus. 

These are the practices that can help us get along in a world not made for us. Ways to recognize and honor our unique abilities and turn them into super powers. 

What kinds of "meditation” do you use?

I could also do a whole other riff on walking as meditation, where being able to move our bodies enables the mind to wander purposefully (see some of my many photos from such walks above!), but I’ll leave that for another day.  

I suggest you try it out! Find a spot you like, where you feel safe, either outside or by a window. Take some breaths, drop your shoulders, maybe close your eyes for a moment. Then open them and gaze out, let your attention wander and see what catches it. Is it a bird, a bug, a breeze? Keep breathing and watch, keeping your eyes soft, and just let your mind go. See how long you can stay focused on noticing, surrender to the feeling of just BEing.