Finding a Meditation Group That Resonates with You

Finding Your Tribe: A Guide to Joining the Perfect Meditation Group - Lucy Couser

Reading time: XX minutes

The beauty of yoga and spirituality is that they not only bring out the best in each other but also they form a community of like-minded people who prioritise inner peace and healthy bodies so you can always assume people are friendly and willing to accept new people into their circle.

Meditation* itself is a powerful tool that can help in so many different areas of your life, including managing stress, maintaining inner peace and improving your overall happiness. In today’s society, we are always expected to be switched on and during those moments that we don’t necessarily want to, we burn ourselves out anyway through consecutive scrolling.

For some taking the step forward to incorporate meditation into their routine, it’s daunting and to be quite honest, when I first tried, I just cringed at myself. I was lowkey thinking to myself, surely this is a lie people tell others to do. But I realised that I was just being so negative in a way to gaslight myself out of doing something I knew was good for me. I will not sit here and lie to you and say that I enjoyed it the first few times because it was daunting for me and I couldn’t switch it off.

This is where the idea of meditation groups came to mind. This way, I wasn’t alone but I could be around people who were in the same boat as me. This removed any underlying embarrassment I was feeling but it also helped me form a stronger bond with the idea of meditation with a community around me; it felt more natural and encouraged me to form a better structure towards this practice.

However, with a variety of mediation groups available, especially in Gen Z, where health and wellness have taken priority in social norms. It can be intimidating to start your spiritual journey on your own and to find the perfect group that will accept you with open arms. I have put together a little guide to help you find a meditation group that resonates with your unique needs and preferences!

Know What You Want

First things first, you need to get down and understand not only what you want from meditation but also what you want to get from the group itself. This might include their experience level, the vibe and the styles they do on a regular basis.

You should start by researching things like meditation styles and see which resonates with you the most or maybe consider something that pushes you out of your comfort zone because that's what all of this is about, throwing yourself into scenarios where you wouldn’t usually expect to grow and become more whole. Some meditation techniques for you to research could be anything that follows, experience levels might also influence which technique you are drawn towards:

Transcendental meditation
Guided meditation
Mindfulness meditation

Community is what has brought you to a group in the first place so understand what kind of vibe you want to enter. it could be as simple as a small group to a large group and do you want to come into the group as a whole or do you just want to meet the odd person for you to build a strong bond with? This might come as trial and error because there have been moments where I wanted to be a part of a larger group but as I’ve grown, I prefer smaller, more personal groups.

Don’t Be Afraid To Explore Your Options

It’s not going to be as easy as walking into the first mediation group you find but thanks to the rising popularity of these health techniques in city centres and even some villages, they are more accessible and have plenty of options for you to choose from. Don’t be afraid to try before you buy, whether it’s attending a few different ones throughout your experimentation with mediation and seeing which one sticks.

What you could do to make things less intimidating is find someone you know who might already go to one or is also interested in joining a meditation group. Having someone to refer to when you are nervous helps me a lot. It allows me to be more confident when talking to other people but it can also help me gauge the vibe a lot more.

What To Look Out For

You want to make sure that you are placing yourself in good hands so it’s not just the techniques and community that you need to feel comfortable with but also the teacher. Experience is key in this field and it’s not something that anyone can teach. With the right understanding and background knowledge, you can get the most out of your meditation if you trust and respect your teacher. A qualified teacher can do so much more than just the techniques; they can also answer any questions you might have, provide guidance and help you through your negative challenges.

You should always start something you feel good energy towards and if you are never getting that from any of your groups, consider something else, whether it’s an online class or a Zoom class. With modern technology, you could be a part of an online community if that fits better with your vibe and or schedule.

While pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is key, there should be a natural shift into the right kind of feelings, so don’t feel guilty if you aren’t feeling connected to a class yet; there will be something for you.

Final Thoughts

It’s important that you not only remain open to new opportunities within the meditation community but you put in the work leading up to it. You won’t find something that fits if you aren’t making the effort to find it. By following these tips, you’ll be well on your way to finding a mediation group that supports not only your journey towards inner peace but also a more mindful life. So, take a deep breath, step outside your comfort zone and together, let's get our mens full tracksuits on and embark on this journey.

*commission earned from this link.