Interactive Forms of Meditation for ADHD

[ZenAlex]

I've been trying my best to live mindfully over the last 5-6 years. The goal of things like meditation I believe is to be more aware and more at peace, and there are ways to do this that are not meditation. E.G. Exercising without headphones can bring me to the present. 

I've tried different meditation techniques over the years such as the standard focusing on the breath, labelling, do nothing etc.

I've fully realised that there is simply only so long my ADHD brain can focus on anything if it is not stimulating/interactive enough. 

This is the reason why I've loved to hike so much, it's so good for calmness and also mindfulness.

I find sometimes that I find it easier to remain present if I keep my eyes open and just observe the room, because if I keep my eyes closed there's just sometimes not enough going on and I end up having days where not wandering off is just physically impossible. It's literally a physical force. 

I know people will just say "this is just you placing limiting beliefs on yourself", but I don't think it is.

I've managed to learn how to live my life to become very aware of what is going on inside of me, but achieving this level of awareness took an entire lifestyle change. And many of my "aha" moments where I noticed this and came to realisations came while I was simply undistracted on a walk or standing in a spot in nature, mind clear for a moment and just aware of my feelings. 

TL;DR - Standard meditation will only ever be so effective for me unfortunately, but sometimes I notice if I make it a more stimulating or interactive experience, it can help like e.g. doing body scans or noting/labelling.

But despite this, I still only get so much success, as the energy that makes my mind wander is sometimes incredibly strong. Sometimes I just cannot do it and have no choice but to go out for some exercise or just wait for things to calm themselves down. My mind has it's ups and downs.

Some people just don't get it when it comes to ADHD. I'm trying to experiment more with alternate/custom methods, but not sure what to try at this point. 

What are the most interactive types of meditation you guys can think of?

[Ulax]

@ZenAlex https://www.shinzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/art_PowerofGone.pdf

[ZenAlex]

22 hours ago, Ulax said:

@ZenAlex https://www.shinzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/art_PowerofGone.pdf

Interesting. Thanks. 

[Raze]

Try yoga, walking meditation, or noting

[ZenAlex]

On 12/06/2024 at 11:07 PM, Raze said:

Try yoga, walking meditation, or noting

Walking meditations? What types do you recommend?

[thenondualtankie]

Wim Hof breathing / Leo's Shamanic breathing video / holotropic breathing.

These are all similar.

They work very well for ADHD mind. You can't even think about anything else because the breathing is quite intense.

[thenondualtankie]

^ Instructions

v Three rounds guided breathing

 

[Yimpa]

4 minutes ago, thenondualtankie said:

Wim Hof breathing / Leo's Shamanic breathing video / holotropic breathing.

These are all similar.

They work very well for ADHD mind. You can't even think about anything else because the breathing is quite intense.

I recall laughing hysterically after my first shamanic breathing!

[Carl-Richard]

I'm talking with my advisor about doing a study which could satisfy your question (I won't reveal the exact hypothesis, but it essentially investigates the overlap between mindfulness and music). I'll come back to you in a year with the results 😆

Edited June 14 by Carl-Richard

[Ulax]

Also, @ZenAlex https://www.youtube.com/user/kennethfolkdharma this channel could be of value too I reckon. See his vids on noting

Edited June 17 by Ulax

[ZenAlex]

18 hours ago, Ulax said:

Also, @ZenAlex https://www.youtube.com/user/kennethfolkdharma this channel could be of value too I reckon. See his vids on noting

If heard of noting, saw it in a shinzen young video. Will look more into it.

[Ulax]

6 hours ago, ZenAlex said:

If heard of noting, saw it in a shinzen young video. Will look more into it.

Nice dude. I think noting style meditations could be really what you're looking for.

There are two other noting systems i know of, too: 1) Mahasi meditation, and 2) Dan Ingram's noting

[PenguinPablo]

Kriya Yoga feels much more dynamic.

Just because you're alternating between different kriyas -- some of which are pretty intense and quickly calm the mind -- as opposed to sitting down trying to calm your mind down with mindfulness for 30 minutes

Also have adhd.

 

[ZenAlex]

On 18/06/2024 at 7:18 PM, Ulax said:

Nice dude. I think noting style meditations could be really what you're looking for.

There are two other noting systems i know of, too: 1) Mahasi meditation, and 2) Dan Ingram's noting

In my therapy sessions I was taught a technique called "fluttering", where you flutter your hands on your collar bones and the extra activity/stimulation helps keep your mind more present.

I did it during emdr to test the audio cues + fluttering with eye closes vs the visual stimulation of the dot moving on the  screen + audio noises.

It was so irritating to have to pay attention to the dot. Focused attention is hard lol.

[Ulax]

4 hours ago, ZenAlex said:

In my therapy sessions I was taught a technique called "fluttering", where you flutter your hands on your collar bones and the extra activity/stimulation helps keep your mind more present.

I did it during emdr to test the audio cues + fluttering with eye closes vs the visual stimulation of the dot moving on the  screen + audio noises.

It was so irritating to have to pay attention to the dot. Focused attention is hard lol.

Ah yeah I've tried those both before with my own emdr. 

And yeah can understand it must have been annoying af for you to try and to do