One of the greatest misconceptions about meditation is that our thoughts have to stop. It's the one belief that makes so many beginners turn away and quit.
When starting to meditate, we need to go through a process to even become still. If quietening our mind hasn't been a practice in the past, then we may find that our thoughts become louder in the beginning.
“What the?” is the feeling many people have afterwards. Hearing our thoughts during meditation can be the most off-putting experience. We feel that it's not working and want to quit. However, you need to know that you think at least 12 hours a day every day, what makes you believe that this habit will subside just because you have closed your eyes?
So to begin with, meditation is about training the body and mind to become still.
Why not use the simple practice of closing your eyes and focusing on the breath? Find comfort knowing that even this will have far-reaching benefits.
You may focus on the in-breath and out-breath for a couple of cycles and then start thinking again. That's ok. The moment you become aware of your thoughts, bring your attention back to the breath.
Meditation helps us dial down the level of our thoughts. With practice it puts us in control of them, this doesn’t mean that they will necessarily stop, but over time we become the witness to our thoughts as opposed to being caught up in them. And from that place have more power to choose how we want to think and feel.