Trying Meditation for the First Time at Santhigram Forest Hills

Today, after 30 minutes on the elliptical and a one-hour Zumba class, I rushed home, changed, and headed over to meet my wife for a meditation class. She had mentioned her friend and Yoga instructor Jazell before, but I never gave it much thought. As an instructor at 24 Hour Fitness, Retro Fitness, and Crunch Fitness, I have access to a lot of different, great Yoga instructors every day of the week. To me, it didn’t make sense to pay extra for another Yoga class when I have so many options as part of my job. Unless it’s hot yoga, which isn’t available at my gym, I usually don’t find the added cost justifiable.

This time, she told me about a meditation class that Jazell was holding at the Santhigram Ayurveda Center in Forest Hills. Meditation is something I was open to trying, so I decided to give it a shot. The cost was $25, which you pay the owner at the front desk, and I’m assuming Jazell gets a cut of that. The class was held in the basement, away from all the hustle and bustle upstairs. We had a very small group, which worked just fine for me.

Jazell noticed I seemed a bit uncomfortable, and I was. I’m not usually used to sitting on pillows or rugs. I explained to her that I kept slipping on the rug and felt vulnerable and less able to react if I needed to. She smiled and offered me a chair that was used for people who didn’t feel comfortable sitting on the floor. My body is pretty tight, so sitting comfortably like some of the more flexible people is a challenge. On top of that, I also just felt mentally uneasy.

We started with some breathing exercises, which I found interesting. A cool breath followed by a heating breath, though I’m pretty sure I wasn’t doing them quite right for most of the class. Then we moved on to the chakras and sounds. We worked our way up from the bottom chakra, going upward. I’m not sure if I actually dozed off or reached some higher state of meditation because I’m not aware of hearing anything about the middle chakras. We jumped from the bottom to the top one when I came back to awareness. I did hear the constant humming of the music playing, though.

I told Jazell, “I think I knocked out.” She smiled and said, “Did you?” She explained that even if it feels like you were gone, your mind still absorbs what’s happening. I shrugged and asked, “Did I snore? Because if I did, then I was definitely out. Lol.” This is something I’ll definitely try again. It was an interesting experience, and hopefully, I’ll get more out of it each time.

If you’ve never tried meditation, I’d recommend giving it a shot. Jazell is at Forest Hills every Thursday at 7 pm. The class lasts an hour and costs $25, and I think it’s worth trying. Nowadays, we spend so much time focused on the outside world that we rarely make time to look inward. I’m trying to find a better balance for both mental and physical benefits. I’ll share more when I write about my experience with Sensory Deprivation Floats!