Caffeine before meditation

The last few days, I've been having some dozing-off issues during meditation. Either my mind is getting calmer or I don't get enough sleep (I suspect the latter).

I've resorted to drinking a cup of green tea before my morning meditation (and will try that for noon as well). This helps me not to fall asleep, but the trade-off is that I have the feeling that my thoughts wander more.

What's your stance on this? Do you use caffeine to avoid dozing off?

Cyan

I find a little caffein helps some but if I'm falling asleep then I need a nap. I have to then address the sleep deprivation/quality issue if I want to have a truly beneficial meditation.

I read once that if you fall asleep during meditation then that's what you need more than the meditation. Don't feel bad about it just be better rested next time.

As much as i love Caffeine....I...Really....love me a good energy drink :woohoo:

I would not suggest it for meditation. It's actually not at all healthy for you to begin with >_< *Bad kit...Bad...* Instead why not do a workout before you meditate? Just a short fifteen minuet workout that gets your heart rate pumping. Also make sure that you are breathing properly. Meditation is meant to be done in unison with Proper Breathing and Proper Posture. Oxygen helps to clear the mind and wake you up and proper posture helps the oxygen and blood to flow in your body properly. If you clamp off either of these sources you will experience these bouts of dozing and tiredness.

Just my 2 cents

Rickie The Grey wrote: I find a little caffein helps some but if I'm falling asleep then I need a nap. I have to then address the sleep deprivation/quality issue if I want to have a truly beneficial meditation.

I read once that if you fall asleep during meditation then that's what you need more than the meditation. Don't feel bad about it just be better rested next time.

Yeah, sleep's an issue for me at the moment (7-month old baby in the bedroom - however, I never noticed just how tired I am until recently during meditation. There's nothing I can do about it, though. Just hoping the problem will resolve itself in the next few months when we can move our daughter to her own room. But for now, I need to find different solutions.

Kitsu Tails wrote: As much as i love Caffeine....I...Really....love me a good energy drink :woohoo:

I would not suggest it for meditation. It's actually not at all healthy for you to begin with >_< *Bad kit...Bad...* Instead why not do a workout before you meditate? Just a short fifteen minuet workout that gets your heart rate pumping. Also make sure that you are breathing properly. Meditation is meant to be done in unison with Proper Breathing and Proper Posture. Oxygen helps to clear the mind and wake you up and proper posture helps the oxygen and blood to flow in your body properly. If you clamp off either of these sources you will experience these bouts of dozing and tiredness.

Just my 2 cents

Thank you, that's great advice! I hadn't thought of the mini workout. I guess a few push-ups and some sit-ups would do the trick and I could do that without waking up the family. Also, I know that we do have high CO2 in hour home, especially in the morning. It's a new building and they basically sealed it air-tight - I'll see what I can do about that (I know, opening the window would seem obvious but we have an alarm system - if I disable that in the morning, it wakes up everyone as that's rather noisy).

Cyan

Yes, meditating outside would help the oxygen part. As for the exersize, I would honestly suggest something like Jump Rope. It does the trick better then push'ups/sit'ups. Still, something is better then nothing :laugh:

[quoteYeah, sleep's an issue for me at the moment (7-month old baby in the bedroom ][/quote]

It's not unusual for you or anyone to be tired in this situation. Persevere, nap when the baby naps if you can.

Try one or all of the following:

Meditating while standing up...

Meditating while walking...

Meditating while working...

Meditating while exercising...

See how you like it.

Proteus wrote: Try one or all of the following:

Meditating while standing up...

Meditating while walking...

Meditating while working...

Meditating while exercising...

See how you like it.

I'll definitely try those, thanks!

Rickie The Grey wrote:

Yeah, sleep's an issue for me at the moment (7-month old baby in the bedroom ]

It's not unusual for you or anyone to be tired in this situation. Persevere, nap when the baby naps if you can.

We also have a 2 1/2 year old boy, so that makes the whole napping thing very difficult. The whole thing isn't as dramatic as it sounds, though - I do get some sleep and I normally don't feel tired all day long. The first 15-20 minutes of meditation usually aren't a problem, either - it's just the final phase, when my thoughts have settled down (which I personally find highly satisfying) where I have to make an effort to stay awake - and making an effort during meditation defies its purpose (e.g. letting go of any effort and simply be an impartial observer). This in turn leads to frustration. Perhaps I should work on the frustration part and simply accept that if I'm too tired, I doze off. No more and no less.