Meditation advice often fails people with ADHD.
“Just focus on your breath.”
“Clear your mind.”
“Sit still.”
For many of us, that feels like trying to hold back a waterfall with a teacup.
I know, because I’ve been there.
Watch the video or read on.
A Mind That Wouldn’t Stop
I was twenty, exhausted from sleepless nights. My mind was racing—filled with ideas, excitement, and endless loops of thought. I asked my dance teacher, a meditator, if she had any advice. She offered a simple image:
“Imagine your thoughts like leaves falling off a tree. Let them drift through space and dissolve into the ground.”
I tried it. And something shifted.
My thoughts softened. My mind quieted. I slept.
That moment changed everything.
Why Traditional Meditation is Hard for ADHD Minds
Before that, I’d tried the usual breath-focused methods. But they felt claustrophobic. My curious, fast-moving mind couldn’t stay confined to a single point of focus. Trying to “clear my mind” only made things worse.
Later, in Tibetan Buddhist style meditation, I learned a different approach:
Keep 50% of your attention on the breath, and let the rest of your mind simply be aware.
Eyes open. Light touch. Spaciousness.
That was the key, along with giving my mind something interesting to focus on – a whole imaginative process which spoke to my neurodivergent mind, which in my case, thrives on metaphor and visualisation.
Finding My Way Through Imaginative Meditation
Watching the breath never worked for me. What did work was imaginative meditation—visualising light, chanting mantras, dissolving images into space.
It was beautiful. And it lifted my spirits.
I later learned I have imaginational overexcitability. For people like me, imaginative meditation isn’t just effective—it’s essential. I also found listening meditation and chanting mantras effective. And using a mala—like a rosary—to count mantras gave me a tactile rhythm with the same calming effects as stimming.
These things all made meditation doable.
What Meditation Gave Me
Here’s why I keep meditating—especially as someone with ADHD:
- I no longer feel at the mercy of my mind. I’m in control, not my thoughts.
- I’ve found spaciousness—moments of stillness between the noise.
- I’ve learned to observe my thoughts in daily life, and shift from negative to positive.
- My creativity deepened. I touch the source more easily.
- My stress levels dropped.
- I can focus. I get things done.
And if I skip meditation, I feel it.
These benefits are universal—but for ADHD minds, they’re life-changing.
Start Small
Meditation doesn’t have to be a battle with your brain.
It can be a doorway to clarity, calm, and creative flow—if you find the right key.
Start small. Two minutes before you get out of bed.
Try imaginative styles. Guided apps. My Loving Light meditation.
You’ll find your way.
For detailed instructions on meditation, check out my book How to Meditate Easily, Deeply and Effectively
May your thoughts fall like leaves, and your mind find its stillness.
