What Drew Me to Meditation

In her interview with PsychAlive’s Dr. Lisa Firestone, Dr. Donna Rockwell talks about what drew her to the practice of meditation.

Lisa Firestone:  When did you first become interested in mindfulness and what attracted you to that practice of meditation?

Donna Rockwell: Well, it was quite interesting really because I was a journalist in Washington, DC and I was a typical Type A running 100 miles an hour every day and I had friends who I heard were Buddhist meditation people and I had always been interested since I was a child sort of in that Eastern world.

And so I asked them to please teach me how to meditate so I sat with the husband, Robert, and he gave me meditation instruction and what I discovered that day was that I could not sit still for five minutes.  That I was actually coming out of my skin and it was awful.  It was scary and when we finished the five minutes, I said, “That was terrible.  I could not even be still for a second and my mind was racing.”  And he said well that’s what you discover in meditation.

So I thought that this was something that I really needed to do in my life.  I saw in that instance how really out of control my whole life was.  Even though I was accomplishing a lot.  So that’s how I got into it.  And since then I think I’ve actually dedicated my life to it.  Maybe unknowingly, but more and more interest in different areas of it and practicing and teaching.  And it’s become a mission for me.

About the Author

Donna Rockwell, Psy.D. Dr. Donna Rockwell, Psy.D., L.P. is a licensed clinical psychologist, adjunct faculty member, community outreach worker, columnist, and mindfulness meditation teacher. Dr. Rockwell specializes in both mindfulness and celebrity mental health. She works with clients in her private practice and teaches public meditation classes. You can watch Dr. Rockwell on YouTube or read more of her blogs at The New Existentialists.

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