Combining Crochet & Meditation

This talk discusses the combination of crochet and guided meditation practices. Meditation is a personal practice and can be done in so many ways and in combination with other activities. Crochet, or crafting, can be soothing and grounding and help one focus on the meditation. Listeners are encouraged to bring their crochet (other other creative endeavors) to their guided meditations.

Sharing about thoughts and experiences is encouraged.

Transcript

Hi!

Welcome!

My name is Caitlin.

Today,

I would like to talk about two of my most favorite things in combination with one another,

Crochet and guided meditations.

Meditation is such a personal practice and there is no one way to go about it.

I think most folks who don't really meditate associate thoughts of a person sitting all alone in a totally quiet space,

Sitting like a statue for hours.

However,

You do not need to sit in literal silence and stillness for meditation to be an effective practice.

One person's stillness varies so greatly from another person's stillness.

Where and how each person finds peace is such a unique and individual thing.

So,

Since each person is unique,

Each person's meditation practice will also be unique to them.

It is not a one-size-fits-all approach in the least.

There are so many perspectives and options when finding a meditation practice that works for you.

That is the reason there are so many various kinds of tracks.

Just like there are different genres of music,

There is something out there for everyone.

And just like there are so many different kinds of meditators and meditations to listen to in your practice,

There are so many different things to do while practicing as well.

If you want to be completely mindful and still and just sit in your meditation,

That is totally fine for you.

But for me,

That just doesn't work.

I fidget and I like to get up and fuss.

I prefer my eyes to be open.

I take my time being still at other moments,

Like when I am talking with my daughter,

Or petting my dog or cat,

Or loving on my husband.

And I just love to crochet.

It's my favorite.

It is just so soothing to me and so fun and just all the things.

I love being able to express myself with the stitches and colors.

And to know that the entire fabric or garment is being made,

Stitch by stitch,

With intention and love and purpose.

Each stitch is so important on its own and part of a greater whole.

So cool.

Just like us.

Each of us so important and also part of the greater collective.

Okay,

So,

Therefore,

During my meditation practices,

I am almost always crocheting.

It helps me stay grounded and present and focus on the words of the guide or teacher.

That is how my brain is soothed and able to make connections and gain insights.

Some people love to draw as their favorite thing.

Hand drawings and Zentangles and coloring in books are all fabulous ways to connect to yourself and get grounded and focused as well.

Some people love actual movement,

Beyond just keeping their hands busy.

Yoga,

Or walking or dancing,

Or however you like to get active,

Are also great ways to get into your body and the moment while meditating.

But just like total stillness,

Full body movement is not really my thing either.

I am some combination of sedentary and twitchy,

Depending on my internal landscape of the moment and my external stimuli and if and how I let it affect me.

But the movements with my hands and that action of looping the yarn over my hook and stitching away,

All while being guided through my breathing,

Or a lovely visualization of some kind,

Is one of my favorite ways to spend time.

There are so many studies about how beneficial bilateral movement is for people on so many levels for all sorts of different things.

I know from first hand experience it keeps me calm and soothed.

So while I know many people learn to meditate while in the quiet,

Aside from the track,

Or just do mindful breathing in total silence,

There are so many other routes you can take.

Just crocheting on its own is super meditative for me.

I get so into the flow and my own groove while stitching away.

It is just such a peaceful place inside of me that I can find while crocheting.

So why not apply the same crochet practice with a guided meditation?

So now that is how I practice,

Guided meditations and crocheting.

I take my crochet to all the lives I attend as well.

When I am using the crochet to meditate specifically,

I make sure I am doing repetitive stitches and not something that requires a lot of attention to my counts.

But that is something I had to feel out for myself.

If I really want to be paying attention to the meditation,

I cannot be counting stitches.

And if I really want to be counting stitches,

I cannot be listening to something else.

I tried doing more intricate detail projects and I found I spaced out on the teacher or messed up too many stitches for my liking and had to redo too much.

So I found what worked for me.

Some people can sit in the actual silence and just breathe for however long they are choosing to practice.

Some people can do that with a guided track or some lovely instrumentals.

I am usually not on that team.

I can do it.

It is how I started to meditate in an official sense after I really wanted to commit to my mindfulness as a way of life,

But I do not love it.

It is more difficult for me to sit still and in what some refer to as peace and quiet,

Especially being on the spectrum and neurodivergent and highly sensitive and all the things.

I'd rather be crocheting.

So I do.

And now that my meditation practice has evolved and I understand more about mindfulness and how I practice it personally,

I understand I have been meditating with my crochet basically since I learned.

I have just always been mindful when practicing my crafts and crocheting,

And being able to use that practice to help gain insights or visit magical places in my imagination is just so amazing,

I think.

So please,

I invite you to take your crochet or knit or craft or drawing projects to the guided meditations you listen to.

If you do not feel you can sit all the way still for a full meditation,

Then don't.

Bring your creativity to the meditation practice.

You may be fidgety for a reason.

Something may be calling to be created by you.

So I'd love to hear from you.

In addition to loving crochet,

I adore hearing about others' projects and things.

Let me know what art form is your favorite medium.

Maybe you already craft while you meditate and this is not a new concept to you.

I'd love to hear about it.

Feel free to message me about this practice or any questions you may have.

Thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to listen to this little ramble of mine.

I am so filled with gratitude that you are here.

Blessings and Namaste.

Reviews

I loved Caitlin’s message , the way she is honest with the listener about her being on the spectrum , her being neurodivergent . I love attending her lives too . They are entertaining and she is very supportive of the people who attend her lives ,

Absolutely wonderful and much food for thought. Feeling yarn slide thru your fingers and appear as a stitch is so calming and satisfying. I knit and crochet. Just simple items these days.

After listening to your talk, I realize that I was mindfully soothing myself every time I knitted or crocheted during a staff meeting. It helped me to be present, but silent. Now I’m going to try doing my craft while listening to guided meditation.

I really enjoy your live events. Enjoy the summer. School will begin all too soon.

Thank you!

Thank you so much. This is totally awesome. I get it! Been crocheting since 2011 when we became empty nesters. Had to find something to do with my time to ease the heartache, I had the empty nest syndrome pretty bad. Crochet was so therapeutic & I didn't even realize the health benefit at the time. The repetition helps my blood pressure & eases my mind. Since then I've created all kinds of stuff for everyone, including grandchildren. Hugs to you for this. I will try to catch your live tomorrow, I'm working on a shrug, basically its one big granny square ✨️🧶

"some combination of sedentary and twitchy" - me too! I love this Caitlin, thank you 🧡🧡🧡

Thank you for this perspective! I crochet for a living, so I am always crocheting and have recently started to listen to meditations while doing it. It’s been great! When you said something to the effect of…. “each stitch is a part of the larger picture”, It was an ah-ha moment. To think that each stitch that I make is supporting my family and creating income that I can share with others really touched me. I haven’t thought about it that deeply, and you have helped to breathe new life into my “work”. I needed to hear this so deeply. Thank you! Happy crocheting!

Caitlin is so real, candid, honest, and inspiring. Can’t wait to learn more about crocheting from her and link it to my daily meditations.

I love this perspective! Finding the right level of stimulation is so important for us ND folk, and sitting still so often isn’t it. Looking forward to crocheting with you again soon 🧶💜✨

A very thought provoking ramble! Thank you for sharing it.

Caitlin. . . THIS WAS SO SO SO SO GOOD! I am so proud of you! Thank you for being YOU and sharing your light with the world!

You are a beautiful soul 💜 So happy that you are sharing your love of crocheting in this way! 🙏🏼

So so glad to have found someone here who really understands how being neurodiverse affects meditation. Thank for showing me I can give myself the permission to just be and knit or draw while meditating. I have like felt such a failure. I have not allowed my own path into presence in meditation be knitting. Thank you for your talk. Thank you for showing me that knitting is my own door inwards to presence, it is my path that I don't have to be ashamed of. Thank you.

This makes so much sense. I was halfway between berating myself and accepting that during some IT talks and non-visual lives I am playing a game on my phone and now I understand it better. I have only had one project on the go at a time but I will give this a go and try doing easier projects during these and will cut myself some slack 😉Wonderful, thank you! 🙏🏻 ☺️

Caitlin, this was a good listen. You are right that everyone needs to discover what works for them. I also crochet in most of the lives that I attend. Crocheting has always been therapeutic for me. I’m looking forward to your live event!

I loved hearing how you tried different combinations until you found what worked for you! So inspiring, thank you! Going to share with some of my friends who crochet. 💜

Loved this Caitlin! I love what you said about “one size doesn’t fit all.”
My favorite way to meditate is to crochet and listen to meditation music. Thanks for this lovely meditation talk.
🌹🌺🦋🪶🐾🐈💜🍂💐🍁🌻🪻

I truly enjoyed this talk! Since I consider art, drawing mostly a meditation. When my hands are busy the mind gets quiet. Thank you 🙏🏼🩷

Loved this! What a great reminder that meditation doesn’t have to be done sitting perfectly still…it can be practiced in so many different ways. 🙏🌟

I love the approach and how it gives us neurodivergents a way to give ourselves permission to be our different selves.