Anthony Thompson is a long-term meditator who teaches Vedic Meditation. Sign up for a MindMojo Course in London.
I have been meditating for over 45 years, having been taught as a teenager, yet my lack of life experience meant that the true value of learning to meditate was not fully appreciated. That came several years later, when studying at university and starting my career.

In the early years of working for an international auction house I was travelling extensively around the world, working to strict deadlines and challenging targets, as well as managing a busy family life. Meditation helped me maintain perspective and keep stress in check, and I seemed to have unlimited amounts of energy available for my demanding life.

Gradually, in the rush to fulfil my employer’s demands and spend more time with my family, there was less time for meditation. Slowly it became a less frequently-used tool to deal with pressure, maintain perspective, and achieve calmness.

There followed some years in the wilderness when I felt in need of support and encouragement, but in the pre-internet days it was difficult to find and connect with a teacher.

During a particularly stressful period in my life I felt a strong need to reactivate my meditation practice. Fortunately, through my long-held interest in yoga and Pilates, I came across my teacher Jillian Lavender, one of the most experienced teachers of Vedic Meditation in the world. Together with her partner Michael Miller, she helped me get back on track.

With their encouragement, compassion and comprehensive instruction, I deepened my practice, studied for extensive periods and attended meditation retreats in the UK and India. Now, ten years later, I am a fully qualified Vedic meditation teacher.

My experience as an employee and entrepreneur, having a family, losing a job and changing career is not that unusual, but my reaction was different to most people’s because these personal challenges were eased by my consistent meditation practice. Meditation reduced my stress levels and anxiety, helped me to keep centred, encouraged better sleep and boosted my energy levels.

The benefits of practicing meditation are widespread and everyone experiences them in different ways. It is humbling and inspiring to see the changes that people make to their lives having learnt to meditate.

With my broad perspective on the challenges of life my purpose now is to share my knowledge of meditation with enthusiasm and integrity. I want to help people use Vedic Meditation in an easy and effective way which gives them a quality of life which combines calmness with energy and focus.