#just coming from a morning session with the 30 minute guided meditation I was bitching about yesterday

[aerial-jace]

Advice from an on-again and off-again Buddhist if you're trying to get into this, whether as a secular, Buddhist or other kind of practice: build up a mantra recitation practice to train endurance before trying to train concentration with bare attention or mindfulness of breath. Focusing on chanting and the sounds of your own voice is way easier and while it will not help your attention with the breath it will help you keep still longer and longer on the cushion. It doesn't really matter what you recite, whether it's "om mani padme hum", "namo amituofo", or even a secular affirmation or a Christian prayer, just get one and stick with it.

30 minute guided meditation sessions absolutely kill me. I probably should have foreseen my failure coming from doing 15 minute very daydreamy sessions but in my defense I'm only following instructions from a course billing itself as aimed at absolute beginners.