Beryl,
You ask
"how on earth does one even begin to do this?"
First it helps to respect the pain and suffering you feel within you, because it is calling you back Home, back to that which you seek.
What I have to share is very simple, but can be extremely difficult because we are so programmed and inclined to go against it.
It's not about learning some new scriptures or dogma or "spiritual" practices. It's about seeing what is already here that we are missing.
Have trust that the Source of this magnificent universe has not abandon you, but is present and wanting your embrace. Waiting within your own sense of Being for rediscovery.
The Kingdom of God, or the ALLNESS of that which we call God, is within you. We are not separate and apart from Wholeness, though indeed it feels as if we are fragmented and broken.
The doorway to rediscovering Truth, is simply to shift our attention away from the mind and all of it's chatter, judgment, questions and commentary....and into this moment and the unspeakable sense of being and aliveness within you.
This may seem like a little and insignificant thing. It is not.
Watch your thoughts. Do not judge them. Look and see how it is thoughts about the past and future which triggers tension and tightness in the body which triggers emotions like fear and anger.
Turn your attention more into yourself than out there. Get to know yourself.
Be gentle. Take it slow. Do not judge yourself.
Feel your breathing. Be present with the senses of the body. Notice how much time is spent lost in thoughts. Come back to being present in this moment, and the many silent senses of being alive.
Live without thinking about it. Use the mind only when necessary. Keep coming back to the silent moment of being alive.
JamesT