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Tag: Meet

  • A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet Yourself Where You Are—Right Now

    A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet Yourself Where You Are—Right Now

    Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction instructor Cheryl Jones leads us in a practice to foster self-acceptance in any life circumstance.

    Mindfulness meditation involves a willingness to be with ourselves as we are. It offers a way of learning to work with ourselves, and not on ourselves, especially if you are healing from perfectionism.

    So what does it look like to simply meet yourself, regardless of what’s going on or how you’re feeling?

    In this guided practice with Cheryl Jones, we can start to notice whatever is happening within us and around us with curiosity and kindness. Mindfulness reminds us that not everything has to be “fixed”—and very often, our movement back to wellness starts when we stop trying to change ourselves and simply accept where we are with care and attention.

    A Meditation to Meet Yourself Where You Are—No Matter What

    Read and practice the guided meditation script below, pausing after each paragraph. Or listen to the audio practice.

    1. Find your way to an upright and dignified posture. Close your eyes or lower your eyes in a soft gaze. Place your feet on the ground and relax your arms at your sides. Rest your hands in your lap. Draw your shoulder blades subtly toward each other, allowing the chin to be parallel with the floor. Lift the crown of your head toward the sky. Perhaps soften the belly and the jaw.
    2. Notice what it feels like to stop. Notice what it feels like to be sitting in this purposeful posture in this moment, in this space. And perhaps now take a moment to welcome yourself to your practice, acknowledging your willingness to be here for yourself in this way.
    3. Notice that you are breathing. There’s no need to change or manipulate the breath in any way. Allow the breath to be just as it is right here, right now. Simply follow the breath in and follow the breath out.
    4. Notice where you feel the sensations of the breath. Perhaps you’re aware of the air moving in and out at the nostrils and the upper lip. You could possibly be sensing the gentle expanding and contracting of the chest and ribs. Maybe you feel the abdomen rising and sinking. Allow your attention to rest on the sensations of the breath as it flows in and out of the body.
    5. As you’re sitting here with the attention on the breath, just meet yourself. You may notice thoughts going through the mind. There’s no need to block thoughts out. Rather, see if it is possible to allow thoughts to pass through the mind one by one. Let go of any need to label thoughts as positive or negative. Good or bad. Find a neutral way to be with your thoughts. See if it’s possible to be aware of thoughts without grasping or clinging to any one thought. And also without rejecting or denying any particular thought.
    6. Shift your attention now to any feelings that may be present in this moment. Breathing in and breathing out. Acknowledge any feeling just as it is. Sometimes we have feelings about our feelings. We may feel that one feeling is OK or acceptable while another is not. All feelings are acceptable.
    7. Now, bring your awareness to sensations within the body. Warmth. Coolness. Tingling. Tightness. Pulsation. Relaxation. Hunger. Fullness. Notice what’s happening within the body in this moment. Do this with patience and kindness. Explore sensations both strong and subtle with curiosity.
    8. As you breathe in and breathe out, notice if your posture has shifted. And then make any adjustments, if you’d like. Allow yourself to tune in to the body just as it is.
    9. Center your attention on only the breath now. And as we near the end of this practice, follow three more full cycles of breathing. Be as present as possible for each one. Remember this place of awareness is always available to you because it’s within you.
    10. As you feel ready, allow your eyes to open gently if they were closed. Get reacquainted with your surroundings and prepare to reengage with the day. Perhaps set an intention to bring awareness to all that you do and into each interaction.
    A 15-Minute Meditation for Self-Acceptance 

    On some level, many of us are healing from perfectionism, but with mindfulness we can learn to embrace our flaws. Cheryl Jones, founder of The Mindful Path, shares a guided practice to be with ourselves as we are. Read More 



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  • A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet the Body In Pain

    A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet the Body In Pain

    This week, Christiane Wolf offers a guided practice to meet your own body in pain and relieve that sense of isolation by internally connecting with others who understand your experience.

    Having chronic pain often feels incredibly lonely. You might not know anybody else who has the same condition. In addition, most people you’re close to, even though they might be well-intentioned, might not understand what you’re going through.

    But the fact is that probably thousands and thousands of people all over the world know exactly what you’re feeling. In this meditation, Christiane Wolf offers a guided practice to meet your own body in pain and relieve that sense of isolation by internally connecting with others who could relate to, have empathy for, and care deeply about your experience. 

    A Meditation to Meet the Body In Pain

    Read and practice the guided meditation script below, pausing after each paragraph. Or listen to the audio practice.

    1. Start by finding a comfortable position, or as comfortable as possible. You can lie down for this meditation or sit in a chair. You can close your eyes or just soften your gaze, whatever feels best to you in this moment. If you’re sitting, place your feet on the ground. Feel the solid ground under your feet, or maybe have a sense of the floor or the carpet through your shoes or bare feet. Let your back be straight and upright, if that is possible. Lean against the back of the chair and feel the support of that.
    2. Allow the body to relax, if that is possible. Maybe the jaw, the shoulder, the belly. Take a few deep slow breaths and feel the sensations of the breath in the body, like the chest or maybe the belly. See if you can release a little more tension with each exhalation.
    3. Now, notice any amount of pain that you’re in right now, either physically or emotionally. No need to be specific here, just getting a broad sense of what you’re carrying with this pain, with this condition. As a first step, see if it might be possible to acknowledge how hard and difficult it is to experience this pain, to have this pain and to take care of the pain. If it feels right to you, you could say something to yourself like, This is hard. It is so rough to feel this way. Use words that you would find helpful to hear from a dear friend who really gets what you’re going through.
    4. If you like, repeat this a few times. See if you can really listen to yourself saying this and meaning these words. It might feel good to hear these words, or maybe you notice yourself moving a little away and having a hard time accepting this. Whatever your experience is, it’s okay. There is no right or wrong way to do this. 
    5. Having chronic pain often feels lonely. You might not know anybody else who has the same condition. Most people you’re close to, even though they might be well-intentioned, might not understand what you’re going through. But the fact is that probably thousands and thousands of people all over the world know exactly what you’re feeling. Because they do, too. And they might even suffer from the same condition as you do.
    6. Now, in your mind’s eye, invite all these people into your awareness. Maybe as a few people, maybe as a big group, all standing with you or being with you in solidarity with this pain. I personally like to imagine them at my shoulders, reaching back and back. They get me. They know exactly how I feel. They’re feeling the same thing or have felt it before. I don’t have to explain or defend anything, because they already understand. 
    7. Keep practicing this in a way here that makes the most sense to you. Consider what makes it easy or maybe just possible to connect with this idea that there are truly so many people out there who get you, who get this pain. You’re not alone with this. If you notice the mind wandering off, just gently keep bringing it back. Allow this sense of your inner support group.
    8. When you’re ready, allow the image to dissolve. Take another few deeper and longer breaths, longer on the exhale than the inhale. Bring the meditation to an end by starting to move and stretch the body in any way that feels good. Open your eyes if you had them closed. 

    Thank you for your practice today. 



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  • A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet Difficult Emotions With Compassion

    A 12-Minute Meditation to Meet Difficult Emotions With Compassion

    This guided meditation is a simple practice to help us navigate the ups and downs of everyday life challenges with a kind and open heart.

    Often when we’re struggling with challenging situations or emotions, the things that feel the most supportive aren’t complex techniques, but just simple, down-to-earth practices.

    In this podcast episode, teacher and leadership trainer Carley Hauck introduces a practice for working with difficult emotions that’s all about noticing the body and visualizing the support, care, and wisdom to stay present to the right-now experience. In a world that feels increasingly complex and uncertain, Carley’s guidance is like a gentle hand on the back, encouraging us to slow down and find calm amidst the chaos. She shows us how to face life’s challenges with a kind and open heart, reminding us that it’s okay to feel overwhelmed sometimes.

    A Guided Meditation for Working With Difficult Emotions

    1. For this meditation, allow yourself to come into a comfortable sitting position. Feel your feet firmly planted on the floor. Notice your posture as you’re sitting. Allow your shoulders and your upper back to relax. 
    2. Begin to notice the rhythm of your breath as you breathe in and out. It may even be helpful to place one hand on your lower abdomen. And as you breathe in, you feel the stomach rise. And as you breathe out, you feel the stomach fall. 
    3. Start to notice the slowing down of your heart rate, of your blood pressure, allowing you to fully be here in this present moment. 
    4. Bring to mind a situation that occurred recently where you felt sadness or disappointment. It doesn’t need to be the most difficult experience, but just something moderately difficult so that you can practice. It may even be something that hasn’t happened yet, but that you are feeling sad, disappointed, or anxious about. 
    5. Turn your attention to the physical body. As you’re reflecting on this situation of sadness, what do you feel in the body right now? Is there tightness or tension behind the eyes? Is there a heaviness in the shoulders or your head? What are you aware of right now?
    6. With a compassionate curiosity, turn towards your experience. Everything is welcome right now. 
    7. If you find it difficult to be with what’s arising, that’s okay. Use the breath as a stabilizer, helping you to fully be here to whatever is arising and passing in the mind and the body and the heart. It might also help to name the feelings that are here for you, like sadness, loss, or disappointment. 
    8. If this feels comfortable for you, allow yourself to imagine a wise and loving figure who is cradling you. They have enveloped you with strong and loving arms. And they’re stroking your head and repeating, “It’s okay. I am here for you.” Let yourself take that in. Receive the support.
    9. If there’s anything else that you need to hear to really feel supported right now, allow that to come into your awareness. What words or gestures would feel most comforting and helpful? 
    10. Notice what’s happening in your physical body as you receive this support. Is there heaviness? Is there peace? Acceptance?
    11. When you’re feeling ready, you can thank this loving figure for its support and presence. You are centered, strong, resilient. And you are ready to meet the day. 
    12. When you feel ready, allow yourself to slowly transition back into your day—slowly open your eyes, feel your feet on the floor, notice your surroundings. Thank you for your practice today.

    Never Miss a Meditation

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  • Meet Uncertainty with Compassion With Walking Meditation

    Meet Uncertainty with Compassion With Walking Meditation

    Life is inherently changeable and uncertain, and our resilience relies on how we relate to that fact. Mindfulness doesn’t mean everything’s fine or that we’re calm all the time. We aim for patience, clarity, and then—when it’s time—skillful action. 

    Whatever we face, we can meet uncertainty with compassion. This might look like carving out a moment to settle before deciding what comes next. Instead of remaining caught up in reactivity, anger, and fear, it takes effort and training to find a balance between accepting what we cannot change and seeking out where to actively put our effort. 

    The heart of mindfulness means doing our best to navigate our experience, even our crises, with both precision and compassion.

    Take a moment when you’re able to explore that balance. The heart of mindfulness means doing our best to navigate our experience, even our crises, with both precision and compassion. 

    A Mindful Walking Practice to Meet Uncertainty with Compassion

    1. So as you start, focus on what it feels like to walk. Notice the physical sensation of each step. Notice your foot rising, the shift of weight in your body, and then your foot returning to the ground. 

    2. You might label each step as step. Or you might count small runs of steps, perhaps up to 10, and then start again. 

    3. Note your mind’s tendency to add on to your experience, often in ways that complicate even the most challenging moments. Your mind may already be wandering into the future or the past. When you catch yourself lost in thoughts like that, come back again to one step. 

    4. And now, if you’d like, expand your awareness. Notice sounds around you. With a sense of unforced and balanced effort, notice smells, touch, and sights. 

    5. With a sense of strength and perhaps appreciation, immerse yourself in the physical sensation of the walk that you’re taking. 

    6. If a thought or a feeling holds your awareness or becomes a distraction, see if you’re able to practice letting go a little. Notice that sense of getting hooked or tied up in your thoughts and then come back again to that immediate physical sensation of each step. 

    7. Noticing those thoughts, return your attention again to the physical sensation of taking your walk. 

    8. For the last few minutes of the practice, if you’d like, focus on a sense of kindness and compassion. You’re not alone right now. Everyone around the world is struggling to get by. 

    You’re not alone right now. Everyone around the world is struggling to get by. 

    9. So as you walk, taking in your reality, remind yourself: This is what is right now for me. This is where I am—observing my emotional state, my state of mind, and thoughts. 

    10. And then as you walk, wish yourself whatever you would wish for your closest friends right now. 

    May I be happy and at ease. 

    May I recover my sense of resolve and strength. 

    11. If it feels comfortable, you might also expand that. Picture your family and friends in the same way. 

    May we all find our sense of resolve and ease.

    May we all stay healthy and safe.

     12. And if, while you’re walking, you encounter other people or even pass other houses, you may take a moment to offer those strangers the same wishes. Whoever they are, whatever their life experience, everyone has their struggles. So as you pass these other people, or their homes, wish them well.

    May you find health and happiness. 

    13. As we end the formal mindfulness practice, expand your awareness to all beings everywhere—even the ones you find most difficult and challenging. Everyone in some way is driven by a motivation to be free of suffering, to be free of stress, to be healthy, to be happy. 

    May everyone everywhere throughout the world find a sense of resilience, stay healthy, and find happiness. 

    An Election Day Meditation 

    Follow along as Rhonda Magee guides us through a S.T.O.P. practice for focused awareness. The invitation is to be kind to yourself, take a conscious breath, and gently relate to thoughts, emotions, and sensations that arise.
    Read More 

    • Rhonda Magee
    • November 5, 2024



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