Meditation Library

Led by Ramsay Pierce

Set up for this yoga nidra practice in the most supportive and comfortable position you can be in. Your body temperature may drop, so be sure to have a blanket or warm clothing. There is no physical movement necessary during the practice.

During Yoga Nidra, we enter a state of complete physical, mental, and emotional relaxation. This is a sleep-based meditation technique used for effectively establishing new patterns in the mind and body and creating harmony. This is the first Yoga Nidra practice of the Mindset Program to promote rest and sleep.

Ramsay Pierce

Ramsay (they/them) believes yoga and mindfulness are practices that allow us to see truth and come to know ourselves, and as we do, we are able to live with greater accountability and love. Ramsay is an RYT-500 and completed their 300 hour training with Michelle C. Johnson, focusing on the intersection of yoga and justice. They have specialized training in yoga for self-regulation and trauma and are certified through the Integrative Amrit (I AM) Method as a yoga nidra instructor. They are a Certified Mindfulness Instructor, having trained with Rev. angel Kyodo williams and David Perrin. Ramsay also works to make yoga more accessible to individuals who've been affected by traumatic brain injury (TBI). Ramsay’s superhero is their Nisei grandmother, Sumiko Yeya Mansfield.

Experience guided, group yoga nidra meditation sessions in our free, in person Community Retreats.

Led by Bonnie Currie

Mindfulness meditation helps us begin to cultivate awareness of, and to untangle from, habitual, conditioned and harmful thought patterns. The mindfulness teacher Pema Chodron, said “you are the sky, everything else is just the weather.”  Using the breath as an anchor for your attention, you will be invited to begin to notice, without judgment, the weather patterns of thoughts that float across the expansive sky of your mind. 

Bonnie Currie (she/her) is the co-founder and owner of Lotus Yoga (www.lotusyogajax.com), a community based yoga collaborative in Jacksonville.  She has had extensive training in ashtanga and vinyasa yoga, adaptive and trauma informed yoga, healthy back yoga, insight meditation and mindfulness.  Bonnie is a certified facilitator of Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY-F) through the renowned Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the Justice Resource Institute in Brookline, Massachusetts, and facilitates yoga and mindfulness to individuals in recovery through Yoga 4 Change (www.y4c.org) and to individuals who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and their caregivers through the LoveYourBrain Foundation (www.loveyourbrain.com).  Her work (as well her own practice) - whether with individuals who have sustained physical and emotional traumas, those with eating disorders or physical limitations, or those simply seeking to cultivate insight and deepen their own practice, has taught her first-hand about the extraordinary healing potential that lives inside the practices of yoga and mindfulness.

Led by Bonnie Currie

In this meditation, explore three techniques to calm, soothe, and ground your nervous system.  This practice may be useful if you are feeling overwhelmed, depleted or reactive as a way to replenish your parasympathetic nervous system, the part of the nervous system that helps us rest and replenish.

Bonnie Currie (she/her) is the co-founder and owner of Lotus Yoga (www.lotusyogajax.com), a community based yoga collaborative in Jacksonville.  She has had extensive training in ashtanga and vinyasa yoga, adaptive and trauma informed yoga, healthy back yoga, insight meditation and mindfulness.  Bonnie is a certified facilitator of Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY-F) through the renowned Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the Justice Resource Institute in Brookline, Massachusetts, and facilitates yoga and mindfulness to individuals in recovery through Yoga 4 Change (www.y4c.org) and to individuals who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and their caregivers through the LoveYourBrain Foundation (www.loveyourbrain.com).  Her work (as well her own practice) - whether with individuals who have sustained physical and emotional traumas, those with eating disorders or physical limitations, or those simply seeking to cultivate insight and deepen their own practice, has taught her first-hand about the extraordinary healing potential that lives inside the practices of yoga and mindfulness.

Led by Bonnie Currie

RAIN (acronym for Recognize, Allow, Investigate and Nurture) is a mindfulness meditation technique that invites us to begin to untangle from the reactivity that often stems from difficult and challenging emotions by beginning to turn towards these emotions with friendliness, curiosity and care.  You are welcome to practice this meditation when you notice a rise of irritability, a critical inner voice or the squeeze of anxiety in your body.  This practice might also be useful as a means to meet chronic or habitual doubts and fears with a healing presence.  

Bonnie Currie (she/her) is the co-founder and owner of Lotus Yoga (www.lotusyogajax.com), a community based yoga collaborative in Jacksonville.  She has had extensive training in ashtanga and vinyasa yoga, adaptive and trauma informed yoga, healthy back yoga, insight meditation and mindfulness.  Bonnie is a certified facilitator of Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY-F) through the renowned Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the Justice Resource Institute in Brookline, Massachusetts, and facilitates yoga and mindfulness to individuals in recovery through Yoga 4 Change (www.y4c.org) and to individuals who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and their caregivers through the LoveYourBrain Foundation (www.loveyourbrain.com).  Her work (as well her own practice) - whether with individuals who have sustained physical and emotional traumas, those with eating disorders or physical limitations, or those simply seeking to cultivate insight and deepen their own practice, has taught her first-hand about the extraordinary healing potential that lives inside the practices of yoga and mindfulness.

Led by Bonnie Currie

Trauma, such as a brain injury, may leave someone feel stuck in feelings of unworthiness, irritability or shame.  In this guided Metta meditation, we explore cultivating a heartful, compassionate response to these challenging emotions through intentional offerings of kindness and strength as a means to help us reconnect to a felt sense of worthiness.

Bonnie Currie (she/her) is the co-founder and owner of Lotus Yoga (www.lotusyogajax.com), a community based yoga collaborative in Jacksonville.  She has had extensive training in ashtanga and vinyasa yoga, adaptive and trauma informed yoga, healthy back yoga, insight meditation and mindfulness.  Bonnie is a certified facilitator of Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY-F) through the renowned Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the Justice Resource Institute in Brookline, Massachusetts, and facilitates yoga and mindfulness to individuals in recovery through Yoga 4 Change (www.y4c.org) and to individuals who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and their caregivers through the LoveYourBrain Foundation (www.loveyourbrain.com).  Her work (as well her own practice) - whether with individuals who have sustained physical and emotional traumas, those with eating disorders or physical limitations, or those simply seeking to cultivate insight and deepen their own practice, has taught her first-hand about the extraordinary healing potential that lives inside the practices of yoga and mindfulness.

Led by Jenni Foltz

Pendulation offers us a skillful way to work with intense or difficult sensations in the body. It was developed by Peter Levine who founded the trauma therapy modality, Somatic Experiencing. First, we find a place in our bodies that feels open, spacious, or resourced--we will call it our home base. Once we’ve identified this place, we pause and rest our attention there, giving ourselves time to settle and nourish in sensations that feel good. When we are ready, we gently move our attention towards an area of discomfort or pain, making sure to stop at a comfortable distance from the outer edge of the pain, so that we can be in safe relationship to it rather than overwhelmed by it. We pause and then move our attention back to home base and let our minds rest. We continue to alternate our attention back and forth--to pendulate--between home base and the place of tension or pain to allow the difficult sensations to disarm and release. Many people have found that with repetition a sense of confidence grows in having a way to be with uncomfortable experiences.

Jennifer Foltz (she/her) is devoted to kindness, compassion, and fostering a deep sense of connection, inspiration and joy for herself and others. In her career she serves as a biodynamic craniosacral therapist, yoga teacher, and compassion-centered coach. Having traversed her own recovery from traumatic brain injury, she genuinely understands the importance of slowing down, deep listening and opening to one's inner resilience and health. At the same time, she feels it is essential to nurture creativity, playfulness, and joy. Her teaching and private practice are richly informed by her work with animals (horses & dogs), various dance, sound, singing, breath & movement practices, as well as meditation rooted in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Many of her clients are neurodivergent and may be recovering from concussions, traumatic brain injuries, or strokes. She also works with people who are feeling anxious, depressed, and sick of feeling out of sorts in their body.

Led by Jenni Foltz

In this meditation, we use our imagination to bring to mind various things that we love, and then we notice our bodies response. Our brains do not know the difference between a real and an imagined experience, so, as we turn our attention towards things that nourish us, we deepen our experience of joy, balance, and ease in our bodies. Our brains are also wired to notice what is wrong, not working, or in pain. This is called negativity bias. As we practice bringing our attention

again and again to things that bring us back to joy and wholeness, we begin to naturally increase our wellbeing and resilience.

Jennifer Foltz (she/her) is devoted to kindness, compassion, and fostering a deep sense of connection, inspiration and joy for herself and others. In her career she serves as a biodynamic craniosacral therapist, yoga teacher, and compassion-centered coach. Having traversed her own recovery from traumatic brain injury, she genuinely understands the importance of slowing down, deep listening and opening to one's inner resilience and health. At the same time, she feels it is essential to nurture creativity, playfulness, and joy. Her teaching and private practice are richly informed by her work with animals (horses & dogs), various dance, sound, singing, breath & movement practices, as well as meditation rooted in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Many of her clients are neurodivergent and may be recovering from concussions, traumatic brain injuries, or strokes. She also works with people who are feeling anxious, depressed, and sick of feeling out of sorts in their body.

Led by Kyla Pearce

This practice will bring mindful attention to thinking, and then use simple phrases to help the mind stay present. This is important because our thoughts create our experience of life, so if we have a habit of judging ourselves frequently, it’s likely we’ll live with a sense of uneasiness or distrust in ourselves. All thoughts, whether positive or negative, need attention to grow just like a plant in the garden. So, when we notice we’re getting swept away by negative thoughts, we can mindfully acknowledge them and then shift our attention to something more supportive, like our breath. This way, we no longer live inside of our thoughts and their power lessens.

Kyla (she/her) serves as the Senior Director of Programs and Research, overseeing the design, implementation, and evaluation of LoveYourBrain programs on a large scale. By turning inward through mindfulness, Kyla believes we learn to be with our whole selves with greater compassion, which is fundamental to wellbeing and inspiring positive social change. Kyla has blended her expertise as a yoga and mindfulness teacher and practitioner, researcher, and advocate to develop evidence-based, TBI-centered yoga and meditation curricula, which she trains yoga teachers and clinicians to deliver in clinical, community, and online settings. She recently completed a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Dartmouth College investigating the impact of yoga and meditation for people with neurological conditions and has published broadly on this topic. She has been part of the Pearce family for years, and, following Kevin's accident, played an integral role in the launch of LoveYourBrain. 

Led by Kyla Pearce

In this meditation I’ll guide a practice focused on deepening the trust we have in ourselves. This is important because when we trust ourselves, we can more clearly see our value, and make the choices we need in order to thrive, including things we may want to change. This yoga nidra meditation will integrate all elements that we’ve been practicing - sensing our body and breath, witnessing thoughts, cultivating a heartfelt intention, and welcoming our experience as it is - to bring together all the skills you’ve developed during this series. 

Kyla (she/her) serves as the Senior Director of Programs and Research, overseeing the design, implementation, and evaluation of LoveYourBrain programs on a large scale. By turning inward through mindfulness, Kyla believes we learn to be with our whole selves with greater compassion, which is fundamental to wellbeing and inspiring positive social change. Kyla has blended her expertise as a yoga and mindfulness teacher and practitioner, researcher, and advocate to develop evidence-based, TBI-centered yoga and meditation curricula, which she trains yoga teachers and clinicians to deliver in clinical, community, and online settings. She recently completed a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Dartmouth College investigating the impact of yoga and meditation for people with neurological conditions, and has published broadly on this topic. She has been part of the Pearce family for years, and, following Kevin's accident, played an integral role in the launch of LoveYourBrain. 

Led by Jonathan Prescott

We all want a life free of suffering, but we know suffering is universal. In this practice, we’ll explore how to transform our suffering into the freedom that we seek by feeling the fullness of our experience.

Jonathan Prescott is a Board Certified Clinical Chaplain and Pastoral Counselor. As a long time ordained student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, Jonathan’s practice is to support people experiencing illness and end of life, foster effective caregiving, and reconnect people with their innate wisdom and compassion. Jonathan is the founder of Wise Caregiving, a non-profit dedicated to helping people become effective, sustainable, and empathetic caregivers. Jonathan’s background includes hospice, cancer-care, hospital Chaplain, and a spiritual practice as an ordained student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.