This meditation accompany’ s Being Mindful Guide No 9. With the New Year approaching, you might like to do this meditation to identify your purpose or update your purpose. The meditation focuses your attention on your breath and then your thoughts. It guides you in exploring your purpose and what gives you joy. Identifying any feelings associated with purpose and where in your body sensations resonate. This meditation can be done sitting or lying down.

The Guide this week focuses on Mastering Stress and it’s No 8. The spotlight is on finding ways to manage your distress whilst recognising that some stress is required. 

Today’s meditation accompanies Mastering Stress Guide No 8 and is called Awareness of Breath and Thoughts. In this meditation we are going to focus on our breath and thoughts with an invitation to be open, curious and patient. Can you sit without reacting to your thoughts, through the discomfort to relate in a different way. This meditation can be done sitting or lying down. Let’s begin by taking a moment to settle your body into a comfortable position.

The information for this is: Supporting Others No 8 Guide focuses on self-compassion. Self-compassion is a positive attitude you can have towards yourself. Having self-compassion means you can relate to yourself in a forgiving, accepting and loving way when situations might not be great. Dr Kristen Neff, identifies three separate constructs to it: self-kindness, common humanity and mindfulness. Dr Neff has many free self-compassion resources available from www.self-compassion.org/category/exercise

Today’s meditation is called G.R.A.C.E. and it accompanies Supporting Others No 8 Guide. GRACE is an acronym which may assist you to support yourself, focus your attention and consider what would serve you well. Perhaps, it’s self-care, compassion or your capacity for increased kindness. This meditation can be done lying down or sitting.

Dealing with Anxiety No 8 Guide takes a look at how to stop getting lost in the dense forest of your life and to connect back into what matters most particularly in times of turmoil, anxiety or feelings of overwhelming. 

This practice accompanies Mindful Monday Podcast on Dealing with Anxiety No 8.  Using RAIN (an acronym for being mindful and being self compassion to oneself), it invites you to engage with your negative self-beliefs, to discover who you are beyond your thoughts and beliefs; and loosen the grip of beliefs that may cause you suffering. This mediation can be done anywhere or anytime. It can be done lying down or sitting. 

Being Mindful No 8 Guide focuses on Mindful Eating. Bringing mindfulness to the food you choose and the experience of eating, helps you manage your own hunger and satisfaction. Included in today’s podcast are many tips and practices that will assist you in developing healthy habits towards eating mindfully. Remember that everything that nourishes the body and the brain comes from the food you eat and drink. 

This practice accompanies Mindful Monday Podcast on Being Mindful No 8.  It might provide the opportunity to expand your attention to explore body sensations, sounds, thoughts, and when you are ready to open to these - to the full range of events within and without as they move and change, appear and disappear in awareness. Awareness assists you in connecting with your body’s hunger signals and the senses responses to food. 

The evidence is mounting that strongly suggests that mindfulness gently builds an inner strength, so that future stressors have less impact on our happiness and physical well-being. How… it helps manage stress by switching on your being mode which is associated with relaxation. When you become aware of your thoughts and step back your stress responses are not initiated and you have the opportunity to use your “wise mind”. Your amygdala is central to switching on your stress response, your amygdala’s activity is reduced through mindfulness.