Free Guided Meditations:
• Mindfulness Center at Brown: Community Mindfulness Sessions Available Live Online or by Telephone. Join one of these daily sessions.
• UCLA: A variety of meditations including a 5 minute breathing exercise, 12 minute Breath, Sound, Body Meditation, 19 minute Complete Meditation Instructions, 7 minute Meditation for Working with Difficulties, 9.5 minute Loving Kindness meditation, 3 minute Body and Sound meditation, 3 minute Loving Kindness meditation. https://marc.ucla.edu/body.cfm?id=22
• Tara Brach: Meditations include A Moment of Calm, Gateway to Presence, and talks about practicing mindfulness: https://www.tarabrach.com/talks-audio-video/
• Jefferson Mindfulness Institute: Two 10 minute meditations (body scan relaxation and awareness of breath) by Diane Reibel. www.mindfulnessandmore.com.
• Kristin Neff: Guided mindfulness and self-compassion practices: http://selfcompassion.org/category/exercises/#
Mindfulness Apps & Podcasts (free trial period):
• Calm: www.calm.com
• Headspace: www.headspace.com
• Insight Timer: https://insighttimer.com/ (ALL FREE) with podcasts
• 10% Happier: https://www.tenpercent.com/
Online Resources:
Mindfulness Magazine: Daily tips, guided meditations and articles about keeping your mindfulness practice alive: $20 a year
https://mindful.us17.listmanage.com/track/click?u=62a1db74d9bc2cb70470718ab&id=185022000e&e=36037cd882
Thrive: A daily blog with practical advice and articles about working with the typical challenges of daily life. FREE.
https://thriveglobal.com/categories/mental-health-thrivingmind/?utm_source=Newsletter_General&utm_medium=Thrive
Books To Grow Your Practice:
Exploring Mindfulness and Compassion
Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Practicing the Power of Now by Echkart Tolle
Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach
Self-Compassion by Kristin Neff
The Five Keys to Mindful Communication by Susan Gillis Chapman
The Force of Kindness by Sharon Salzberg
Mindful of Race by Ruth King
The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion by Christopher Germer
The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hahn
The Wise Heart by Jack Kornfield
Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong
Welcoming the Unwelcome by Pema Chodron
When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron
Wherever You Go There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Unwinding Anxiety by Judson Brewer
Going Deeper
Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body by Goleman and Davidson
Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Heal Thyself: Lessons on Mindfulness in Medicine by Saki Santorelli
The Inner Work of Racial Justice, Healing Ourselves and Transforming Our Communities Through Mindfulness by Rhonda Magee
The Lost Art of Compassion: Discovering the Practice of Happiness in the Meeting of Buddhism and Psychology by Lorne Ladner.
The Body Keeps the Score, Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessell Van Der Kolk
Trauma Sensitive Mindfulness by David Treleaven
Widen the Window, Training Your Brain and Body to Thrive During Stress and Recover from Trauma by Elizabeth Stanley
Tips for Self Guided Meditation
- Finding a spot where you won’t be disturbed and turning off all technology.
- Having a consistent time and place every day, as much as possible.
- Setting a timer. Starting with 10 minutes. Adding more when ready.
- Sitting on chair (feet flat on ground) or on pillow (with legs crossed on floor) back upright, shoulders relaxed.
- Taking three long deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth, allowing your mind to settle.
- Allowing your breath to return to its natural rhythm.
- Choosing a focal point that works for you such as the feet, the breath at the belly, nose or chest, the hands or sound.
- Allowing your attention to rest on this focal point, with awareness of sensations or lack thereof in this place.
- Bringing curiosity to the focal point; allowing the experience to be as it is, without trying to change it in any way.
- Noticing when attention wanders away from the focal point and bringing it back without giving yourself a hard time. This is how we train the brain.
- Remembering that there is no such thing as a bad meditation. The practice is about the intention to be alert to the present moment experience as it is without judgment.
- Bringing kindness and tenderness to this experience while calmly and firmly returning your attention to the focal point when you get distracted.
- Remembering you can always return to the focal point wherever you are and whatever you are doing to find the possibility of clarity, acceptance and ease of being.
- Congratulating yourself and acknowledging the important work you have done to care for yourself in this way.
Training and Research About Mindfulness
Brown University’s Mindfulness Center: Dedicated to rigorous research and student-centered education, our goal is to offer programs that improve individual lives and organizational effectiveness. https://www.brown.edu/public-health/mindfulness/home
Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) at Stanford University investigates methods for cultivating compassion and promoting altruism within individuals and society through rigorous research, scientific collaborations, and academic conferences. In addition, CCARE provides a compassion cultivation program and teacher training as well as educational public events and programs. http://ccare.stanford.edu/
Charter for Compassion International provides an umbrella for people to engage in collaborative partnerships worldwide. Our mission is to bring to life the principles articulated in the Charter for Compassion through concrete, practical action in a myriad of sectors. www.charterforcompassion.org
Jefferson Institute for Mindfulness: Conducts research and offers MBSR and related courses for the public as well as professionals in the field of health and wellness. http://marcusinstitute.jeffersonhealth.org/programs/mindfulness-based-stress-reduction.html
Mindful Schools: Training K-12 teachers to develop mindful students and classrooms. https://www.mindfulschools.org/