When vibrations travel through the body, they promote circulation, energy flow, and rejuvenation. The frequency of the sound synchronizes with the brainwaves and activates destress responses in the body. Some like to listen to mantra sounds or a few white waves and the sounds are continuously changing so it’s relaxing. Most of us need a bit of downtime, especially when we travel. So many of us return from our trips tired and very often have to deal with work pressures as well. Here are some sample recordings of the different kinds of sounds I use, as well as the two practice methods which I describe below.
Practice Methods
Here are the main methods I recommend in my book. They are taken from my book, but they have been expanded and modified to be more effective and a bit shorter, so if you get to the end of the book you’ll find more options for your self-care practices.
The Gentle Zen Breathwork. This includes 2-3 minutes of breathing exercises every hour during your commute to work. You can do this for 2-4 hours during your work day and then take a short break. This is great for clearing the mind.
This includes 2-3 minutes of breathing exercises every hour during your commute to work. You can do this for 2-4 hours during your work day and then take a short break. This is great for clearing the mind.
The Gentle Meditation.
This is a guided meditation with a guided imagery of colors and visualizing this bright, warm, and clear. It allows you to visualise different bright colors without constantly visualizing the color blue. You can do this for 20-30 minutes. This is a guided meditation with a guided imagery of colors and visualizing this bright, warm, and clear. It allows you to visualise different bright colors without constantly visualizing the color blue. You can do this for 20-30 minutes.
The Reality Release.
This is a guided meditation on Self-Compassion which is based on the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh and is something you can do every day. It starts with a guided imagery of color (purple, orange, yellow, green and red) and then shows you some images of yourself with that color, but with a positive character trait you want to learn and practice. Then you work on that skill by yourself and then by hearing that person’s voice in your head. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
The Reality Release is a good practice for easing the pain of travel or with some stressful events in the life and makes a big difference to how you feel. It’s also a nice way to incorporate more mindfulness and practice good coping skills.
This is a guided meditation on Self-Compassion which is based on the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh and is something you can do every day. It starts with a guided imagery of color (purple, orange, yellow, green and red) and then shows you some images of yourself with that color, but with a positive character trait you want to learn and practice. Then you work on that skill by yourself and then by hearing that person’s voice in your head. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
The Reality Release is a good practice for easing the pain of travel or with some stressful events in the life and makes a big difference to how you feel. It’s also a nice way to incorporate more mindfulness and practice good coping skills. Inner Awakening Self-Talk.
This is a 5-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a well-being garden (pink, yellow, green and orange) with a pillar in the middle representing our mind, or a house of the mind. Each day as you wake up you say “I open the gate of my mind” and you visualize your mind opening up. As you say this to yourself you can feel your mind opening up and you can then visualize your mind becoming more peaceful, balanced and clear, and with an increasing ability to love yourself, your thoughts, and all that is around you.
This is a 5-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a well-being garden (pink, yellow, green and orange) with a pillar in the middle representing our mind, or a house of the mind. Each day as you wake up you say “I open the gate of my mind” and you visualize your mind opening up. As you say this to yourself you can feel your mind opening up and you can then visualize your mind becoming more peaceful, balanced and clear, and with an increasing ability to love yourself, your thoughts, and all that is around you. The No Phone Driving Self-Talk.
This is a 5-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a mother telling her children not to call for her at all while she is driving. Now imagine that you are the mother. You can either say the voice as if you are the mother, or just visualize your voice in your head saying this to your child. Repeat for 5 minutes.
This is a 5-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a mother telling her children not to call for her at all while she is driving. Now imagine that you are the mother. You can either say the voice as if you are the mother, or just visualize your voice in your head saying this to your child. Repeat for 5 minutes.
Self-Compassion for a New Relationship.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a child and you holding a raccoon, rabbit or turtle. You put the child in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the child in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a child and you holding a raccoon, rabbit or turtle. You put the child in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the child in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
Self-Compassion for a New Relationship.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a bird and you holding a crow, chicken or turkey. You put the bird in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the bird in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes. Self-Compassion for a New Relationship.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a bird and you holding a crow, chicken or turkey. You put the bird in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the bird in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
Thankfulness for a New Relationship.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a lion and you holding an eagle, raven, or owl. You put the eagle in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the eagle in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a lion and you holding an eagle, raven, or owl. You put the eagle in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the eagle in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
Thankfulness for a New Relationship.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a bear and you holding a wolf, eagle, or hawk. You put the wolf in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the wolf in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
Focusing On The Past.
This is a 3-minute guided meditation with a guided image of a white-tailed eagle in your lap and you holding a dove. You put the dove in your lap, and you think of your current self, how you feel, and what you want to feel or become. When the dove in your lap becomes as big as you, you are filled with all of the feelings of love and protection that a parent feels for their child. Repeat for 3-5 minutes.
When I first started doing guided meditations I liked to do one minute or two minutes meditations. For this kind of meditation, you will probably want to do a minute meditation for each week, unless it is particularly challenging to get yourself in the right state to meditate.
If it is, do the guided meditation for longer. Eventually, when your practice becomes more challenging, it will be helpful to gradually increase the length of your meditation. You might have to try a few different ones until you find one that feels best for you. And when you feel ready to meditate for longer, keep doing the one minute meditation until you reach the full three minutes.
I like the Lion and Eagle Meditation because of all of the feelings that it brings up: love, protection, and even being cuddled by a parent. This meditation is especially meaningful if you are having a challenging time, like grieving, or finding yourself feeling alone and lost.
The bird meditation is great if you are feeling that you are a little lost right now, especially since it is a bird and we are told to seek guidance and find our true north. My very first meditations were all about food, and then it evolved to include things about going to school or working. This is because in addition to meditating, this is a great way to focus your mind, get more creative, and write down your feelings in a journal.
It is a good meditation to do when you are trying to figure out what it is you are passionate about in your life.
Always Remember...
It is always a good idea to do these guided meditations with someone. They are just some ideas to get you started, but I recommend consulting with a therapist or spiritual leader, especially if you have a family member or friend you feel close to. If this is the case, you could do a meditative exercise together.