Our Mindful Nature: Meditation Inspired by Nature to Soothe the Overwhelmed Mind and Ease Anxiety

This week’s mini meditation is a self-compassion break guided by Dr. Kristen Neff. It is a powerful practice that offers you the chance to access exactly what you need in this moment - tender or fierce self-compassion. You can listen to the full interview with Dr. Neff in the previous episode titled Fierce Self-Compassion. You can learn more about Dr. Neff’s work here: https://self-compassion.org/ Thanks to this week’s sponsor, Baronfig. Baronfig’s line of “Tools for Thinkers” includes guided journals, notebooks, writing instruments, bags, accessories, and so much more. As an avid journal, I use and love their guided meditation journal and their basic Confidant notebooks! By using our code MINDFULMINUTE21, you'll receive 20% off your first purchase. https://baronfig.com/ These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

I am thrilled to share today’s episode with y’all - I am talking with Dr. Kristen Neff. Kristin Neff received her doctorate from the University of California at Berkeley, and is currently an Associate Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. During Kristin’s last year of graduate school she became interested in Buddhism and has been practicing meditation in the Insight Meditation tradition ever since. While doing her post-doctoral work she decided to conduct research on self-compassion – a central construct in Buddhist psychology and one that had not yet been examined empirically. Kristin is a pioneer in the field of self-compassion research, creating a scale to measure the construct almost 20 years years ago. In addition to writing numerous academic articles and book chapters on the topic, she is author of the book Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself, and in June 2021 she released her new book Fierce Self-Compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim Their Power and Thrive. This book arrived right on time for me personally, and I can’t wait to share some of the stories behind it in today’s interview. We talk about the two sides of self-compassion, the interplay between personal and collective compassion and the powerful action that arises from it, and how anger is easily misunderstood within a meditation practice. Join us for this powerful discussion and be sure to stay for Dr. Neff’s self-compassion meditation at the end. You can learn more about Dr. Neff’s work here: https://self-compassion.org/ Thanks to our sponsor, Mindful and Modern. They make the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

“It is only when you go too far that you discover the boundary.” This was the insight from a recent conversation I had with my partner in Shoreline meditation app, Gordon Hempton. He was applying this thought to recording sounds, and I believe it equally applies to our life experiences. What if we shifted our internal narrative from one of shaming to one of appreciation for the times we misstep, overstep or go too far past our own boundaries? Thanks to our sponsor, Mindful and Modern. They make the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

A while back, I was having a conversation with Gordon Hempton, one of my partners in the Shoreline meditation app, about one of his soundscapes titled Dunes. In Dunes, Gordon moves among the dunes of Cape Cod recording the sounds of the surf and the nighttime insects, and as he is describing this soundscape to me, he says, “it is only when you go too far that you realize the boundary for the perfect sound within the dunes.” Lightbulb moment. It is only when you go too far that you discover the boundary. Typically, I think many of us would think, “Shame on me. I messed up. I should have known better.” What if instead we were able to look at that same overstepping with gratitude or tenderness? Today’s episode of The Mindful Minute is the final installment of the Boundary Setting series. We’ve talked about the importance of presence, of non-judgment, and now, of compassion when it comes to both our meditation practice and our boundary setting. Join me for today’s discussion and 20-minute guided meditation in this final exploration of boundaries. Thanks to our sponsor, Mindful and Modern. They make the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Within meditation, non-judgment is the idea that whatever comes up within practice - thoughts, feelings, distractions - we simply allow it to be part of our present-moment experience without assigning a good/bad, like/dislike label to it. Within boundary-setting, this same skill is the ability to separate the threads between ‘this is the boundary I need to set’ and ‘this is how I feel about setting the boundary.’ Without the skill to separate these threads, it is very easy to get lost in the emotional tangle of - I want to say no but I also want to be liked/loved/approved of/kind/etc… - and that contradiction often makes boundary setting feel difficult or even impossible for some of us. Today’s mini meditation practice puts into practice the skill of non-judgment, so that ultimately, you too are able to say “no.” as a full sentence without any sort of emotional tangle surrounding it. Thanks to our sponsor, Mindful and Modern. They make the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

No. I have a problem with that. I don’t want to. I’ve decided not to. I feel uncomfortable about…. All of these are phrases we can use to set a boundary, and depending on how you were raised, your conditioning, gender expectations, etc., they can be incredibly hard to say. I understand that I can say, “no.” as a full sentence, but I also feel a way about saying no without an explanation or an excuse tied to it… This is where the meditative skill of non-judgment comes into play. Within meditation, non-judgment is the idea that whatever comes up within practice - thoughts, feelings, distractions - we simply allow it to be part of our present-moment experience without assigning a good/bad, like/dislike label to it. Within boundary-setting, this same skill is the ability to separate the threads between ‘this is the boundary I need to set’ and ‘this is how I feel about setting the boundary.’ Without the skill to separate these threads, it is very easy to get lost in the emotional tangle of - I want to say no but I also want to be liked/loved/approved of/kind/etc… - and that contradiction often makes boundary setting feel difficult or even impossible for some of us. When we start to build our skill of non-judgment, we are in essence teasing apart the threads of our thoughts into the thought itself, and the way that we feel about that thought. Non-judgment allows us to cultivate discernment, choosing which threads to pursue and which to relinquish as real and not-true. Join me for today’s episode of The Mindful Minute as we explore the tenet of non-judgment and put it to use in our 20-minute guided meditation practice. Thanks to our sponsor, Mindful and Modern. They make the most beautiful meditation cushions, chairs, candles, and more. Be sure to visit https://www.mindfulandmodern.com/ and use code MindfulMinute10 to save 10% on your entire order. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

Today’s meditation practice is a practice in awakening to the physical boundaries of your body and the energetic boundaries of your being. This might sound so obvious or simple, but as we talk about often in meditation, many of us live slightly removed from our bodies. We aren’t conscious of our feelings or our embodied experience. This is why the first step of meditation is to get into the present moment, and to get into the body. This first step allows us to become embodied and conscious of our feelings and our boundaries. So, we find our physical edges. Additionally, you know how sometimes you can be with someone and you feel energized, inspired, uplifted, or maybe just really seen? And, sometimes you feel drained, anxious, or even angry? This is because our being doesn’t only exist within the body. Our energy expands {or sometimes spills} out. Relationship boundaries are impacted and informed when our energetic sphere meets and mingles with another energetic sphere. As we meditate, we use this first step of presence as a tool to find, feel, and fill out both our physical and energetic body boundaries. Join me for this meditation exploration. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

In so many of my dharma talks and conversations lately, boundaries have come up. Boundaries showed up in our meditation series on Passion & Paychecks with Tiffany Johnson. Boundaries showed up in our discussions on worry and on fierce self-compassion. Boundaries also show up for me perpetually in relationships, and are something I spend a good bit of time thinking about and working on. Now, I am NOT a boundary expert. Sometimes I find I have very clear, easily expressed boundaries, and sometimes I struggle. Sometimes I don’t even notice, much less express that I’m not upholding a boundary of mine until I am way past it and spiraling into an emotional tornado…. {sigh.}. Lucky for us, we have a meditation practice to help us wake up to the skill of setting boundaries. For what is meditation, if not a tool to help us awaken to that we were once asleep to? Livia Shapiro, a somatic psychologist and yoga teacher, describes a boundary as a space that distinguishes you from others. If we are going to wake up to what our boundaries are, where they are lacking, etc. then we must first be able to establish what boundaries do exist. Join me for today’s talk and guided meditation practice as a first step in clarifying and working with your own personal boundaries. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

There are 3 guiding principles I incorporate into my meditation practice to help guide me in the ongoing balance of making tender choices and tough choices to best support my ultimate intentions: Listening: "To listen is to continually give up all expectations and to give our attention, completely and freshly, to what is before us, not really knowing what we will hear or what that will mean. In the practice of our days, to listen is to lean in, softly, with a willingness to be changed by what we hear." {from Mark Nepo}⁠ Courage: In one of its earliest forms, the word courage meant "To speak one's mind by telling all one's heart."  {from Brene Brown}⁠ FIERCE Compassion: What is the action that moves me in the direction of my ultimate intention? {from Dr. Kristen Neff} Join me for today’s meditation. These mini meditations are meant to support a daily home practice. Tune in every Monday to find your practice for the week! Full episodes are released every Thursday for a longer, deeper practice. You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl

There is a conversation that I have a lot with students; it goes something like this - Me: How is your meditation practice going? Student: Wellllllll, it hasn’t been very consistent lately. I’ve been super stressed lately about XYZ, and I just need to get through this tough period and then I’ll be able to recommit to my practice…. Sound familiar? Yep, I struggle with this exact same issue. And, as a teacher, in all honesty, I struggle with how to respond to this… On the one hand, I gently want to push {and truthfully I usually do}, because it is so easy to let the cultural beliefs around doing/achievement/success to overrule what we know to be true - that creating space and silence in our lives is crucial to our well-being, creativity and ultimate success. It is way too easy to tell ourselves we just have to meet the deadline, get through the holiday, finish the cleaning and THEN we will practice. I have several years of experience to tell you that you almost never actually get around to practicing… I wasted years doing this dance. And yet on the other hand, I don’t know what is happening on the interior landscape for you or in your nervous system. I don’t know the fullness of your story, your history and your lived experience. No one does. No one can make the final call for you but yourself. When is choosing to take a break the compassionate choice and when is choosing to push through the struggle the better choice? YOU are the one. You are the one that makes the call. You are the one that walks the line holding tenderness in one hand, ferocity in the other and trying to balance along the way. Join me for today’s discussion and guided meditation as we learn how to balance listening, courage and action within our meditation practice. If you enjoyed today’s episode, please consider making a one-time or monthly donation to support the growth of this labor of love. Your monthly donation will aid in keeping this show sponsor-free, employing additional small businesses AND funding the ongoing creative growth I invest in. Donate here: https://www.merylarnett.com/support-the-mindful-minute You can learn more about my: *Shoreline: my new meditation app *Live, virtual meditation classes with me *Upcoming events All by visiting merylarnett.com. You can also grab my FREE Meditation Starter Kit on my website merylarnett.com. It is full of my favorite tips, stories and ideas for starting and maintaining a daily meditation practice. Grab your copy today! --> http://bit.ly/meditationstarterkit *** Connect with me on Instagram {@merylarnett} to get bonus meditation tips, mini-meditations, and the occasional baby spam: https://www.instagram.com/merylarnett/   #meditatewithmeryl