General Mindfulness Exercises:
- Free Mindfulness Project: an assortment of many different mindfulness meditations
- Tara Brach – mindfulness talks and meditations, with a new podcast added every week.
- Guided Meditations with Dr. Rick Hanson – author of Hardwiring Happiness (2013)
- Breethe – easy and free meditations that you can download onto your phone, good for adults and children
Mindfulness for Anxiety and Depression:
- Tara Brach Video: Hands off the Control – how to let go of control
- Tara Brach Video: Finding the juice inside the fear – how to lean into the fear versus avoid or run away
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy ABCD worksheet – how to identify beliefs and search for more helpful alternatives
- Anxiety Happens – Chad Lejeune’s companion site to his book The Worry Trap, includes explanation of how anxiety works and exercises on how to free yourself from worry and anxiety.
- Passengers on the Bus Video – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) video demonstrates how to not let anxiety take over your bus.
- Guest at a Party Video – Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) video demonstrates how to welcome the unwanted guest of anxiety.
- Video on Depression as a Black Dog by World Health Organization
Self-Compassion Exercises:
- Self Compassion.org: Guided self compassion exercises and meditations by Dr. Kristen Neff, scroll down for her interesting Ted Talk that describes the difference between Self Esteem and Self-Compassion.
- Self Compassion Test – Find out your level of self-compassion with this on-line survey by Dr. Kristen Neff.
Mindfulness Podcasts, talks, etc:
- www.dharmaseed.com – Wonderful site with free podcasts from Buddhist meditation teachers in English, french and other languages from all over the world.
- NPR Invisibilia podcast – the secret history of thoughts and how mindfulness helps us to accept rather than change or resist our thoughts.
- Fake it Till you Make it – Social psychologist Amy Cuddy’s Ted talk on how body posture can affect and cortisol levels in the brain, and might even have an impact on our chances for success.
- All it Takes is 10 Minutes – Mindfulness expert Andy Puddicombe describes the transformative power of doing just nothing.
- Values vs. Goals: Short video by Russ Harris describing the ACT therapy notion of focusing on values vs. goals
- Sharon Salzberg: How Mindfulness empowers us, animated video on mindfulness and compassion (great for kids!)
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Tara Brach – Learning to Respond and Not React
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Jack Kornfield – Podcast on Forgiveness
Mindfulness Apps:
- Insight Timer – this wonderful app offers a range of guided meditations, allows you to set a meditation/ yoga timer, keep track of your meditation practice and connect live with thousands of meditators around the world.
- Head Space – Practice the basics of meditation and mindfulness with Take10, Headspace’s free introductory meditation series.
- Gratitude Journaling – Research has shown that purposely bringing our attention to what we are grateful for can shift our mood and attitude. This app gives you reminders and guides for a daily gratitude practice.
- Unstuck – This app is designed to help individuals feeling stuck in a life situation or with a major life decision and offers a life-coaching style approach to take action and make a plan.
- Mood Kit – This app was developed by two clinical psychologists and draws upon the principles and techniques of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). MoodKit’s innovative design enables it to be used on its own or to enhance professional treatment.
Mindfulness Self-Tests:
- Values shopping mall – This exercise will help you identify your core values.
- Self Compassion Test – Find out your level of self-compassion with this on-line survey by Dr. Kristen Neff.
- Signature Strengths – This site at the University of Pennsylvania allows you to test your personal strengths and areas of happiness. These tests are free, you just need to register and then can retake them at any time. For an explanation of the 24 signature strengths you can visit Dr. Martin Seligman’s site.
- Life Trap Test – Find out which of the 18 main early maladaptive schemas (EMS) you may be following in your life.
- Happify: Mindful coaching site that guides you to take a happiness level test and then recommends certain podcasts and mindfulness exercises based on your results.
Mindfulness in Your Relationships:
- The Couple Dialogue – How to practice mindful listening
- Non-Violent Communications – Explanation of the 4 Steps (with a video at bottom)
- Stop, Wait, Go article by Susan Chapman