Everything, 30 at a time
Every meditation, breathing exercise, sleep story, focus session, guide and essay on SoftlyStill — 6,878 pieces, newest first, 30 to a page.
Deep work timer: 25 minutes of language practice (brown noise), when you are not in the mood
One block of language practice with brown noise underneath. One pomodoro, long enough to get somewhere and short enough to start.
Start the block →4-2-6 breath (4 · 2 · 6) for jet lag, after a long day
A a short hold in the middle, a long way out pattern, counted for you on screen.
Breathe →12-minute self-compassion meditation for guilt, before a presentation
Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 12 minutes of self-compassion for guilt, before a presentation.
Begin →5-minute body scan meditation for fatigue, beside your desk
Slow, spoken guidance for fatigue. A body scan session you can do beside your desk.
Begin →Waking up anxious for no obvious reason — an honest guide, when you are short on time
Morning anxiety is common and usually chemical rather than psychological. Cortisol rises steeply in the first hour after waking.
Read →The night train — a slow story for the end of the day, if you are sceptical about all of this — for the hours after a late shift
Somewhere between two cities, in the dark, where nobody needs anything from you.
Settle in →Deep work timer: 45 minutes of studying (a stream), when you are somewhere unfamiliar
One block of studying with a stream underneath. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.
Start the block →Coherent 6-6 breathing — 6 · 6 — for heated moments, when you are waiting for something
A six and six, the slower end of coherent breathing pattern, counted for you on screen.
Breathe →20-minute guided breathing practice for tension headaches — before a hard conversation
Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 20 minutes of breathing for tension headaches, before a hard conversation.
Begin →10-minute guided letting go practice for contentment — between meetings
Slow, spoken guidance for contentment. A letting go session you can do between meetings.
Begin →When to be careful with breathing exercises, step by step, on a day that started badly
Breathing exercises are generally very safe, but there are situations where the standard advice needs adjusting.
Read →A caravan by the sea, when you are not sure this will work — for a night when you do not want to think
Thin walls, wind outside, and the sound of shingle about fifty metres away.
Settle in →Deep work timer: 50 minutes of drawing (plain quiet), when you feel restless rather than tired
One block of drawing with plain quiet underneath. Fifty minutes, the length of a therapy hour, with ten minutes off afterwards.
Start the block →Quick 2-1-2-1 breathing — 2 · 1 · 2 · 1 — for a reset, when you are too tired to try hard
A a brisk rhythm for when you need to be awake pattern, counted for you on screen.
Breathe →Grounding for worry: 5 minutes, when the news hits hard
Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 5 minutes of grounding for worry, when the news hits hard.
Begin →Panic: 15-minute gratitude meditation, ahead of a full day
Slow, spoken guidance for panic. A gratitude session you can do ahead of a full day.
Begin →Releasing tension you did not notice you were holding — what works and what does not, when you are at home and cannot settle
By mid-afternoon most people are holding their shoulders, jaw and hands without knowing. Here is a two-minute check.
Read →Sleep story: an attic room, if you are doing this in the middle of the day — for waking too early
Sloping ceiling, rain on the roof a foot above your head.
Settle in →25-minute focus block for reading — a train carriage, when nothing else has worked today
A timer, a short prep list, and 25 minutes to read properly.
Start the block →Uneven box breathing — 4 · 4 · 6 · 2 — for days when everything is too much, when you are not sure this will work
A a square with one long side pattern, counted for you on screen.
Breathe →Letting go meditation for frustration (10 min), after a horrible day
For the times after a horrible day when frustration takes up more room than you would like — 10 minutes, letting go.
Begin →Breathing meditation for heartbreak (3 min), at the end of the day
Slow, spoken guidance for heartbreak. A breathing session you can do at the end of the day.
Begin →Using the commute as a boundary between work and home — the two-minute version, after eating too much
The commute is the only transition most people get. Used deliberately, it stops the workday following you into the kitchen.
Read →A lighthouse at the end of a long day — a slow story for the end of the day, when you have already had a long week — for the hours after a late shift
One light turning, a kettle, and weather you are on the right side of.
Settle in →45-minute focus block for thesis writing — birds at dawn, when you are on your own
A timer, a short prep list, and 45 minutes to add to the pile.
Start the block →4-8 breathing for a long wait, on a day that started badly
A in for four, out for eight pattern, counted for you on screen.
Breathe →Meditation for brain fog: 15-minute gratitude session, when you are overwhelmed
For the times when you are overwhelmed when brain fog takes up more room than you would like — 15 minutes, gratitude.
Begin →Meditation for falling asleep: 7-minute grounding session, at the weekend
Slow, spoken guidance for falling asleep. A grounding session you can do at the weekend.
Begin →Ten minutes outside is not a wellness cliché — a realistic guide, if you are tired of apps
It is the least fashionable intervention available and one of the most reliable. Here is what it actually does.
Read →A bus at night (a sleep story), before something difficult — for a racing mind
Upper deck, front seat, a city going past that you do not have to join.
Settle in →Newest first. Everything here is free — no account, no streaks, nothing to install.