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.

Focus45 min

45-minute problem solving session with plain quiet and a timer, on a low-energy afternoon

Sit down, press start, and stay with the difficulty for 45 minutes. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

3-6 breathing exercise for a noisy room — when you are cold and want to be warm

The pattern is 3 · 6, which is a gentle two-to-one ratio.

Breathe →
Breathing2 min

6-2-6-2 breathing — 6 · 2 · 6 · 2 — for Monday morning, if you have done this a hundred times

The pattern is 6 · 2 · 6 · 2, which is even and rhythmic, with brief holds on both sides.

Breathe →
Meditation7 min

Body scan meditation for health anxiety (7 min), before work

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 7 minutes of body scan for health anxiety, before work.

Begin →
Meditation15 min

15-minute self-compassion meditation for jaw tension, as sleep prep

When jaw tension shows up as sleep prep, this 15-minute self-compassion session gives you somewhere to put it down.

Begin →
Sleep12 min

The house after everyone is asleep (a sleep story), when you want to be left alone — for a night when you do not want to think

The hour when the house belongs to nobody and nothing needs doing.

Settle in →
Focus90 min

90-minute coding session with a train carriage and a timer, when you cannot concentrate on anything else

Sit down, press start, and work through the problem for 90 minutes. One full ultradian cycle, for work that needs a long runway.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

3-5-7 breathing exercise for being unwell — when you only have a few minutes

3 · 5 · 7 breathing: a staircase down: three, five, seven.

Breathe →
Meditation12 min

Meditation for stress: 12-minute softening session, after a long day

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 12 minutes of softening for stress, after a long day.

Begin →
Meditation5 min

Meditation for fear of flying: 5-minute noting session, in the morning

When fear of flying shows up in the morning, this 5-minute noting session gives you somewhere to put it down.

Begin →
Sleep15 min

The night train — a slow story for the end of the day, when you cannot concentrate on anything else — for waking too early

Somewhere between two cities, in the dark, where nobody needs anything from you.

Settle in →
Focus25 min

A 25-minute block for practising an instrument, with birds at dawn, when you have been on screens all day

A single 25-minute block for practising an instrument — slowly, with the metronome.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

How to use Physiological sigh for a ten-minute window, when you want something simple

2 · 6 breathing: a second short sip of air on top of the first, then a long release.

Breathe →
Meditation20 min

Self-compassion for insomnia: 20 minutes, on a Sunday

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 20 minutes of self-compassion for insomnia, on a Sunday.

Begin →
Meditation10 min

Body scan for anger: 10 minutes, on a lunch break

Slow, spoken guidance for anger. A body scan session you can do on a lunch break.

Begin →
Sleep10 min

A caravan by the sea, if you are fitting this around other people — for jet lag

Thin walls, wind outside, and the sound of shingle about fifty metres away.

Settle in →
Focus50 min

A 50-minute block for exam revision, with white noise, when you have woken up too early

A single 50-minute block for exam revision — recall rather than re-reading.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

How to use Gentle box breathing for a night shift, when you want to finish something

3 · 3 · 3 · 3 breathing: a smaller square, for when four counts feels long.

Breathe →
Meditation5 min

5-minute guided noting practice for fatigue — during a break

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 5 minutes of noting for fatigue, during a break.

Begin →
Meditation15 min

Softening meditation for concentration (15 min), in the afternoon slump

Slow, spoken guidance for concentration. A softening session you can do in the afternoon slump.

Begin →
Sleep12 min

An attic room (a sleep story), after a long day — for a night when you do not want to think

Sloping ceiling, rain on the roof a foot above your head.

Settle in →
Focus90 min

A 90-minute block for data work, with a stream, when the day has been loud

A single 90-minute block for data work — checking as you go.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

4-7-8 breath (4 · 7 · 8) for a break at work, when you are doing this for the first time

4 · 7 · 8 breathing: in for four, hold for seven, out for eight.

Breathe →
Meditation10 min

Mindfulness: 10-minute grounding meditation, on a plane

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 10 minutes of grounding for mindfulness, on a plane.

Begin →
Meditation3 min

Self-doubt: 3-minute self-compassion meditation, after work

Slow, spoken guidance for self-doubt. A self-compassion session you can do after work.

Begin →
Sleep15 min

A lighthouse at the end of a long day — a slow story for the end of the day, when you want something simple — for waking too early

One light turning, a kettle, and weather you are on the right side of.

Settle in →
Focus45 min

45-minute focus session for editing with rain on a window, after a difficult conversation

45 minutes on editing — the boring pass that makes it readable. A single class period, the length most people can hold before the quality drops.

Start the block →
Breathing2 min

5-7 breath (5 · 7) for Sunday evening, if you are doing this in the middle of the day

5 · 7 breathing: five in, seven out.

Breathe →
Meditation15 min

15-minute letting go meditation for a racing mind, in the queue

Nothing to learn and nothing to fix: 15 minutes of letting go for a racing mind, in the queue.

Begin →
Meditation7 min

7-minute breathing meditation for jaw tension, during the evening wind-down

Slow, spoken guidance for jaw tension. A breathing session you can do during the evening wind-down.

Begin →