7-minute guided self-compassion practice for worry — on the road

About this practice

A 7-minute self-compassion session for worry, on the road. No app, no account — press start. A guided session of about 7 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: worry

Worry is rehearsal for a future that has not arrived. The body responds to the imagined event as if it were happening, so you pay the cost twice.

It tends to show up as:

• What-ifs lined up in a queue
• A knot low in the stomach
• Rehearsing bad outcomes before bed

You do not have to resolve the worry. Noticing it as a mental event, rather than an accurate forecast, loosens its grip.

Doing this on a train

• Pick a window seat if you can and let the view do part of the work
• Set an alarm for your stop
• Keep the bag on your lap rather than unfastening to find it later

The motion can make reading or screens uncomfortable, which is another reason audio works better here.

How self-compassion works

Self-compassion practice changes the tone of the inner voice rather than the content of the thoughts. It uses the same warmth and steadiness you would offer a friend, applied without requiring you to have earned it.

• Use the words you would actually say to someone you love
• Ask what you need, not what you deserve
• A hand on the chest or belly gives warmth and pressure a place to land

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Let your belly be soft. Not sucked in. Just soft.
2. 0:12The question is not what you deserve. It is what you need, right now, in this moment.
3. 0:27We'll be quiet for a bit longer than usual. Stay with whatever shows up.
4. 0:41Let your attention settle on the space between your nose and your upper lip, where the air passes.
5. 0:57Let the exhale empty you a little more than usual, but not to the point of strain.
6. 1:12Count four breaths silently. Then stop counting and just follow.
7. 1:24Feel the outline of yourself, from the top of your head to your heels.
8. 1:38Feel the tops of your thighs.
9. 1:48Let your whole body be as heavy as it wants to be.
10. 2:01Notice where the knot of worry low in the stomach lives in your body. Chest, throat, stomach. Rest your attention there without trying to change it.
11. 2:20There is no correct amount of the mind rehearsing bad endings to be feeling right now. Whatever is here is the honest amount.
12. 2:38Feel the skin around your eyes. Let the muscles behind them go loose.
13. 2:51Take the next breath slowly.
14. 3:00Let each breath out be a small letting go of the muscles around your ribs.
15. 3:14Notice if you're waiting for something to happen. Nothing is scheduled.
16. 3:26Let me stop talking. Follow the breath instead.
17. 3:37Say it once, plainly: this is hard, and I am allowed to find it hard.
18. 3:51If you're judging your performance, that's the same habit as judging everything else.
19. 4:04Notice the breath you're taking right now. That's the only one that exists.
20. 4:17Pause here. Count three breaths if you need an anchor.
21. 4:29Imagine the what-ifs lined up like worries as a room you can walk out of for a minute. The room will still be there.
22. 4:48If the knot of worry low in the stomach shows up, let it be there without arguing with it. You are not trying to remove it, just to sit beside it.
23. 5:10Feel the slight stretch at the very bottom of the exhale.
24. 5:22Notice if you're being hard on yourself about any of this.
25. 5:34If you're irritated, that's allowed. Irritation is just weather.
26. 5:45Silence for a few breaths. Nothing to do in it.
27. 5:57Put a hand where the feeling is strongest. Warmth and pressure are the oldest kind of reassurance.
28. 6:12Let your jaw, shoulders and hands be loose as you finish.
29. 6:24Let the quiet end on its own rather than cutting it off.
30. 6:37No rush to move on.

Questions people ask

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.