Meditation for the inner critic: 7-minute noting session, after a long day

About this practice

When the inner critic shows up after a long day, this 7-minute noting session gives you somewhere to put it down. A guided session of about 7 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: the inner critic

The inner critic often formed as a protective strategy, keeping you small to keep you safe. It is loudest where you feel most exposed.

It tends to show up as:

• A judge commenting on everything
• Anticipating criticism before it comes
• Difficulty accepting praise

You can notice the voice without obeying it. Distance between the voice and the response is the whole gain.

Doing this after a long day

• Something physical first — shoes off, hands washed, water drunk
• Do not review the day during it
• Keep it short rather than thorough

Replaying the day in the practice just carries the day further into the evening.

How noting works

Noting is a technique from insight practice: when something arises, you give it a single plain label — thinking, hearing, planning — and return to the anchor. The label creates a small distance between you and the content.

• Use one word, not a sentence — explaining means you have joined in
• Label and return; do not follow the thought to see where it goes
• Drop the labelling if it becomes effortful and just follow the breath

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Notice the temperature of the air on the backs of your hands.
2. 0:13Let this be easy, if easy is available.
3. 0:24Nothing here is a test of concentration. Drifting off is part of it.
4. 0:37Everything that happens in the next few minutes is allowed to happen.
5. 0:50Let the in-breath be short and the out-breath unhurried.
6. 1:01Notice the difference between the breath at the front of your nose and the breath in your chest.
7. 1:17Let the whole of your left foot be heavy.
8. 1:28Feel your hips. Wide, heavy, and doing nothing.
9. 1:39Feel the tops of your thighs.
10. 1:49If the voice that grades everything shows up, let it be there without arguing with it. You are not trying to remove it, just to sit beside it.
11. 2:09You do not have to solve the judge in your head in these few minutes. Your only job is to keep breathing while it is here.
12. 2:28Notice your ears, which mostly just receive things.
13. 2:39Let the quiet do its work.
14. 2:49Notice that you don't have to start a breath. It arrives by itself.
15. 3:02Notice the small movement in your belly when you breathe.
16. 3:14You can be as unimpressive as you like for the next few minutes.
17. 3:27If you're counting the minutes, that's fine. Count them and come back.
18. 3:40No words for a moment. Only the next breath.
19. 3:51Nothing here needs to be efficient.
20. 4:01Notice if you've been frowning at your own thoughts.
21. 4:12Let the exhale fall out rather than pushing it.
22. 4:23Silence for a few breaths. Nothing to do in it.
23. 4:35Remind yourself, slowly: I am safe in this moment, even while the running commentary on your flaws is here. Safety and difficulty can share a room.
24. 4:54Say to yourself: this is uncomfortable, and I can stay with it for one more breath. Then take that breath.
25. 5:11Notice the first breath of the day versus this one. They're the same mechanism.
26. 5:25Notice the difference between a thought and the space around it.
27. 5:37If your body wants to move, let it move, then come back.
28. 5:50Nothing to follow for a moment except your own breathing.
29. 6:02There's no need to try harder than this.
30. 6:13If you drifted off, that was rest, and rest counts.
31. 6:25Before you move, notice one thing that's fine right now.
32. 6:37No need to open your eyes yet.

Questions people ask

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