Hailey's Podcast

The theme of this meditation is honoring your experience in this moment. As you become mindful of your body, mindful of your environment and as you maintain a gentle present moment focus. The intention of this meditation is to provide support to yourself if or when you are triggered by a situation.

Our breath has the power to: help us calm, help us to reset, help us to bring awareness, help us to reflect, help us to pause

There is no greater example of embracing life with curiosity than a puppy who is learning a new home and a new family. As humans we can easily be annoyed with disruption, uncomfortable with the change trying to resolve it, analyze it, and change it back. So imagine the possibility of embracing life with curiosity.

There is a vulnerability that comes with looking inward and exploring yourself at a deeper level. It takes courage because meditation isn’t just about the good stuff, it is about finding a balance and accepting all of who we are.

I came across this notion of happiness triggers recently. I love this concept. I usually think of triggers from a negative perspective of having an emotional reaction to some type of disturbing content. In this instance, it is still an emotional reaction but it is a positive one.

This one is all about engaging music in the present moment. Take a moment and think of your favourite song, you know the one. When it plays on the radio, you are totally in tune with it. It feels as though it feeds your soul.

The Powerfulmind.co defines soul exhaustion as "ongoing feelings of exhaustion that can be caused not just by a busy schedule, but also a mismatch between your emotional needs and your lifestyle." Are you aware of a mismatch in your own life? Consider what misalignment feels like for you.

Consider what does your body, mind and spirit need in this moment? Maybe it is rest, or movement, or stillness. Maybe it is patience or healing or loveListen to what your body is telling you about your pain, about your life, and about your awareness in this moment.

We can train the brain to create some space between thoughts. Also creating space before fight or flight response is triggered. All of which is good for our overall well being and mental health.Meditation is my relief, my stillness, and my enhanced awareness. It is also my means to help reduce the mental chatter.

Healing from grief is not a linear straight forward path. It can be complex and uncertain. You can feel like you are making progress and then something happens and it suddenly hits you all over again with intense sadness and pain.

Letting go of judgement is probably one of the most profound learnings as a result of meditation. This automatic reflex is one that takes practice to observe and bring awareness to. This is definitely the most challenging aspect of meditation for me. Even after I meditate, I can easily put judgement on the experience.

The institute of mindful leadership defines a mindful leader as “someone who embodies leadership presence by cultivating focus, clarity, creativity and compassion in the service of others.”

Probably one of the most surprising outcomes about this meditation journey, given my analytical, logical and practical nature, was a closer connection with my own creativity. It took some exploring and a lot of discomfort before I realized how meditation has helped me find my balance, including my creative side. When I was younger, I would have never imagined putting myself out there in any creative capacity.

There is a Zen proverb that goes:“You should sit in meditation for twenty minutes every day – unless you’re too busy; then you should sit for an hour.”Time is such a tricky thing. There never seems to be enough of it. It is also a challenging concept as it relates to meditation. The challenge in finding the time to meditate, the challenge in sitting with your meditation for the entire time and the challenge of many distractions we face that take us away from meditation.

Let us explore the possibility of sleep. A sleep meditation can help you settle your mind, relax your body and regulate your breath.

Acupuncture is helpful for headaches, stress and pain management. Meditation has many of the same benefits as acupuncture. It also helps with ensuring our Qi is more aligned. Your breathe is the natural rhythm and flow of your body. Meditation helps to experience good mental and physical health. It has healing properties, it enhances creativity, and many other benefits.

Given that it is December, I thought todays theme should be about the Holiday Season. It can be a challenging time for people. This year is no exception. So I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what the holiday season means to me. And for you to take a moment to reflect on what the holiday season means to you.

Meditation connects you to the awareness when the weight of the world is being absorbed through you like a sponge essentially through your pores, hiding deep inside you. Bringing awareness to your thoughts, to your emotions, to your absorption, can help to ease the burden.

Consider what is your balance? How do you build your awareness to ensure you have what you need, when you need it. How do you find balance in all things?

Meditation increases your awareness and connection with the world. It helps to focus on the real issues at hand. It increases overall mental wellbeing for people and enhances your sense of purpose, creativity and inspiration.

A podcast to honor my daughter. Her stomping represents her eagerness to explore her world with new found freedom. At age one it was learning to walk, at age 16 it is learning to drive. Although I may occasionally complain about the stomp, I really wouldn’t change it for anything. Some day soon, that stomp may soften or change or move to its own house. So for now in this present moment, I will honor the stomp. It is my reminder of her strength. It is a reminder of my strength. It is my reminder her determination. It is a reminder of my own determination. Consider what are your own stomps? What are your strengths? What is your determination? What is your present moment sounds that keep you going?

The process of picking berries is all about engaging your senses. Noticing the beautiful colors of the berries, the leaves and the branches. The sounds of the berries dropping into the bucket. The sensation of the berries in my hand. The animals and bugs surrounding bushes and throughout nature. Even, the sounds of the other pickers off in the distance. The bitter taste of the fresh berry. All of my senses were engaged and aware.

The hoodoos are these incredible sandstone pillars in the middle of the prairies (near Milk River). Their existence and their presence, their healing energy is amazing. I feel a sense of gratitude and appreciation towards this sacred place. The Hoodoos are where the Blackfoot people would come to honor spirit beings. The rock art connects the physical and spiritual worlds.

I am grateful for my subtle whispers of insight and my not so subtle brick walls that are my reminders to keep going and to keep coming back to meditation time and time again.

The benefits of meditation are what I am calling my six degrees of meditation. All of the degrees are linked and connected and they all relate back to meditation. They are: leadership, resilience, present moment awareness, curiousity, creativity, and gratitude.

Sorry everyone, the first download didn't save my edits