Way back when the No Jedi started in 2016, one of the earliest things I shared was the benefit and support I got from being introduced to mindfulness by a surgeon I was working with. It truly was a near-breaking point in my life and this was a lifesaver.

We often talk about the feeling of overwhelm, the number of jobs to do and the constant demands from various places. This was certainly my experience and for a time it made me quite unwell while I thought I knew how to manage and take care of myself my usual tactics were falling short. And then I was introduced to an app that literally (I think) saved my life.

Mindfulness is talked about a fair bit everywhere nowadays, I attended a session at APAC in 2013 on mindfulness at work, and courses are springing up everywhere, groups introducing mindfulness are nominated for awards. The connection between our health and resilience at work is established. I'd heard of meditation but figured it was never for me, my head is always thinking, I'm no good at sitting still, and I jump from one thing to another. Of course, meditation is exactly what I needed. It was only when a registrar pointed me in the direction of this app that I found something that clicked and worked for me.

I figured out my routine and before I knew it I was meditating every day! Who would have thought? Yes, the mind still jumps off everywhere, I'm usually itching to get up and get going but I find just taking that short amount of time sets the day up. The Headspace app has some useful short SOS sessions that I find can help focus and give a little time out when needed. It also makes great use of animation videos to explain the process and understand what's behind the sessions. And yes a doctor pointed me in the direction of using this.

Setting aside just ten minutes a day (you can alter the length of the meditations from 10 minutes upwards, the SOS sessions are 3 minutes) is really possible.

More on Headspace here and here

You can listen to Andy Puddicombe one of the founders of Headspace (and the guy that does the talking on the app) here with a 10-minute TED talk.

While you are there TED has curated a couple of playlists for us

Needing five minutes of peace

Slow Down

Update November 2022

Calm is a very popular meditation app and definitely worth testing out, I enjoyed the imagery and visual nature that it brings. This article takes you through a review of other meditation apps currently available.

Update September 2024

I’m still using Headspace, it’s grown and evolved so much from the simple app I started with. It’s still the thing I reach for on tough days, it helps me get to sleep (or back to sleep when I wake with a busy mind). There are podcasts, exercises and more. I’d be lying if I said I meditate every day, but I know my days go better when I do.