Personal Essays

First-person stories about what mindfulness looks like in real, messy, everyday life. These essays are honest, personal, and often funny - written by people who've found that paying attention changes everything.
What is Possible When We Put Down Our Screens—Illustration of a Black woman stepping out of a large smartphone and into the real world.
Focus & Attention
What is Possible When We Put Down Our Screens 

Our devices bring us live-tweeting of important events, video footage of daily life on the other side of the world, and photos of our friends from near and far, but the real magic happens when we put the screens down, writes founding editor Barry Boyce. Read More 

  • Barry Boyce
  • December 4, 2021
How I Found My Way to Gratitude
Gratitude
How I Found My Way to Gratitude 

Whether you think of it as the “greatest virtue,” as Cicero did, or “social glue,” as researchers do, gratitude has the power to change your life, if you let it. Kelly Barron shares how she learned to let gratitude change her. Read More 

  • Kelly Barron
  • November 21, 2021
How to be More Aware of Emotional Bypassing—Illustration of a Black woman wearing a red shirt with her eyes closed and thunder clouds surrounding her head.
Depression & Grief
How to be More Aware of Emotional Bypassing 

It makes sense that we want to distance ourselves from pain, but true wellness means learning to sit with our shadows as well as the light so we can be truly present and embrace the fullness of being human. Read More 

  • Kaylee Friedman
  • November 20, 2021
How Mindfulness Helps Me Thrive with Asthma—A woman in a red jacket reaches a mountain peak surrounded by other mountains.
Breathing Meditations
How Mindfulness Helps Me Thrive with Asthma 

When Georgina Miranda was diagnosed with severe asthma, she realized how working with mindfulness could help her find the courage not only to summit mountains, but also to slow down and embrace taking things one breath at a time. Read More 

  • Georgina Miranda
  • November 6, 2021
Bridging the Distance Between Our Stories
Magazine
Bridging the Distance Between Our Stories 

Mindfulness practices ask us to be open to perspectives beyond our own. Mindful editor-in-chief Heather Hurlock shares how we can honor the gaps between our outlooks and seek to bridge them with compassion. Read More 

  • Heather Hurlock
  • October 20, 2021
A Mindful Way to Ease Your Envy
Magazine
A Mindful Way to Ease Your Envy 

While envy is the seed for feeling scarcity and fear, Spencer Sherman explains, joy is the seed for confidence, fullness, and ease. Read More 

  • Spencer Sherman
  • September 27, 2021
Magazine
Get Real About Self-Care 

Mindful editor-in-chief Heather Hurlock gets real about the challenges—and importance—of making space to give yourself what you need. Read More 

  • Heather Hurlock
  • August 23, 2021
Ad for a mindfulness app with meditations, articles, and a section sidebar, shown on a phone held in hand.