Let’s face it, as an SLP you are most likely dealing with pretty high amounts of stress on a normal year. Add in all that has happened in 2020 and there is even more to figure out and work through.

One of the best ways to manage and reduce stress, no matter how many stressful things are part of your day, is to have a meditation practice.

Regular meditation can help to reduce the stress response in your brain, rewire the way you perceive stress triggers, and even improve the function of your brain. It can also help to increase your focus, which can improve efficiency and decrease mental fatigue. And, it anything, it gives you a moment to yourself to pause, take a break and check in with yourself on even the most hectic of days.

The tricky part is getting started, and the trickier part is sticking with it.

The key is to choose a program that works best for what you need. Some apps and sites offer meditations that are for one specific thing, such as sleep or anxiety or stress, while others focus on helping you to learn ow to meditate.

Here is a list of my top 5 meditation apps for SLPs (and a few honorable mentions):

• Calm
  • This app is best known for being free for teachers in 2020. While this may or may not still be happening, it is a very popular meditation app. Plus, the name really says it all, ya know?
  • Calm focuses on guided meditation to help you relax and ultimately sleep better, which can help to reduce stress. This is really great if you find you have a difficult time winding down in the evenings or your mind starts to race when you do close your eyes for sleep.
• HeadSpace
  • New to meditation or want to make sure you are doing it “right”? This app is for you. Headspace offers a fantastic beginners trial and series that help you to learn how to mediate (and why), and to slowly get you into a doable routine of daily meditation.
  • As one SLP shared “{They} have a variety of meditation! Even children’s meditations”, so it could work for you, your family, and maybe even your therapy sessions. And again, it’s all in the name. who wouldn’t want some headspace these days?
• Grokker
  • This is a meditation app/membership site, as well as fitness, healthy eating, lifestyle/living, and more. It is really an overall wellness site, that happens to have some really great meditations. It is offered for both individuals and companies, and I have been a user of this site for quite a few years now.
  • You’ll find a lot of meditations on here, as well as mindfulness and stress training videos, from meditation practitioners, mindfulness teachers, coaches and even some psychologists. Plus, there are all the other amazing things that can help with stress available to you.
  • I like that the meditations here vary in length, teacher, and style (some are a bit more “woo” and others are very straight forward).
• Sanvello (formerly known as Pacifica)
  • The app for “stress and anxiety”. This app was originally recommended to me by my therapist. It offers meditations for free, as well as a subscription you can purchase. The meditations can have music/background noise or none, and vary in length.
  • It also let’s you track your feelings, mood, etc, so it offers a little bit of reflection as well as just meditations.
  • It also offers coaching and can be linked to your therapist/physician for tracking and info.
• Insight Timer
  • Want a free app? This one might be what you are looking for. Insight Timer offers thousands of free meditations, as well as a meditation timer. There are also programs or courses you can upgrade to, if you want to have even more from them.
  • The meditations are offered from meditation and spiritual “celebrities”, as well as regular, non-famous meditation teachers.

Honorable mentions:

• My Life app: An SLP recommended this app, as it offers a large variety and helps you target a meditation practice or exercise that would be best for how you are feeling.
• YouTube: There are so many free meditations on YouTube. One SLP specifically mentioned these meditations, from Jason Stephenson, and there are so many others you could search for by type, length, name, etc.
• SLP Toolbox and Meditation Audio: Of course, you can download free meditation audios, made for SLPs, from the SLP Toolbox and the meditation audio at JessiAndricks.com. And you can also get access to exclusive bonus meditations when you enroll in the SLP Stress Management Course (self-guided), which is now open for enrollment year-round. You can access these free meditations by subscribing below.

What are some of your favorite apps for meditating as an SLP? Leave them in the comments below or send me an email at jessi@jessiandricks.com. For more on the benefits of meditation, make sure to check out the following courses:

• SLP Stress Management Course: Self-Guided
• Work from Home for SLPs: Create a Less Stressful Work Day During Stressful Times (1 CMH)
  Rethinking Your Daily Routines to Reduce Stress on SpeechPathology.com (1 ASHA CEU Hour .10 units)
• 3 Common SLP Stressors and How to Manage Them on Xceptional ED (1.5 CMH Hours)
• Managing Common SLP Stressors before Burn Out Occurs on Northern Speech Services (2.5 ASHA CEU hours .025 units)
• 3 Biggest Stressors for SLPs and What to do About Them on SpeechPathology.com (1.5 ASHA CEU hours .15 units)
• SLP Stress Management: Using Mindfulness to Reduce and Manage Stress on SHAV Webinars (1 ASHA CEU)

Much Love,