Yin meditation for stillness and self-care
“When our days feel overly busy or stressful it can be nice to slow down and find moments of stillness,” writes Alison M. Whitehead, MPH, C-IAYT, in a blog post for Veterans Affairs. “There are many ways to do that throughout the day, even if just for a minute or two.”
Whitehead is the program lead for the Integrative Health Coordinating Center in the VHA Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation. In the post, she offers tips for finding stillness in daily life. These include taking a mindful walk in nature, reading a relaxing book, and taking gentle yoga or tai chi classes.
She also proposes meditation—specifically, Yin meditation.
“Yin meditation encourages being open to what might unfold during the experience of the practice,” Whitehead explains. “A yin meditation helps us to be curious, open, and gentle towards our inner experience and can support self-compassion. Yin meditation can help us to slow down and cultivate a sort of fluid stillness, like a still pool of water.”
Ready to try? Settle into a comfortable posture and join Juli Olson, DC, DACM, VA program lead for Acupuncture, in a short guided Yin meditation.
