Kindness Now

Book excerpt: Cultivate an open heart and deepen your kindness and compassion response with this accessible, 28-day program of meditation and mindfulness exercises for a new generation of meditators. You've heard about all the ways meditation can help improve your overall health and wellbeing. You've probably even tried it once or twice and are thinking, "Now what?" Maintaining a meditation practice can seem like a daunting task, but Kindness Now will introduce you to the basics of mindfulness meditation and guide you into a deeper practice intended to promote personal growth and connection to your authentic self. Meditation teacher Amanda Gilbert introduces the traditional Buddhist heart practices known as the brahma-viharas-- Loving-Kindness, Compassion, Appreciative Joy, and Equanimity--as the foundation for a successful meditation practice. Gilbert will instruct you on how to bring these heart practices into your life through her 28-day guided meditation program aimed at helping you become a kinder, more compassionate, and radically loving person. With each daily practice, you will learn how to be more resilient in the face of common stressors, including anxiety, feelings of depression, "imposter" syndrome, and social media comparison effects, and ultimately make meditation an essential part of your life and self-care practice.