The StillMind Journal 109 posts

Writing on meditation, in plain language.

Techniques that actually work, and honest reflections from real practice. What we've tried, and what we've learned.

Latest

Headphones lying where they were pulled off on a bedside table, sound still spilling from the earcups as fine gold threads into a dark room where nobody is listening
Scripts

Why guided meditation voices annoy you, and what helps

The narrator puts you on edge and you assume it is you. Usually it is the recording, or what the script asks you to picture. How to tell which one is yours.

By Jamie Murphy
Read the article
  1. A man in work clothes sits on the edge of an unmade bed in late afternoon light, forearms on his thighs and hands loosely clasped, looking away toward the window with his phone face down on the covers beside him, while a band of warm light holds him in focus and the room softens into haze at either edge.

    Meditation for men: when 'stressed' is the only word

    Emotional fitness
  2. A small notebook open on the floor with two lines just written in it, a pen still lying across the page and a finished meditation timer beside it

    How to meditate: what every instruction is actually for

    Techniques
  3. A man reclined on a sofa with his eyes closed, warm light glowing through his chest and arms and stopping at his knees, leaving his lower legs and socked feet in cool shadow

    Therapy homework: the meditation half nobody helps with

    Journaling
  4. A person sitting still in low evening light with one hand resting open on their knee, a faint ring of light circling back on itself just above the hand and a second line of light travelling outward past it into the room

    Does meditation make pain, tinnitus or anxiety worse?

    Techniques
  5. A person holding their breath on the edge of a bed, shoulders raised and light compressed inside their chest, as a square of light closes on its fourth side around them

    Breathwork techniques: what the evidence actually shows

    Techniques
Featured

Worth starting with

Archive

All writing

  1. A painterly kitchen scene in which a woman sits on a wooden chair with her forearms on her thighs and her face calm and unreadable, while a translucent version of herself stands a half step behind and to her left, looking down at her, with a narrow column of light rising through the empty space between them and an untouched mug of tea on the table.
    Emotional fitness

    Meditation when you feel nothing: which numb is it?

    Numb isn't one state. Four kinds wear the same word, and the advice that helps one can deepen another. How to tell which flat you're in, and what actually fits.

    By
    meditation when you feel nothingemotional numbness meditationmeditation makes me feel more numb
  2. A person sitting cross legged with eyes closed next to a pale blank canvas where a beach scene would be, warm light falling across their resting hands and shoulders
    Techniques

    Meditation with aphantasia: when you can't visualize

    The guided session works fine until the voice says picture a beach. If mental images were never a thing for you, here is what to do with the instruction.

    By
    meditation with aphantasiaaphantasia guided meditationmeditation without visualization
  3. Man sitting cross-legged on a bedroom floor at night with his eyes closed, a phone lying face up on the floorboards in front of him sending ribbons of amber light upward that fray into scattered particles at his jaw before reaching his face
    AI meditation

    Meditating with ChatGPT: how to make the session land

    ChatGPT writes a good meditation, then hands it over and steps back. How to prompt for a session you can actually practise, and where the format runs out.

    By
    how to use chatgpt to meditatechatgpt guided meditationchatgpt meditation prompts
  4. A woman meditates cross-legged on a cushion while a vertical seam of light divides the room behind her, a speaking human figure on her left and a lattice of glowing filaments on her right, each sending identical warm threads of light to one of her ears
    Research

    Can you trust an AI voice? Our data found no difference

    People rate an AI-narrated meditation no differently from one they guide themselves. What that proves about trusting a synthetic voice, and what it does not.

    By
    can you trust an ai voicecan people detect ai voicesai voice vs human voice
  5. A seated person holds a small orb of light in cupped hands, its centre pale and its outer edges glowing warm, with fine strands of light drifting outward past their shoulders
    Techniques

    Loving-kindness meditation: a guide to the five circles

    Metta is five different practices sharing one set of phrases. What each circle actually trains, the technique that moves it, and what to do when one stalls.

    By
    loving kindness meditation stageshow to practice metta meditationloving kindness meditation phrases feel fake
  6. A woman sits awake on the edge of an unmade bed in the small hours, head lowered, a glass of water on the floorboards by her bare feet, while vertical threads of amber light crowd the room and thin away in the space her body occupies
    Research

    AI sycophancy: why it agrees about spirituality, not sleep

    Anthropic measured sycophancy across ten guidance domains. Spirituality hit 37.9%, health and wellness 2.9%. Here is the full table and what drives it.

    By
    ai sycophancy by domainwhich topics is ai most sycophantic aboutanthropic claude personal guidance report
  7. An open notebook on a wooden table in warm morning light, showing three faint handwritten lines crossed out (I am grateful for this day, I am grateful for my family, I am grateful for my health) and beneath them one glowing line that reads: Ran for the bus on Tuesday, wasn't out of breath
    Journaling

    Gratitude journaling that stays alive past week two

    Your gratitude list collapsed into the same three things by week two. That's a category problem, not a gratitude problem. Six techniques, and the evidence.

    By
    gratitude journalinggratitude journal repetitivegratitude journal same things every day
  8. A woman sits cross-legged on a bedroom floor in low morning light at the end of a short meditation, with a translucent version of herself behind her holding a longer, more upright formal posture
    Techniques

    How long should you meditate? What the research shows

    Research on meditation session length points to frequency and follow through as much as minutes. Here is what the evidence shows, and where it stays uncertain.

    By
    how long should I meditatedoes meditation length mattermeditation session length
  9. Woman seated cross-legged on a floor cushion in a warm sunlit room, a restless field of golden bubbles crowding the air behind her and a single unbroken thread of light descending to rest at her chest
    AI meditation

    Is your AI meditation app talking to you, or guiding you?

    Most "AI meditation" apps mean chatting with a bot. A real guided session works differently: rooted in technique, shaped by your context, narrated for you.

    By
    AI guided meditationpersonalized meditation appmeditation personalization
  10. A person sitting on a couch in soft daylight, eyes closed with a hand resting on their chest, a warm glow at the heart easing into calm sage-green ripples
    Emotional fitness

    How to lower cortisol naturally (a nervous system approach)

    Cortisol isn't a toxin to detox with mocktails or supplements. It's a signal from your nervous system. Here's what genuinely lowers it, backed by research.

    By
    how to lower cortisollower cortisol naturallycortisol and stress
  11. A person lying still in bed at night in soft lamplight, eyes closed, settling into calm awareness before sleep
    Techniques

    Yoga Nidra for sleep: rest when your mind won't stop

    Yoga Nidra before bed lowers cortisol and settles your nervous system, so the day stops following you into sleep. What it is, why it works, and how to use it.

    By
    yoga nidra for sleepyoga nidra before bedyoga nidra for insomnia
  12. A painterly portrait of one person rendered twice at a soft vertical seam, on the left an upright tense sitting figure with eyes closed tightly and shoulders hunched, on the right the same person with shoulders dropped, head tilted softly, hands resting open, with a gentle band of warm amber light glowing through the seam between the two postures.
    Emotional fitness

    When meditation makes things harder: a kinder path forward

    Sometimes meditation makes things harder, not easier. Here's what that feeling means, why it's often part of the path, and the kinder way through it.

    By
    when meditation makes things hardermeditation doesn't work for mewhy I can't meditate
  13. A composite of five role-holders mid-practice in their own real spaces, each with a soft inner glow showing their nervous system reset
    Emotional fitness

    Meditation for the life you actually have

    Most meditation assumes quiet mornings and no one to hold. This pillar is for parents, caregivers, therapists, students, leaders, and the multi-role reader.

    By
    role aware meditation for busy livesmeditation for the life you actually havemeditation for people who hold others
  14. Painterly portrait of a man with closed eyes in warm window light, a faint translucent younger version of himself behind him, the two linked by a thin thread of warm light meeting at his chest
    Emotional fitness

    Meditation for shame that lingers (and the kind that lifts)

    Some shame fades with practice. The shame you've earned may not, and that's not failure. An honest look at meditation for shame: living with what stays.

    By
    meditation for shameshame vs guilthow to deal with shame
The app

Reading into practice.

StillMind puts meditation timer, AI-guided sessions, and voice journaling in one private app — everything we write about here, put to use.

Download for iPhone

Explore: AI-guided meditation · Meditation timer · Meditation journal · Meditation guides