Orlando Anxiety Therapist: Tools for Anxiety

As an anxiety therapist in Orlando, I am a true advocate for regular mindfulness and meditation practices. It is so important in helping you maintain a relaxed, stress and anxiety-free life. Is that not how we all want to start and end our days? In a state of relaxation? Mindfulness and meditation practices help us calm our thoughts and change our ways of thinking BUT it takes practice and consistency - it doesn’t just happen overnight. This is why I recommend downloading a Mindfulness and Meditation app onto your phone or tablet. These are amazing resources to help you stay consistent with your mindfulness and meditation practices. Some provide you with guided meditations for mornings, evenings, or midday breaks and some provide just a bell and let you meditate on your own.

I can already hear you. “I hardly have enough time to get all my stuff done already! I don’t have the time for daily practice!” As a busy mom, wife, and therapist, I have said the same thing. Without my regular practice, I just don’t show up for the important things in my life in a pleasant way. I am usually edgy, irritable, and impatient. Truth be told, y’all, I’m bitchy, which feels yucky for me. My family certainly doesn’t like me like that either.

Here is how I incorporate my practice. Alarm goes off at 5 am. Yes, 5 am y’all. I get up, go downstairs, guzzle two huge glasses of water, have some coffee and then go to a quiet place in my house. Typically, I journal for about 30 minutes and then do my mindfulness and meditation practice for 10-20 minutes. This is my “ahhhh” time. Its’ sacred and without it, I am just not ready for that feisty toddler that wakes up at 7 am ready to take over the world.

Take a moment to consider a time that would be good for you, a time during the day when no one else is likely to need you. Without a regular time, it’s just way too easy for practice to get pushed to the back burner. For me, it’s first thing in the morning. For others, it is lunch time or in the evening after the kiddos have gone to bed. Whenever it is, put it in your schedule and make it non-negotiable.

To make it easier for you to start incorporating your mindfulness and meditation practices into your daily routines, I have put together a list of some popular Mindfulness and Meditation Apps, some paid subscriptions, some free. If you’re new at this, just download a free one and explore what you like. There are so many different types of practices: guided, soothing music, silent, spiritual, grounding, breathing…. the list goes on and on.

Mindfulness and Meditation Apps

Free

Insight Timer - Library of over 25,000 guided meditations absolutely free.

Meditation Studio  - Meditation sessions to keep you focused on a particular condition or goal such as eating, fertility, confidence, relationships, moms, kids, and teens.

The Breathing App - Inspired by resonance, the scientific name that describes what happens when our heart rate, heart rate variability, blood pressure, and brainwave function come into a coherent frequency.

Smiling Mind - Daily mindfulness and meditation exercises for adults, youth, in the classroom, and in the workplace. They also have a special Indigenous program and an expecting parents program. Their most popular programs include sleep, relationships, mindful eating, and performance.

Aura - Includes mindfulness meditations, life coaching, stories, music, sounds of nature, and a gratitude journal.

Sattva - Where ancient meets modern. Guided meditations, chants, mantra’s, as well as a meditation timer and tracker.

Breethe: Sleep and Meditation - Their philosophy is that the easiest way to meditate is to breathe in happiness.

Slumber - Sleep inducing stories, meditations, and soundscapes.

Paid

The Mindfulness App - Guided and silent timed meditation sessions from 3-30 minutes for all types if meditators.

Headspace - A guided meditation option for beginner meditators. They provide a free 10-day beginners course and have an extensive library to continue your practice.

Calm - Guided mediations for beginners, intermediate, and advanced meditators. Calm also has sleep stories to help you sleep and music to help you focus, relax, and sleep.

Buddhify - Meditation done differently. Meditations are in categories of what you are doing and how you are feeling with the idea that you don’t need to find time for meditation, it will come to you. They also have a library of sixty meditations for children!

Simply Being - Guided meditations or self meditate with the option to choose your length of practice, with or without background music, and music and nature sounds alone for self meditators.

10% Happier - Guided meditations and practical teachings. They focus on stress, happiness, and sleep.

Omvana - Guided meditations and ambient tracks. Advanced meditations to get you into deep states of mind to bite-sized sessions for busy people. Their goal is to get you better at life through meditation.

YogaGlo - Focus is to strengthen your mind, body, and heart through movement, meditation, and education.

Ensō - A meditation timer and bell that help you stay focused and gently guide your session.

Meditation and Relaxation Pro - Guided meditations that focus on sleeping better, concentration and focus, loving yourself and others, forgiveness, calm, and body scans.

More Guided Meditations for Anxiety

I also have some great guided meditations specifically for soothing anxiety in the moment. You can access them here.

Want to learn more about anxiety counseling in Orlando?

If you’d like to learn more about anxiety counseling in Orlando, visit my anxiety counseling page or my trauma counseling page.

Lauran is an anxiety and trauma therapist providing counseling in Orlando, FL. She also specializes in helping people heal old broken relationship patterns that keep them from finding, creating, and keeping healthy relationships with partners, friends, and family. Lauran uses a down to earth approach infused with cutting-edge therapies that go beyond traditional talking to help clients feel calm in their body and mind and find peace within themselves.