If you've been paying attention to me for any length of time, you've probably heard me rave about the Waking Up app. Just last week, I mentioned its life-changing impact on me, but today, I want to dive a bit deeper into how much it can do for you.

I like to call Waking Up the thinking person's meditation app because it goes above and beyond any other meditation tool out there with content on a broad range of topics featuring many different perspectives. It's also totally secular, a plus for those of us who avoid magical thinking.

✅ conversations on trauma-sensitive mindfulness

✅ the neuroscience of meditation

✅ loving kindness (metta) meditations

✅ meditations for children

✅ walking meditations

✅ mindful CBT lessons

and sooooo much more.

But what does a meditation app have to do with preparing for parenthood?!?

Well, I truly think the practice of mindfulness is the most effective coping skill any future (or current) parent can learn. I only wish I’d had this info way back when I was prepping for baby. I have no time machine, but if I can save you from suffering more than necessary, then I’m definitely going to try!

Motherhood is full of stress, worry about the future, and doubt about how you handled something in the past.

A tool that helps you stay in the present is priceless.

All we really have is the current moment, yet hanging out here for longer than a few seconds is naturally very hard for our brains.

(Prediction is the reason we're all here, after all.)

That's why we use the word practice. Mindfulness and meditation are not skills you ever fully master.

As you practice, you get better at accepting the fact that you are a work-in-progress. (I honestly can't think of a healthier goal for parents who are constantly feeling like they aren't good enough!)

When I first started using Waking Up when it launched in 2018, it was nowhere near as robust as it is today. I went through the introductory course, then advanced to daily 10-minute guided meditations, and now I'm meditating for 15 minutes most evenings, working my way up to 20 minutes.

But one of my favorite guided experiences is Kelly Boys's series on deep rest. Her voice soothes even the most anxious mind (🙋‍♀️) into a state of relaxation. Some nights my brain has a hard time quieting the tangle of thoughts around all the tasks I didn't get around to and worries about how much college is going to cost when my son graduates high school, so I just press play and let Kelly's voice gently lead me to dreamland.

​Here's a free 30-day trial for you to take the app for a spin. This is NOT an affiliate link. I just love sharing helpful resources, and as a paying subscriber, I get to gift free months to anyone who may benefit.

Check it out and let me know what you think! Oh, and if you love it but can't afford it once your trial ends, request a scholarship.

If you've been meaning to learn to meditate but don't know where to start, or you've tried meditating and been frustrated by it, Waking Up may be just the solution!