A Daily Meditation 3-Part Practice

2 min Article Meditation & Mindfulness

Our thoughts and feelings aren’t permanent, but learning this can take time.

Text by Abigail Somma

Leadership trainer, mindfulness facilitator, and mother of twins Abigail Somma started practicing meditation to live more mindfully. Here, she talks about untangling her thoughts, developing a positive outlook on her life, and her three-part daily meditation practice.

Q: How were you introduced to meditation?

A: I remember struggling with depression and anxiety in my late 20s; sometimes, it was tough to get through a workday. This set me on a far-reaching journey to figure out if I could feel whole and fulfilled. I found a meditation class in New York City, and something clicked right away. I knew it was what I was looking for — a place where I could begin to untangle my thoughts and learn to accept my difficult emotions.

Q: What’s your top tip for a beginning meditator?

A: Many people feel frustrated by the sheer barrage of unwanted thoughts they have at the beginning, so there’s a tendency to want to give up. My suggestion for a beginner is to be gentle with yourself and keep showing up; that’s a hump you can get over.

Q: What does your daily meditation practice look like?

A: I have a three-part practice at the moment. Ideally, I do all three, but if not, I almost always do two: a 10- to 30-minute seated exercise in the morning, a 45-minute walking meditation, and a gratitude practice at night.

Q: What are the greatest benefits you’ve received from meditating?

A: A healthier relationship with my thoughts and feelings and the ability to observe them with the knowledge of their impermanence. Additionally, a much more positive outlook on life.

Q: What are your favorite topics to focus on in your classes?

A:There are so many! Impermanence, affirmations, gratitude, self-compassion, empathy, and more.

Try this class, Drop Negativity on the Spot, by meditation teacher Almeiri Santos, to learn how you can shift negative patterns of thinking.

Header photo: Dima Viunnyk/E+/Getty Images

About the Teacher

Abigail Somma

When Abigail Somma’s twins were one and a half, she needed a break from her daily duties — so she decided to take a meditation teacher training once a week. When her kids were 3, she took another class. By that point, she figured it was time to start teaching, and a local business owner asked her to teach about mindfulness in parenting. She worried she was the wrong person for the job — she struggled with the sleep deprivation and endless demands of being a parent. “You’re exactly the person who should be teaching this class,” her sister told her. “You didn’t enjoy it, but you found the beauty in it anyway.” Abigail’s path to meditation began with a desire to live more meaningfully. “Of all the things I’ve tried, and I’ve tried many, it was meditation that helped me to understand that while our brains may have been wired a certain way, the power to rewire them — toward more fulfillment, resilience, and purpose — is in our hands,” she says. She currently teaches a number of classes related to mindfulness and formerly worked as a speechwriter for United Nations figureheads, celebrities, and business personalities. She has worked for a range of other organizations, including the World Bank, UNICEF, think tanks, and NGOs.

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