Books, Audio, and Video Resources
If you're struggling with anxiety or stress, know that you're not alone: Plenty of people have been where you are, and many of them have created resources to help others cope. Check out some of our favorite videos, apps, podcasts, and music that can help you to feel more calm and focused.
Videos
- Eight Hours of Nature: Watch or just listen to the soothing sounds of nature to help you relax.
- Compassionate Body Scan: Try this 20-minute meditation from Mount Sinai Health System.
- Breathing Meditation: This five-minute video can guide you through a quick meditation break.
Apps
Plenty of apps exist to help people meditate for stress relief. Some of our favorites include:
There are also a few apps that seek to gamify stress relief and coping strategies, providing virtual rewards to help you develop resilience and form better habits:
Podcasts
Podcasts can be great sources of entertainment, but some also offer good advice to help you live a better life. In addition, some podcast hosts and guests struggle with anxiety and stress themselves, which can make listeners feel less alone.
- 10% Happier: When journalist Dan Harris had a panic attack on live network television, it sparked a journey that led him to take up meditation, write a book, create an app, and start a podcast. In his show, he interviews guests about different aspects of the balance between ambition and anxiety.
- The Anxiety Guy: The host of this podcast is a former professional tennis player who documents his struggles with panic disorder, generalized anxiety, and depression.
- The Calmer You: Chloe Brotheridge, an author and anxiety expert, provides coping strategies, encouragement, and words of wisdom in this podcast.
- Owning It: Author Caroline Foran delves into the details of what anxiety is, how it happens, and how we can deal with it.
- Selfie: Self-care is an important part of combating anxiety, but sometimes, it's easier said than done. In this show, two women look at how we can take better care of ourselves and why we sometimes don't.
Music
Listening to music can have a relaxing effect on just about anyone. Here are some of our favorite options.
- Relax Radio: Soothing classical music can help you calm down or fall asleep.
- Meditation Music: Find a good soundtrack for your meditation practice here; this live stream can help you block out the world and focus on your breathing.
- Ambient Sleeping Pill: Is anxiety keeping you awake at night? Give this stream a listen and it might just help you fall asleep.
- "Weightless": This song by Marconi Union was created in cooperation with sound therapists to promote relaxation, and a study by neuroscientists in the U.K. found that it was the most effective song to reduce stress. This link leads to a 10-hour version, plenty long enough to meditate, do yoga, or even fall asleep.