How to Handle Discomfort, Uncertainty, and Overwhelm | Meditation with Kaira Jewel Lingo

All this month, we're sharing custom guided meditations from our teacher of the month, Kaira Jewel Lingo, exclusively available at DanHarris.com http://danharris.com/. Like any good drug dealer, the first taste is free – so today, we're giving you a sample of what you can expect for the rest of the month. This meditation is about learning to sit with discomfort. Related Episodes: Are You Overcomplicating Your Life? Meet August's Teacher of the Month, Kaira Jewel Lingo https://www.danharris.com/p/are-you-overcomplicating-your-life?r=4o5o&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false Get ready for another Meditation Party at Omega Institute! This in-person workshop brings together Dan with his friends and meditation teachers, Sebene Selassie, Jeff Warren, and for the first time, Ofosu Jones-Quartey. The event runs October 24th-26th. Sign up and learn more at eomega.org/workshops/meditation-party-2025 http://eomega.org/workshops/meditation-party-2025. Join Dan's online community here http://www.danharris.com/ Follow Dan on social: Instagram https://bit.ly/3tGigG5, TikTok https://bit.ly/3FOA84J Subscribe to our YouTube Channel https://bit.ly/3FybRzD To advertise on the show, contact [email protected] or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/10HappierwithDanHarris

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:04Dan Harris?

  This is the 10% Happier Podcast. I'm Dan Harris.

• 0:19Dan Harris?

  Happy Sunday, everybody. Hope you're having a good weekend. We're bringing you a guided meditation today from Kaira Jewel-Lingo, who's an amazing meditation teacher. Some context here, we're now creating guided meditations to go along with all of our Monday, Wednesday episodes. The idea is that we want to help you remember all the great stuff that you learn in these amazing conversations that we post, and meditation is a great way to sort of pound the wisdom into your neurons. These meditations are only available for paying subscribers over on danharris.com, but today, we're giving you one for free. It's the classic drug dealer strategy, you know, give a dose for free until we get you hooked, but we're, I think, a lot more helpful than your average drug dealer. Before we dive in, just a quick reminder

• 1:04Dan Harris?

  that I'll be doing a live meditation retreat up at the Omega Institute, north of New York City, at the end of October. It runs from October 24th to 26th. This is a much more relaxed and enjoyable version. It's not a Zen death march or anything like that. We call it meditation party. My friend, Seven A. Selassie, and Jeff Warren will be there also this year for the first time, another friend, Afosu Jones-Cortez. It's gonna be great. You can sign up at eomega.org, or I will put a link in the show notes. We'll get started with a guided meditation from Kyra Jewell-Lingo, right after this.

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• 2:40Speaker 05

  Most of us are conditioned to either push discomfort away or distract ourselves from it. Uncertainty especially can feel overwhelming or even threatening. But there's another way. Instead of resisting or reacting, we can learn to sit with what's difficult and allow it to simply be. With mindfulness, we can bring tenderness and curiosity to our discomfort, gently welcoming it rather than fighting it. Like a kind parent soothing a distressed child, mindfulness helps us stay present and connected, even when things

• 3:24Speaker 05

  feel unclear or unsettled. Let's explore this together.

• 3:39Speaker 05

  Find a comfortable position, allowing the body to relax and open.

• 3:49Speaker 05

  Feel the solidity and support of the earth beneath you, and let yourself rest into that grounding.

• 4:01Speaker 05

  Trust the earth to hold you.

• 4:09Speaker 05

  Gently connect with your breath.

• 4:17Speaker 05

  Let it be just as it is, flowing in, flowing out, steady, reliable, effortless.

• 4:34Speaker 05

  No need to change or manage it. Simply follow it.

• 4:51Speaker 05

  Let your attention move through the body, noticing and releasing any areas of tension: your jaw, shoulders, belly, hands.

• 5:04Speaker 05

  At the same time, notice any areas that feel spacious or simply neutral.

• 5:11Speaker 05

  Let those sensations support you.

• 5:35Speaker 05

  Before we touch into what is difficult, it can be helpful to ground ourselves in a sense of connection.

• 5:44Speaker 05

  Bring to mind a place, person, or being, real or imagined, that helps you feel safe, supported, or at ease.

• 6:00Speaker 05

  Let yourself feel what it's like to be in the presence of this refuge.

• 6:10Speaker 05

  Let these feelings infuse your body, helping you build inner resources.

• 6:33Speaker 05

  Ahora, te invito a que te ocurra una situación o momento que te haya sentido incómodo o incómodo recientemente. No algo de agitado o traumático, sino algo que te quema o te desacelera. Puede ser una decisión que no estás segura de, una conversación que no fue como esperabas, o un sentimiento de no saber qué va a pasar.

• 7:05Speaker 05

  Deja que el desconforto o la incertidumbre se hagan lentamente en el foco.

• 7:17Speaker 05

  Haz que te sientas como se presenta en tu cuerpo, tal vez como tensión, inquietud, pesadumbre, o un sentimiento de agitación o costumbre.

• 7:33Speaker 05

  No estás tratando de arreglarlo, solo estás notando, permitiendo.

• 7:43Speaker 05

  Si en algún momento esto se vuelve demasiado intenso, déjate de parar. Abre tus ojos, mira alrededor y conecta con tu entorno. Estira o cambia tu postura.

• 7:56Speaker 05

  Siempre puedes volver a esta práctica cuando te sientas lista.

• 8:12Speaker 05

  Con cada respiración, invita a ti mismo a quedarte cerca de este sentimiento de desconforto.

• 8:19Speaker 05

  Llama a él lentamente: la incertidumbre está aquí, el desconforto está aquí. Así como saludar a un viejo amigo.

• 8:31Speaker 05

  Nota lo que pasa mientras lo reconoce sin necesidad de cambiarlo.

• 8:40Speaker 05

  Deja que la respiración te sostenga mientras te sientas con lo difícil de sentarse.

• 9:01Speaker 05

  While part of you may want to run away from the pain, mindfulness can help you give it space.

• 9:22Speaker 05

  Feel yourself opening to accept and befriend this discomfort to whatever extent you are able.

• 9:30Speaker 05

  You might whisper inwardly, "It's okay not to know. It's okay to feel unsettled."

• 9:43Speaker 05

  Explore what it's like to welcome this discomfort as part of your human experience.

• 9:57Speaker 05

  Not a mistake, not a problem to solve, but something to be with.

• 10:24Speaker 05

  Now notice if there's any judgment or resistance around what you're feeling. Can you soften toward that too? Offer it some kindness? Like cradling a part of yourself that's just trying to make sense of the unknown?

• 10:47Speaker 05

  If it helps, you can even place a hand over your heart or belly, grounding your awareness through touch. You could say inwardly, "My dear discomfort, I see you. It's okay for you to be here. I'm here with you. I will do my best to take care of you."

• 11:16Speaker 05

  Let yourself express whatever arises for this part of yourself that may often get pushed away.

• 11:24Speaker 05

  Now you can offer it the care it needs.

• 11:40Speaker 05

  Let yourself rest in this space of not knowing, without needing to resolve anything.

• 11:49Speaker 05

  There's a deep strength in staying with the question, in allowing the answer to ripen in its own time.

• 12:02Speaker 05

  You might ask gently, "What might this discomfort be trying to show me? Is there something I'm learning or being called to understand more deeply?"

• 12:17Speaker 05

  And then simply listen.

• 12:27Speaker 05

  There's no need to rush to a conclusion.

• 12:35Speaker 05

  Trust that even silence is part of the response.

• 12:55Speaker 05

  Let the breath continue to hold you.

• 13:00Speaker 05

  Let yourself be exactly where you are. No pushing, no pulling. Just being with what is.

• 13:27Speaker 05

  Discomfort and uncertainty are not enemies. They are teachers. When we turn toward them with mindfulness and compassion, they can reveal insights we might otherwise miss. In your daily life, when discomfort arises or uncertainty feels overwhelming, see if you can simply pause and recognize it. This is discomfort. This is not knowing. Feel where it lives in your body. Greet it with presence.

• 14:04Speaker 05

  This gentle awareness gives you space to respond instead of react. You can slowly begin to bring movement into your body now. Wiggle your fingers or toes. Maybe take a deep breath or shift your posture. If your eyes are closed, gently open them. You've done something courageous today, choosing to stay present with what's uncomfortable and unclear.

• 14:48Speaker 05

  This is how wisdom grows. Thank you for your practice.

• 14:56Dan Harris?

  Thank you, Kaira Jewel-Lingo. If you want to get more of these guided meditations that come along with all of our episodes, you can head on over to danharris.com and sign up. Speaking of signing up, don't forget to check out eomega.org where you can sign up for the live meditation party I'll be doing with Sebene Selassie and Jeff Warren and Afosa Jones Porte at the end of October. I'll put a link to that in the show notes. Finally, I want to thank everybody who worked so hard to make this show. Our producers are Tara Anderson, Caroline Keenan, and Eleanor Vasili. Our recording and engineering is handled by the great folks over at Pod People. Lauren Smith is our production manager. Marissa Schneiderman is our senior producer. DJ Cashmere is our executive producer. And Nick Thorburn of the band Islands, Rodeo Theme.