burnt out? How to rebuild resilience with loving kindness

This is a variation of metta or loving kindness practice to bring more resilience into your life. Resilience is thought of as our “bouncbackability”, the energy or resources we have within ourselves to respond to the slings and arrows of life with renewed vigour.

The problem is, when we’re burnt out we often just plough on, running on fumes until a crisis or something critical happens. Before that occurs, we need to metaphorically put more fuel in our tanks. Here is a practice that can help:

• Find a relaxed and stable position, either seated or lying down, and just start to being your attention to your breath, to your breathing; perhaps breathe in to the count of 4, then exhale to the count of 4, slowly grounding into the rhythm of your breathing body
• observe the next few breaths. Let go of any sense of striving or effort to feel anything different. Don’t force yourself to feel or be relaxed, just bring your attention to your bodily sensations and the sounds around you, bringing you back into the present
• as you continue to sit (or if you are lying down) say to yourself

May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I feel safe.
May I live my life with ease.

See if you can get a felt sense of these words as you softly repeat them

• After several minutes, imagine a friend or somebody for whom you have almost entirely positive feelings. This person also just wants to be happy. (If no one comes to mind, that’s okay, just continue with the practice for yourself.)
• Finally extend the same wishes to the world. Send this compassionate wish for well-being and kindness to anyone you imagine, anywhere; imagine your loving kindness rippling outwards, reaching and touching the world.

As you begin to embody this practice more and more, you can use it to reduce everyday stress and increase your resilience.