This thread is a place to introduce yourself to the community. Whether you’re brand new to meditation or have been practicing for years, we’d love to hear from you. You might share:
Where you’re joining from
What brought you to meditation or mental training
A book, practice, or insight that’s resonated with you lately
Feel free to keep it short or go deep, whatever feels right. Once you’ve introduced yourself, don’t hesitate to join in other discussions. We’re looking forward to learning from each other and growing together.
Arthur Van Siclen here, from the Teton Valley, Idaho.
What brought me to meditation: I started yoga and meditation because I thought it would make me a better rock climber… as it turns out I was just beginning to step into a big, big world.
Recent insight: Hafiz’s sufi poetry is a delight, making it almost easy to connect with wisdom.
Hi everyone! I’m Ashley, part of the FitMind team and someone who’s always been fascinated by the mind- psychology, neuroscience, meditation, altered states, consciousness, all of it.
I dabbled in meditation for years before it really clicked. It wasn’t until I heard it explained through Liam’s grounded, neuroscience-based approach in the FitMind app that things started to make sense. Once I understood the why behind the practice, something shifted, and it’s been an ongoing journey of exploring the mind in a whole new way.
Lately, I’ve been leaning more into self-compassion as part of my mental fitness toolbox. There was a recent FitMind podcast with Kristin Neff where she led a short practice. I didn’t think I particularly needed self-compassion, but I followed along and it genuinely surprised me how nice if felt. It’s something I plan to bring into moments when I catch myself being self-critical or stressed out.
Excited to be here and to learn from all of you as we share our experiences and insights.
Hi I’m Miša from Slovenia. I came across meditation around 2015-2017 when I read a book called The Urban monk. I started with some of the techniques mentioned inside but after going to studies and love also came around I stopped doing it. I started again multiple times but always found a reason to stop. During my internship my mentor talked to patients about the FitMind app and I looked it up and found it really interesting. Now I am on the path to make my meditation a staple in my life to ground, pause, recharge.
Lately I am inspired a lot by a book by a Slovenian Tao woman (Ko duša trpi, telo nosi posledice, the English title would be when the soul suffers, the body carries the consequences). It talkes about traditional Chinese medicine, about balance, organs, the 5 elements and a lot of other things that make me be more mindful of my body and the present moment.
Hi everyone, Tom here. I’m 55 and working my way back from a pretty rough patch of burnout. I’ve spent the past year simplifying my life, getting serious about meditation, and trying to rebuild my energy in a more sustainable way.
I’m not a big talker, but I’ve learned a few things the hard way and I’m happy to share anything that might help someone else avoid a longer detour. Most of my interest is in practical meditation strategies, stress recovery, and the everyday habits that keep a mind steady.
Looking forward to being part of this community and learning from all of you.
Hi everyone, I’m Mira. I’m a therapist and I joined this space because I’m always looking for grounded, science-based conversations about the mind. I’m here as a regular community member, not in any professional capacity, but the intersection of neuroscience, meditation, and emotional health is something I care deeply about.
I tend to think in terms of patterns and nervous-system dynamics, so you’ll mostly see me sharing research, helpful resources, and reflections on practice. My hope is to contribute in a supportive way while also learning from what others are exploring.
Glad to be here and looking forward to the discussions.
hi everyone, I’m sarah and I’m joining from boston. I’ve been using the fitmind app for a few months now, mostly trying to build a steadier daily rhythm. I came to meditation after a pretty stressful stretch at work where my mind felt like it was running its own show.
one thing that’s been sticking with me lately is the idea that attention is trainable in the same way the body is. something about that clicked. it made the whole practice feel less mysterious and more like a skill I can show up for, even on the tough days.
looking forward to being part of this space and hearing how others are approaching their practice!
Hi everyone, I’m Laurence. I’m relatively new to formal meditation, though I’ve been circling these ideas for a while through reading and podcasts. What brought me here was the idea of attention as something trainable rather than fixed. I’m grateful to have found the FitMind app, which teaches meditation in a way that I can understand on a more practical level.
It’s been great reading everyone’s intros. I’m Josh, from the UK and living in Melbourne Australia. I am part of the FitMind team, an old friend of Liam’s—we met on a retreat quite a few years ago and have stayed in touch religiously ever since. We’ve spent countless hours geeking out over the science of meditation and the nuances of practice, so it’s wonderful to see this community come to life.
My own background is originally in Zen Buddhism, but lately, I’ve been pivoting more toward, release techniques, Qigong and Taoism. I’m really interested in that intersection where grounded science meets these ancient traditions— into the practical mechanics of how this heals us.
Aside from meditation, I am an avid freediver and hiker. Looking forward to learning from all of you!
Hi I’m Natalie (and Nala who is always nearby!) I’m in Melbourne Australia. Thankyou for this invite. I have worked in health science and social science all my career - getting to retirement age now! So the mind has always been a focus and neuroscience is a strong interest. I live a quiet life outside work - these days I lecture in mental health and counselling whilst building balance and strength to enjoy my next life chapter. When I found FitMind a few years ago now, it just made sense - a meditator since my teens I found FitMind to be a most effective approach for strengthening my mind and to increase life and health values which transferred to every day life enhancing actions. After about a year of practice I noticed subtle changes of increased vitality occur and still continue. I also find the FitMind resources align with my interest and practice.
Thanks for the invite. I’m Ruslan. I’m originally from Ukraine and currently based in the Netherlands.
I’ve been meditating with FitMind for a while now and it’s become an important part of my routine.
I tend to daydream a lot, sometimes struggle with staying fully present. That’s something I’m actively working on, and meditation has been one of the main tools helping me make progress.
first, i’d like to say i’d like to meet Liam and shake his hand in gratitude for changing my life. I had tried meditation so many times before and never stuck with it. sometthing about fitmind, and i guess his voice specfically.. the app has become a core part of my life. I’ve learned to find my center, and i belive it has greatly changed/improved/removed my ADHD symptoms as an adult. It’s so hard to explain to people who don’t meditate how powerful it can be.. but most dont’ want to wade through the deep river to get to the other side.. we all tend to turn around before we’re even mid-way. I can honestly say that i spend most of my daily interactions “observing myself” as i move through the day, i’m no longer the deer in the headlights, i AM the headlights illuminating the darkness for my brain.
I started to do meditation since 12 consecutive days ago after trying a sesion of ‘ rebirth ‘ breathing for 40min for the first time with a friend and it blowed my mind!! I felt the same as when I took a master plant Wachuma and it brought me a lot of questions to myself regarding the nervous system. I was always refused to the word meditation so I prefer to call it breathing and that really changes my perception of it.
Now after 12 days of this, it feels crazy how can I change the state of my mind in a few minutes. I recently discovered that I am a HSP so maybe that also helps.
I’m trying other different techniques at home to see the differences and loving it so much. More than the results I’m enjoying the discoveries
Hi, I am Lorenzo from Rome, living in New York. I ve always struggled with negative inner chatter, low self esteem and a few years ago I was introduced to Fitmind by a friend. What I found fascinating is that the simple act of “observing” my thoughts taught me a little bit about myself, and also taught me not to always put myself at the centre of everything. I want to learn more about the science behind it, and I look forward to deep dive into these discussions!
Hello, I’m Julius Cavira, hollering from Pawtucket, Rhode Island. I’m a memoir writer, visual artist, veteran, and volunteer —anything else I suck at. I struggle with mental health issues and mindfulness is my forever lesson. Meditation is my constant climb. I rather find peace here, than eternal peace elsewhere. Spending time with a new love interest. Recently divorced from a severely toxic marriage which were hidden behind stellar academic institutions and financial wealth. In their fall from grace, I quickly reminded them that they are very much from my corner of the world just different locations. Reminded them that they’re a true underdog —a diamond of the rough, as I am. And we face trauma and got broken by these people and events. But as I said, we chose to live than eternal peace. Mindfulness would help my journey. And possibly theirs as well if they so choose to.
Hi FitMind Club! I’m Sandra writing from Charlottesville in Virginia. I started meditating some years ago with TM or transcendental meditation. In searching for podcasts about meditation, I found FitMind podcast and started listening and learning from great people talking about neuroscience and meditation, that was when Liam was hosting back in the day . This podcast opened a new world of knowledge about the mind to me. In the meantime, I continued my practice with TM until decided to give Liam’s trainings a chance. During the difficult times of the pandemic I started practicing more often and here I am still part of it. In my experience, this practice has infused in me deep, good changes. I can go on and on describing those changes, but in summary I just feel better than before becoming a meditator. Practices that I like and repeat often are good vibes and the deep path. I also find combat training amazing, btw!
Hi Sandra, and welcome! I hope you don’t mind— I just tagged you in a thread where a person was asking about folks experience with TM. I thought you might be able to share a bit about you experience as she prepares to take a TM course.
PS. I, too, am loving Combat Training. I can’t tell you how many times per day I find myself asking “Can I let this go?” and “When?” I love that it gives you the option to be like, “No, I can’t let this go right now!” which always makes me soften to whatever I was grasping on to.
I’m Miša from Slovenia. 
I came across meditation around 2015-2017 when I read a book called The Urban monk. I started with some of the techniques mentioned inside but after going to studies and love also came around I stopped doing it. I started again multiple times but always found a reason to stop. During my internship my mentor talked to patients about the FitMind app and I looked it up and found it really interesting. Now I am on the path to make my meditation a staple in my life to ground, pause, recharge.
.
. This podcast opened a new world of knowledge about the mind to me. In the meantime, I continued my practice with TM until decided to give Liam’s trainings a chance. During the difficult times of the pandemic I started practicing more often and here I am still part of it. In my experience, this practice has infused in me deep, good changes. I can go on and on describing those changes, but in summary I just feel better than before becoming a meditator. Practices that I like and repeat often are good vibes and the deep path. I also find combat training amazing, btw!