In the wake of the 2020 racial uprisings, with our country facing unprecedented times due to COVID and constant uncertainty, mindfulness coach Jasmine Lamb began searching for her place amidst the chaos.
“I was feeling called to do something while focusing on my healing. It was this tricky balance. People were hitting the streets, protesting and I’m more of an introverted empath so it felt overwhelming,” she shares. “I was thinking, ‘How can I do something in a way that feels authentic to who I am?’”
What she discovered were the inward tools to fight against oppression through the radical act of healing and mindfulness. She wanted to share them with others.
“During the height of the protests in 2020, so many folks were talking about Black lives but not enough about Black healing,” she explains. “Of course, Black lives matter but so does our well-being. I want to live in a world where my community is not only surviving but thriving. I think we are getting there, but we still have a ways to go.”
Lamb started her online platform, Black Healing Matters, as a means to hold space for Black people who were “expected to be on the front lines, while also being the people who are oppressed.” Soon after, she became a certified mindfulness meditation instructor and life coach. She began to explore ways that she could apply her creative talents to produce a tool that would help herself and others through dark times.
What she came up with was a meditation album called Mindfulness in Challenging Times, a fully immersive, four-part album and soul-infused experience rooted in the practice of mindfulness meditation. It was made in collaboration with R&B singer and producer Geminelle.
“I think that what’s powerful about the album is that we’re always going to experience challenging times. What my hope is, is that what will come of this album is a reminder that there are tools that we can use to work with our minds and feel safer when we’re out in the world,” she says.
While other audio meditations aim to provide the listener with a reprieve from life’s troubles and stressors, Lamb says that her album “is not about escaping.”
“It’s about how you can bring this practice into your everyday life. It’s how you can show up, clear of mind, be more present, and show more compassion to yourself and others,” she says. “It’s important that we continue to prioritize our mental health and our mind, body, and spirit. As we’re doing that, we need tools to equip us as we go out into the real world.”
The album is right on time as we are, once again, collectively dealing with stressful times: navigating life and new variants “post” pandemic, shifts in women’s reproductive health legislation, inflation, shortages, and the like.
Thankfully, one can now find relief in knowing that even in difficult moments and challenging times, there’s a new tool within reach that will provide a safe space for Black folks to explore our thoughts, stay grounded, reconnect with our inner voice, and find healing from within.
Mindfulness in Challenging Times, the album is now available on all streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.