Hi, happy Monday and welcome to Radio Headspace.

It's Dora here.

So there's much discourse in the wellness world around self-care and its importance.

For the record, I personally love having moments of solitude to gather my thoughts, journal,

heck, just have a cozy night in and recharge.

But for some time now, I've also wanted to address the importance of being with others

in times of need.

Because I think, well, I know, it's necessary to highlight the importance of healing in community.

Like it or not, we live in relation to others.

And the roots of our mindfulness practice are developed by being around others, putting

the qualities of calm, clarity and balance to practice when we're out in the world.

Now, in the West, we place a lot of emphasis on individuality, healing and isolation,

getting it on our own.

And this can make us forget that we don't just meditate for our own sake.

In fact, oftentimes, it's easier to practice when we can think of the benefit it will have

on others.

Our meditation practice has a ripple effect.

It touches the lives of those we interact with.

We don't practice compassion just to hoard it and keep it to ourselves.

It's in the understanding of our own pain that we can be aware and understand the pain

of others.

This shows us how we're all interconnected.

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