Gisele Bündchen Shares Her Go-To Practice For Anxiety Relief With Others

A lot has changed in the past year. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, people around the world have suffered sudden loss and experienced an increase in anxiety, depression, and trauma. Given this drastic rise in mental illness, it's more important than ever to find healthy ways to cope. For philanthropist, supermodel, and mbg Collective member Gisele Bündchen, meditation is one way to do that. 

"Meditation plays an incredibly important role in my life and has ever since I was in my early 20s and experiencing a lot of anxiety," she tells mbg. "I credit meditation with helping transform one of the biggest challenges I've ever faced into one of the biggest gifts." And now, she's sharing that gift with others. 

For the past four years, Bündchen has used the meditation app Insight Timer to inspire and guide her practices. "If you're new to practicing, sometimes it's easier to begin with a guided meditation," she explains. "To help people get started on their paths, I created my first free guided meditation on the Insight Timer app called Hope in Times of Uncertainty." 

Her first 14-minute meditation—available in both English and Portuguese—is meant to reignite joy and courage in the midst of fearful times. The short guide incorporates breathwork, gratitude, and an overwhelming sense of peace (trust me, I tried it). 

Every month for the next 11 months, Bündchen will upload a new guided meditation to the platform. While each of these meditations can provide temporary relief from stressful or anxious feelings, Bündchen's ultimate goal is to equip users with the same mindfulness tools she's learned from the practice.

"Meditation is the gift I give myself every day, and I will always be grateful for its powerful, positive influence," she says. "Any time I have an important decision to make, I always know to go inward to find the right answer." 

In addition to the meditation uploads, Bündchen is honoring Anxiety and Depression Awareness Month (October) with two live sessions via the app. The first takes place on October 10 in English and the second on October 19 in Portuguese. 

During these sessions, the model, mom, and new meditation teacher will discuss her own mental health journey and answer pre-submitted questions from users. The uniquely intimate livestreams will encourage connection during isolating times, as well as accountability to the practice. Staying motivated in overwhelming times can be tough, but prioritizing mental health is essential.

"When I learned to calm my mind, and reflect, and find clarity, I started to find all the answers I needed," Bündchen says. "Since then, I've been a passionate student of all the ways meditation, yoga, conscious breathing, and healing foods can help support my overall health."