The Gift Of Presence (Archive - Episode 6)

The Gift Of Presence (Archive - Episode 6)

Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This conversation from Relational Recovery leans into one simple idea: the gift of being fully present, with yourself, with God, and with other people. Host Wes Thompson, joined by co-host Austin Hill, walks through very practical tools for calming an overwhelmed mind and body.

You’ll hear about sensory walks, gentle yoga, and using simple apps like Calm or Spotify for guided meditations, all framed as everyday ways to slow down instead of spiralling into crisis. Wes then lays out a straightforward breathing practice: set a timer for a few minutes, breathe deeply in through the nose and out through the mouth, and gently focus on the breath.

For those who connect with Christian faith, Austin shares his “breath prayer” using the fruits of the Spirit: “I receive God’s love, I feel God’s love, and I give God’s love,” repeated slowly, fruit by fruit, as a way to interrupt the mental loop of “I’m a piece of garbage, I’ll never get it right.” They also talk about meditative scripture reading, picking a short story from the gospels and reading it three times, slowly, over several days.

The aim isn’t to gather information, but to imagine being in the story so it starts to shape how you face pain and chaos. Finally, they land on simple, honest writing: sitting quietly for ten minutes and letting whatever needs to surface flow onto the page.

Throughout, there’s a strong reminder that mindset matters: these practices “can be as lame or as life-giving as you choose for it to be.” As Wes sums up, “The best gift we can give others is our transformed and transforming presence.” If you’re longing to be calmer, more grounded, and more available to those you love, which of these simple steps could you try today?