14 sources: 8 meta-analyses, 1 narrative review, 2 randomised controlled trials, 2 systematic reviews, 1 with design not recorded
Spiritual Wellness · 10–15 min · 3-5 times per week
Loving-Kindness Practice
A secular guided meditation directing caring intentions toward yourself and others. No religious framing is required; the practice builds compassion and reduces harsh self-criticism. If self-directed warmth feels inaccessible or surfaces significant distress, consider working with a mental-health professional.
How often: 1–4 sessions/week · trial frequency reported by the sources of the review summary this routine was written from (1 of 15 sources named by SR23.5 state one) · planning default: 3-5 times per week
When: any time · the sources state no time of day; the planner's slot is a default
The time slot is a planning choice: a swap can keep it.
The evidence applies to the practice, not to these particular steps — they are one way to carry it out.
- 1Connection to Something Larger (Secular Framing)10 min read (once)Frames connection to something larger in inclusive, secular terms.Scaffold: app-designed stepApp-designed prescriptionno finding maps to this routine's block, so nothing states these numbers.
No option on this bench from any review
No completed Round-2 review has named a practice for that an extraction row placed in it. That is a gap in the knowledge base, not in this step: the step’s own exercise stands, and there is nothing yet to swap it for.
- 2Loving-Kindness and Compassion Meditation10-15 min guided meditationGoverning practice. Move from self, to loved ones, to neutral people, to all beings; keep intentions gentle.Slot: compassion / loving-kindnessScaffold: app-designed stepMeets the finding's dose
5 options for this requirement
These are the practices the completed Round-2 reviews name for compassion / loving-kindness. The evidence rating on this routine belongs to the practice and its dose, not to any one of these. Choosing one changes what you read on this page only — it is not saved on any session in your week, and it never changes what the routine prescribes. To keep a choice, make it on the session itself in My Week.
App-delivered practiceCompared in the review1 paper put it in this slot (inferred by the extraction, not stated in the paper) · dose in durationCompassion meditationCompared in the review1 paper put it in this slot (inferred by the extraction, not stated in the paper) · dose in durationMBCT programmeCompared in the review1 paper put it in this slot · dose in durationMBSR programmeCompared in the review4 papers put it in this slot · dose in durationSelf-compassionCompared in the review2 papers put it in this slot · dose in duration
Safety, and where each line comes from7 product safeguard (app-authored)1 source silent
Each line below says where it comes from. “Reported by the review’s sources” is the source’s own words about adverse events or contraindications. “Product safeguard” is written by this app, not by the research. “Source silent” means the studies behind this routine report nothing on that point, which is not the same as saying it carries no risk.
Who should modify or avoid this
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Start small and suggest professional support if distress persists.From this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Most general adultsFrom this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Source silentThe sources behind this routine's finding report no contraindications for this practice. Some of them report contraindications for other interventions the same review pooled, which are not shown here because they are not about this practice.
When to seek supervision or clearance
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Persistent hopelessness, emptiness, or a sense that life is meaningless lasting more than two weeks: encourage contact with a licensed mental-health professionalFrom this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Any thoughts of self-harm or suicide, or feeling life is not worth living: direct the user to a crisis line or emergency services immediatelyFrom this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Acute existential or spiritual crisis causing marked distress or inability to function: refer to a counselor, chaplain, or clinicianFrom this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Signs the user is using reflection to avoid unresolved grief, trauma, or clinical depression: recommend professional supportFrom this routine’s block record, written by this app.
- Product safeguard (app-authored)Signs of a medical emergency (chest pain or pressure, trouble breathing, fainting, sudden weakness or numbness) mean 911 or your local emergency services; thoughts of self-harm or suicide mean the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. This app does not diagnose, treat or give personalised medical advice.
How to do it
Loving-kindness is one of the compassion practices behind this routine: across populations, structured mindfulness and compassion interventions produced small-to-moderate well-being gains (pooled effects of about 0.41 to 0.49 across 183 randomized trials), and loving-kindness specifically showed benefits over passive controls that shrink to non-significance against active or alternative treatments. That result is about adequately-dosed structured practice generally helping, not about 10 to 15 minutes three to five times a week being a tested amount - which is why the note above calls this frequency and duration a design choice rather than a research-backed number.
- Sit comfortably and work the sequence in order: yourself, then someone you love easily, then someone neutral (a cashier, a neighbor you barely know), then wider. The order matters more than how long you spend on each stage.
- Use a few short phrases and repeat them - 'may you be peaceful, may you be well, may you be at ease' - kept plain and unhurried. They are a way to hold attention, not words you have to believe, and no religious framing is required.
- Awkwardness in the early sessions is normal and is not a sign it is going wrong. Keep the intention gentle instead of straining to feel warmth on cue.
- If starting with yourself feels blocked or brings up distress - common with a history of trauma or harsh self-criticism - begin at the loved-one stage and come back to yourself later. Seek professional support if that distress persists across sessions.
- A five-minute version is a reasonable way to keep the habit on a busy day, but treat it as a lighter session, not an equal substitute for the full one.
10-15 minute guided meditation, 3-5 times per week
The evidence behind this practice doesn't establish a dose-response relationship, so this specific frequency and duration is a reasonable design choice, not a research-backed number.
What the evidence says
The evidence is inherited from the practice this routine implements. Any duration is allowed; the label shows where you land against the studied dose.
This practice is one way to carry out what the compassion and mindfulness sources on the concept entry (emo.self-compassion) studied. Petrovic 2024 (meta-analysis of randomised studies) reports that loving-kindness programs had positive effects on mindfulness, compassion, positive and negative affect and psychological symptoms relative to passive controls, with effects non-significant against active controls and alternative treatments; Wilkie 2026 (network meta-analysis) reports moderate effects for mindfulness, compassion and other programs against inactive controls; Kunzler 2020 (Cochrane meta-analysis) reports very-low certainty evidence that resilience training may increase resilience. The full account, source by source, is on the concept entry this practice links to (emo.self-compassion).
Key sources
meta-analysisThe effectiveness of mind-body approaches for enhancing resilience in older adults: A systematic review and network meta-analysis.
meta-analysisIncreasing Psychological Capital: A Pre‐Registered Meta‐Analysis of Controlled Interventions
meta-analysisPsychological interventions to foster resilience in healthcare students.
Each source is shown by its own study design.
14 sources: 8 meta-analyses, 1 narrative review, 2 randomised controlled trials, 2 systematic reviews, 1 with design not recorded
- Agreement
- Direction recorded for 0 of 14 sources; not yet recorded for the rest.
- The claim's outcome
- Outcome not yet recorded
- Certainty
- A source states a certainty rating for 3 outcomes.
- How the sources were read
- Some sources are based on abstracts, not full texts.
What each source measured and concluded (14)
meta-analysis · 2023
Wu et al. (2023) — The effectiveness of mind-body approaches for enhancing resilience in older adults: A systematic review and network meta-analysis.
- What it measured
- Resilience
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and network meta-analysis of RCTs
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 9 studies (N NR)
meta-analysis · 2020
Lupșa et al. (2020) — Increasing Psychological Capital: A Pre‐Registered Meta‐Analysis of Controlled Interventions
- What it measured
- Psychological capital (PsyCap), well-being, and performance
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Pre-registered meta-analysis of controlled interventions
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 41 trials, N=3,911
meta-analysis · 2020
Kunzler et al. (2020) — Psychological interventions to foster resilience in healthcare students.
- What it measured
- Resilience, anxiety, depression, stress, well-being/quality of life
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs (Cochrane)
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 30 RCTs (22 studies solely healthcare students, 1315 participants; 8 mixed samples, 1365 participants)
meta-analysis · 2020
Tam et al. (2020) — The effectiveness of reminiscence-based intervention on improving psychological well-being in cognitively intact older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- What it measured
- Psychological well-being outcomes (depression, life satisfaction, self-esteem, happiness)
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and meta-analysis
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 31 studies, 1,829 older adults
meta-analysis · 2024
Petrovic et al. (2024) — The effects of loving-kindness interventions on positive and negative mental health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- What it measured
- Positive and negative mental health outcomes (mindfulness, compassion, positive/negative affect, psychological symptoms)
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 23 randomized controlled studies
systematic review · 2025
McHugh et al. (2025) — Effective Solutions for Caregivers of Older Adults: A Review of Systematic Reviews
- What it measured
- Caregiver depression, burden, and quality of life
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Umbrella review (review of systematic reviews)
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 40 systematic reviews
systematic review · 2026
Esquitino et al. (2026) — The effectiveness of group-based psychological interventions for emotional distress in non-clinical adult populations: a systematic review
- What it measured
- Effectiveness of group-based psychological interventions in reducing emotional distress
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review
- Studies and participants, as stated
- N=20 studies (from 4,942 records)
randomised controlled trial · 2020
Hendriks et al. (2020) — Resilience and well-being in the Caribbean: Findings from a randomized controlled trial of a culturally adapted multi-component positive psychology intervention
- What it measured
- Resilience (and well-being)
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
meta-analysis · 2024
Yüce et al. (2024) — The effect of mindfulness-based interventions on caregiver burden, quality of life and psychological distress in caregivers of adults with chronic diseases: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
- What it measured
- Stress, anxiety, depression, caregiver burden, mindfulness, resilience, quality of life.
- How it measured it
- Validated instruments (not specified).
- How it was read
- read in full text
- What the review says it includes
- Meta-analysis of 12 studies
- Studies and participants, as stated
- N=748 participants across 12 studies
meta-analysis · 2026
Wilkie et al. (2026) — A systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of well-being-focused interventions
- What it measured
- Psychological well-being.
- How it measured it
- Perceived Wellness Score, Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS), 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36): Mental Component Subscale, World Health Organization Wellbeing Scale (WHO-5), PANAS-Positive Affect.
- How it was read
- read in full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and network meta-analysis of 183 RCTs
- Studies and participants, as stated
- N=22,811 participants across 183 studies
randomised controlled trial · 2021
Diachenko et al. (2021) — Pre-retirement Employees Experience Lasting Improvements in Resilience and Well-Being After Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
- What it measured
- Perceived stress.
- How it measured it
- Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) (self-report).
- Its conclusion, in its own words
- “We argue that MBSR is a cost-effective intervention suited for pre-retirement employees to cultivate resilience to prevent stress, feel more comfortable with themselves, maintain a healthy work-life in the last years before retirement, and, potentially, stay in their work-life a few more years than originally planned.”
- How it was read
- read in full text
meta-analysis · 2025
Chen et al. (2025) — The efficacy of psychosocial interventions in relieving family caregiver burden in older adults with disabilities: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.
- What it measured
- Caregiver burden (standardised mean differences)
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review and network meta-analysis
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 31 trials with 4687 participants
narrative review · 2009
Fava et al. (2009) — Increasing psychological well-being and resilience by psychotherapeutic methods.
- What it measured
- Psychological well-being and resilience
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
design not recorded · 2015
Johnson et al. (2015) — Resilience Training: A Pilot Study of a Mindfulness-Based Program with Depressed Healthcare Professionals.
- What it measured
- Depression and other psychological/behavioral outcomes
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
Certainty ratings the sources state (3)
Wu et al. (2023), for its own outcome
- Rating, as the source states it
- High
- Framework
- not named by the source
- Applies to
- High-quality evidence shows physical/psychological and yoga-related MBA modes enhance resilience in older adults, though long-term verification is needed
- Stated by
- Wu et al. (2023)
Kunzler et al. (2020), for its own outcome
- Rating, as the source states it
- Very-low
- Framework
- not named by the source
- Applies to
- Very-low certainty evidence that resilience training may increase resilience (SMD 0.43, 95% CI 0.07-0.78), lower anxiety (SMD -0.45, -0.84 to -0.06) and stress (SMD -0.28, -0.48 to -0.09); little/no effect on depression (SMD -0.20) or well-being (SMD 0.15)
- Stated by
- Kunzler et al. (2020)
- Rating, as the source states it
- Very-low
- Framework
- not named by the source
- Applies to
- Very-low certainty evidence for effects on resilience, anxiety and stress; conclusions should be drawn cautiously and high-quality replications are needed
- Stated by
- Kunzler et al. (2020)