During a recent chat with Audacy, Katy Perry shared how the use of transcendental meditation has changed her life and bettered her mental health.

"My biggest life hack is transcendental meditation," Katy shared, "it’s this specific type of meditation that you learn. Anyone can learn it, it’s available to everyone, you can go to transcendentalmeditation.org, there [are] people, and places, and centers that teach everyone."

Sharing she learned the practice “about 15 years ago,” Katy admitted it has since “changed my life,” revealing, “It is the biggest hack for me, for my anxiety, depression, mood swings, jet lag, hangover, and it’s where I get some of my best creative ideas.”

She also notes that while it is suggested to do twice a day, “once you really lock into it," that shouldn’t be something that you stress over trying to fit into your daily routine.

“It’s really helped me with my mental health," Katy added. “It just flips a switch, and it’s a hack because you do it for 20 minutes, they suggest twice a day, once in the morning once in the evening. I do it supplementary… I do it once every couple of days. Like after I finish these interviews, right before I go to rehearsal for all these big shows I have coming up, I’m gonna go do a TM for 20 minutes, and it will feel like I had a two-hour nap.”

“Last night I only had 4 hours of sleep on the clock, but I do this thing, I meditate myself to sleep, and literally I go into the deepest sleep cycle. Anyone looking for a tool, a life tool, it’s such a hack… and for everything I’ve been through, it is the CTRL ALT Delete to this program.”

Audacy's I’m Listening initiative aims to encourage those who are dealing with mental health issues to understand they are not alone. If you or anyone you know is struggling with depression or anxiety, know that someone is always there. Additionally, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 988. Find a full list of additional resources here.

Words by Maia Kedem