In my own words…
My essays and articles on meditation, anxiety, and the desire underneath it — published across leading mindfulness and wellness publications.
On desire, in my own words
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![Shadow of a person standing on a dirt road in a desert landscape with mountains in the background.]()
Embracing Ambition
Can a meditation teacher still want big things? (Yes.) How to go after your goals wholeheartedly, and loosen your grip on how they turn out.
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![A hand reaching out towards a body of water during sunset or sunrise, with the sun near the horizon and a clear sky.]()
Get Your Hopes Up
Why I stopped telling myself “don’t get your hopes up,” and what happened when I let myself want.
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![Close-up of three people sitting on a white bed, with only their legs and feet visible, partially covered by white sheets.]()
How to Have Mindful Sex
What happens when you bring meditation into the bedroom: more presence, more curiosity, better sex.
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![Person sitting on rocks by the ocean at sunset, gazing at the water.]()
Embracing Longing in Loneliness
A guided meditation for lonely nights: how to stay with the longing instead of running from it.
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![A couple sitting on a park bench near a river, with a cityscape and greenery in the background.]()
A Practice for Online Dating
Swiping makes snap judgments easy. Here’s a loving-kindness practice to try instead, plus phrases for your matches.
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What Does Desire Want From Us?
In which I confess that I spent a lot of time in my twenties picturing my crushes as decomposing corpses (as one does), and why desire might not be the enemy after all.
Essays & articles
"What Does Desire Want From Us?" — Tricycle— July 3, 2026 https://tricycle.org/article/what-does-desire-want-from-us/
"Your Longing is Your Guide" — Happier — Feb 8, 2026 https://www.meditatehappier.com/meditationblog/your-longing-is-your-guide
"Get Your Hopes Up" — Ten Percent Happier — Feb 9, 2024 https://www.meditatehappier.com/meditationblog/get-your-hopes-up
"Jewish Wisdom for Navigating Anxiety" — Jewish Unpacked — Nov 14, 2023 https://jewishunpacked.com/jewish-wisdom-for-navigating-anxiety/
"The Stress of the Inner War" — Ten Percent Happier — Sep 9, 2023 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/the-stress-of-the-inner-war
"I Suffered From Frequent Panic Attacks — Until I Found Meditation" — Medium — May 24, 2023 https://medium.com/@RoundGlass_/i-suffered-from-frequent-panic-attacks-until-i-found-meditation-53b240b5cb26
"Becoming a Parent is All About Letting Go" — Ten Percent Happier — May 7, 2023 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/what-parenting-taught-me-about-letting-go
"Beating the Winter Blahs" — Parallax Press — Jan 10, 2023 https://www.parallax.org/beating-the-winter-blahs/
"Embracing Ambition" — Ten Percent Happier — Jul 14, 2021 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/embracing-ambition
"Loving-Kindness Practice for Online Dating" — Lion's Roar — Jun 2, 2021 https://www.lionsroar.com/loving-kindness-practice-for-online-dating/
"No Mud, No Lotus" — Ten Percent Happier — Aug 12, 2020 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/no-mud-no-lotus
"I Feel Afraid all the Time" — Ten Percent Happier — Mar 24, 2020 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/i-feel-afraid-all-the-time
"How to Have Mindful Sex" — My Jewish Learning — Oct 2019 https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/how-to-have-mindful-sex/
"How to Work with Your Inner Critic" — Sonima — Oct 6, 2019
"Why Meditate?" — Ten Percent Happier — Sep 18, 2019 https://www.tenpercent.com/meditationweeklyblog/why-meditate
"3 Ways to Hack Loneliness" — Sonima — Feb 18, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20251010183925/https://www.sonima.com/meditation/meditation-loneliness/
"4 Ways to Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul" — Sonima — Oct 28, 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20260211002902/https://www.sonima.com/meditation/mindful-living/sell-yourself/
"Five Practices For Your Daily Commute" — Tricycle — Mar 19, 2018 https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/practice-daily-commute/
"5 Ways to Help Anxious Millennials Chill Out" — Sonima — Nov 15, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20260218180424/https://www.sonima.com/meditation/mindful-living/millennials-and-anxiety/
"What Does It Really Mean To Have Mindful Sex?" — Mindbodygreen — Nov 7, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20240419003634/https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/what-does-it-really-mean-to-have-mindful-sex
"Why NYU's B-School Teaches Mindfulness" — Harvard Business Review — Dec 31, 2015 https://hbr.org/2015/12/why-nyus-b-school-teaches-mindfulness
"Mindfulness in Business" — NYU Stern Opinion — Oct 23, 2015
"The Future of Buddhism: Race, Money, Mindfulness and the World" — Huffington Post — May 7, 2015 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yael-shy/the-future-of-buddhism_b_7225290.html
"Being-ness, Your God" — Inquiring Mind — Oct 2013 https://inquiringmind.com/article/3001_22_shy-being-ness-your-god/
Academic & scholarly work
"Circulos de Paz and the Promise of Peace: Restorative Justice Meets Intimate Violence" — NYU Review of Law and Social Change — 2012 (with Linda G. Mills and Mary Helen Maley) https://socialchangenyu.com/review/circulos-de-paz-and-the-promise-of-peace-restorative-justice-meets-intimate-violence/
"Essential Ingredients for Multifaith Education in a University Setting" — Journal of Inter-Religious Studies — Nov 2014 https://irstudies.org/index.php/jirs/article/view/675
"A Critical New Pathway Towards Change in Abusive Relationships: The Theory of Transition Framework" — Clinical Social Work Journal — 2010 (with Linda G. Mills) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2991187/