Good evening,
I'm Dr.
Piper Grant.
This practice is designed to help you shift out of the day's stress and into a space of gentle reconnection with your partner,
Without pressure,
Without performance.
So often by the end of the day,
Most couples aren't disconnected because they don't care.
We are disconnected because we're tired.
We've been making decisions all day,
Managing responsibilities,
Holding emotions,
Solving problems.
And when our nervous systems have been activated all day,
Intimacy can feel like another task.
So this practice is not about creating or getting you to a place of having sex.
It's actually about creating safety,
Because connection begins there.
So to begin,
I invite you to find a comfortable position,
Sitting or lying down next to your partner or perhaps away.
If your partner is nearby,
You can touch or you can practice separately.
I just ask that you begin quietly in the same space.
And let's begin by closing our eyes.
If that feels comfortable to you.
And just take a slow inhale through your nose,
And a much longer exhale through your mouth.
Again,
A slow inhale,
And long exhale.
Letting your shoulders soften,
Letting your jaw unclench,
Just if you can,
Let the day begin to loosen its grip on your body.
And when you're ready,
I invite you to gently scan your body from top to bottom or bottom to top,
Whichever direction feels comfortable for you.
And just notice where you are still holding the day.
Do you notice in your chest,
In your stomach,
Perhaps your forehead or your hips?
There's nothing that you need to fix in this moment.
Just a simple noticing.
And if possible,
I invite you to take one slow breath into that area,
Into that space where there is still a holding.
And exhale slowly,
Allowing there to be release and let go.
And just beginning this practice with an awareness of your body in this space.
And if you feel ready,
I now invite you to bring awareness to the idea of your partner.
Not the unfinished conversation,
Not the to-do list that you have to figure out.
Simply the fact that there is another human being moving through their own stress today.
They had their own experience today,
And they are having their own experience in their body from the day.
And silently saying to yourself,
They had a day too.
Notice what shifts in your body when you allow that thought.
Notice what happens if there's an ease or a sense of connection,
Some empathy or compassion,
Whatever it might be.
Just that allowance and that understanding that they too have a lived experience that they're carrying from the day.
Not forgetting your breath.
Finding your inhale and your exhale.
If it feels possible for you as you continue to breathe,
Holding the thought and the image of your partner.
See if you can imagine softening your posture,
Loosening the grip in your body by just another 5%.
Not a collapsing,
Just a softening.
When we think about intimacy,
It doesn't require intensity.
It really requires ease and availability.
And with that,
I invite you to gently set one simple internal permission that you can allow for yourself into the evening.
Such as,
Tonight I do not have to perform.
Tonight I do not have to fix anything.
Tonight I only have to be present.
Really allowing that permission to land and find its space within your body.
Allowing there to be availability and ease so that you can be present with your partner.
Taking one final slow inhale here.
And a steady exhale.
And as you move into the rest of your evening,
I invite you to remember that reconnection does not start with effort.
It starts with regulation.
And in fact,
When safety returns to the body,
Intimacy in whatever form feels right to you becomes possible again.
I thank you for joining me in this practice this evening.
I hope that your evening is restful,
That you find connection within yourself and with your partner.
And sleep well.