Good afternoon my friends.
Thank you for joining me by the river.
And let's just take a moment to ground in and I'd like to dedicate this space,
This meditation to looking at a part of ourselves that I feel like not enough of us take the time to really just sit with.
That's our inner critic.
So I'd like you to notice,
Even just as I bring up the word inner critic,
What comes up for you in the body.
What's your experience like with this part of you?
Maybe there's a voice that comes up and tells you,
I can't have that,
Or you're not good enough,
Or that's not right,
It's not in a way perfect.
I'd like you to begin to notice how you feel towards this part.
And what emotions are you feeling in this moment?
What thoughts might come up around this idea of this inner critic coming in and maybe making life a little bit harder sometimes,
But also trying to redirect you.
And if you can get curious,
And I invite you to get curious,
What might this part of you need from you?
If you're right now just in this moment,
You can turn towards and ask yourself in this part this question.
Just mindfully get curious.
Was there a certain time in your life where this inner critic really showed up and really supported you?
Was it really necessary to have that level of maybe criticism or judgment?
As you move into this new year with new opportunities arising,
And maybe you're taking on new projects or maybe you're meeting new people,
I'd like you to really notice when this voice comes in,
And if there's an opportunity,
Just slow down and notice where in the body you feel this kind of maybe sharpness or maybe it's more of a dullness,
Or maybe it's a tension within certain muscles,
And just bring awareness to this part of you as it's trying to show you something or tell you something.
And offering this part some witnessing and some compassion,
Knowing that it's just trying to support you the best way it knows how.
And today,
This is simply just an introduction to this part,
Maybe for the first time,
I'd like you to ask this part,
What would it like you to call it?
Maybe Inner Critic Lance or Fitz,
Or maybe it has a different name.
I'd like to invite a little bit of curiosity around what that name might be.
What might you call this part of you turning towards where you felt this critic?
Maybe it was in the muscles,
Maybe it was in the jaw,
Maybe it was just a thought that came up.
Just noticing as you turn towards it,
What changes,
What shifts,
And maybe if you're turning towards it with a little bit more care and openness,
What changes in the body?
Can you feel any shifts?
Can you feel any of these muscles beginning to soften?
And since we're just introducing ourselves to this part of us,
I think it's important just to let them know who we are,
Maybe even how old we are,
Right?
That we're an adult and we're just starting to get to know them and that we're not the child that they might think we are.
And just to say thank you,
Letting this part know that we appreciate them and all the work that they put in,
Because often these parts are quite exhausted and overwhelmed.
And if there's something that you can offer this part of you,
A promise that you can keep,
I'd like you to offer this part some reassurance.
I'd like you to make that promise that maybe you slow down a little or maybe you just begin to notice when this part comes up and just turn towards it with a little bit more curiosity or maybe just openness to listen to what this part has to say.
Maybe there's something that you can do if you ask this part what it needs from you.
Maybe in the moment or maybe in general,
This part might trust you enough to let you know what it is it needs from you.
And this is how we build that trust within ourself.
So thank you for joining me today,
Just reminding you that there are no bad parts and to thank your parts as consistently and as authentically as possible.
Appreciate you joining me today,
Hope you have a wonderful rest of your day or afternoon or if this is before bed,
Have a wonderful sleep.
Take care.
