Welcome to this guided meditation on moving through grief.
Grief is our natural response to losing something we cherish.
It's a part of everyone's life.
As life moves forward,
Stages of our life come to an end.
That may involve a death,
A breakup,
A move,
Or some other change that causes us to feel our loss intensely.
This meditation is intended to acknowledge,
Honor,
And integrate that loss so we can move forward in our lives with confidence and grace.
Depending on where you are feeling grief in your body,
You may want to listen to this meditation in a seated position,
Lying down,
Or in child's pose.
Avoid laying on your side because you want your breath and energy to be able to move evenly along both sides of your body.
Since we are looking to help clear out emotions,
To realign our mind and body,
And to rebalance ourselves,
We want to have a balanced posture.
Start with a cleansing breath,
Inhaling gently but fully,
Filling the chest and belly,
And exhale slowly through the mouth.
Try to empty the lungs completely.
Inhale through the nose,
Gently but fully.
Exhale completely through the mouth again,
Then close the lips.
Now imagine you're breathing in fresh oxygen,
Like white light,
To all parts of your body.
Then exhale carbon dioxide and cellular waste,
Like a gray fog,
Leaving each cell refreshed.
Take two more breaths in the same way,
Then release control of the breath.
Let it breathe the body in a steady rhythm.
Feel each inhale reach its natural end,
Feel the pause as the breath turns,
Then feel the exhale come to its natural end,
And again feel the pause.
Notice how one breath links to the next,
Linking our moments and our days from our first breath to our very last.
Nothing is permanent.
Each moment dies to allow the next.
Each day ends as another one starts.
One year ends and we celebrate the advent of the new year.
Each stage of our lives moves into the next,
From birth through death.
Every relationship has its natural stages too,
Constantly morphing from beginning to end.
Nothing we experience is permanent.
Since nothing we experience is permanent,
Loss is an integral part of our lives.
Take five more breaths,
Experiencing continuous beginnings and endings.
Now bring your attention to your heart.
Feel it beating slowly and steadily.
Keep your focus on your heart center and allow a memory that you cherish to arise.
Let the memory bring a smile to your lips and warmth to your heart.
Appreciate what a gift this memory is,
The joy it brings,
The love it holds.
Recognize that grief is an acknowledgement of the richness of your life.
Allow yourself to experience the memory fully.
You may find you are able to appreciate it even more in retrospect than you did in the moment.
Take several more breaths,
Savoring the gift of this memory.
Know that you can continue to positively reminisce longer or come back to it whenever you like.
For now,
Take a long,
Slow breath.
Gently roll your head from side to side.
Wiggle your fingers.
Stretch your arms up overhead.
And then bring your hands back to your heart.
And let a gentle smile rest on your lips,
Acknowledging the blessings that have been part of your life and with an open heart allowing future blessings to come to you.
When you're ready,
Gently open your eyes.
Come back to the room feeling refreshed.
Move forward into the tasks of the day,
Keeping a bittersweet appreciation of the richness of your life with you at all times.
Thank you for taking the time to meditate with me today.
Namaste.
