Awareness Of Emotions (MBSR)

This mindfulness practice helps us build awareness of our emotional landscape. Giving space to emotions enables us to explore them with a kind and gentle curiosity, rather than being swallowed up and controlled by them.

Through this practice, we can see more deeply into the subtle nuances of our experience. We can also learn to become more open to - and accepting of - any difficult emotions.

Transcript

Welcome to this meditation on awareness of emotions.

This practice can help us become more aware of the emotions that we're experiencing.

Sometimes this can help even emotions like boredom become more interesting.

Things we're able to stay with and be curious about rather than pushing away.

So it can help us to be more comfortable,

More allowing with discomfort and also develop a better understanding what's happening with us moment to moment.

So the intention is to recognize when emotions are present and to help us look at emotions rather than from them.

So being with the sensations rather than being swallowed up and controlled by the emotion itself.

Our attention is on awareness.

Awareness of the emotion.

Where is it in our body?

What is it?

And we do this with an attitude of curiosity of allowing non-striving and non-identification.

So just taking a moment to check in with your posture.

Making sure you have a firm connection to the ground.

If you're sitting on a chair having both your feet placed on the ground.

Making sure your spine is erect so you have this sense of dignity of alertness.

Your head stretching up towards the sky and your shoulders relax.

Maybe closing your eyes if that feels comfortable for you or resting your gaze softly on the floor.

And then moving your awareness to your body breathing.

It's becoming aware of this breath,

This constant companion in our life.

Simply noticing each breath as it enters our body and noticing the breath as it leaves our body.

So there's no need to change the pattern of the breath.

Just allowing it to be exactly as it is.

All we're doing is putting our awareness there.

Noticing this breath moment to moment rolling in and rolling out of our body.

During the practice you may find that your mind wanders somewhere else to the past,

To the future,

Some problem.

Each time you notice this just remembering with gentleness that it's not a mistake.

This is just how our mind works and realizing that in noticing this is a moment of mindfulness.

It's what we're doing in the practice.

So bringing your awareness back to whatever it was focused on.

In this case the breath without judgment,

With gentleness and starting again and expanding your awareness from the breath,

The sense of the body as a whole.

Just noticing if there's any sensations that are calling your attention,

Your awareness.

There's no need to look for anything special,

Anything in particular or to make sensations happen.

Simply noticing what arises for you,

What your experience of your body is,

Moment to moment.

You'll be noticing how the sensations change,

How they come and go and seeing if you can be open to allowing this to happen.

Simply letting them come and go on their own and then moving your awareness from the sensations in your body to your hearing,

To any sounds that you can hear.

Again no need to seek anything out.

As best you can being fully open to whatever you can hear.

Maybe sounds close to you or sounds far away.

Again maybe noticing how they change,

How they come and go.

Just being open to whatever sounds are there.

Maybe being curious where you can feel the sounds in your body.

Is it just through your ears or can you feel their vibrations elsewhere?

And then moving your awareness from the sounds to the thinking process.

So not seeing thoughts as a distraction,

Not getting caught up in their content.

Simply trying to notice when a thought starts and when it ends.

Just watching the process of thinking as best you can.

Might be saying hello thought when it starts and goodbye thought when it ends.

Or you might want to be labeling the thoughts,

Thinking,

Planning,

If this helps you.

Really tuning it into the sense of curiosity of having a beginner's mind.

So maybe noticing how are the thoughts happening?

Can you hear them?

Is it words?

Pictures?

Colors?

Is there a tone of voice?

Is there a part of your mind where they appear when they start and they move through your mind?

Just being curious what you can notice about the thinking process itself.

Remembering at any time if it gets too much you can always return to the safety of your breath as an anchor.

Resting there until you feel ready to start practicing again.

And then letting go of this focus on the thinking process and starting to move your awareness into the emotions.

So bringing your awareness to your heart area.

If it feels right you might want to put your hand onto your heart.

Just breathing into your hand,

Into your heart and out of your hand or out of your heart region.

And keeping the focus on this area.

Just asking with curiosity,

What am I feeling in this moment?

Being open to the fact that the feeling may be in this area.

It may be elsewhere in your body.

Just checking in if there's any emotions present for you right now.

And letting your attention be drawn to the strongest emotion that you find,

Even if it's very subtle.

If it's somewhere else in your body you may want to place your hand there to soothe it.

To send it gentleness and kindness if it's something difficult.

If it is you might want to breathe gently into that part of your body.

And breathe out to soften any resistance that you are holding.

Just feeling into the rhythm of your body breathing.

Feeling your breath soothing the body.

It may be that you can't notice any emotions right now.

That's totally fine.

Just noticing that as your experience.

And staying with the sense of the breath.

Being open to the possibility of an emotion arising.

You might even want to check if there's a frustration or numbness or anything like that that might describe how you're feeling on a subtle level.

It could be peacefulness or calm.

When an emotion arises,

Being curious about how it feels.

What sensations can you feel?

What's the echo in your body from that emotion?

Is there a particular place in your body where you can feel it located?

Does it have a size?

A shape?

A weight?

Maybe there's a color?

Maybe noticing if there's any resistance to that emotion.

And if so you can maybe soften into that with your breath.

Just being fully open and accepting of whatever emotion is there.

And then you might want to see if you can name the emotion.

It doesn't have to be the perfect name for it.

Just something you feel works for you in this moment.

So you might want to try love is here.

Confusion is here.

Indifference is here.

Trust is here.

Boredom is here.

Calmness is here.

Hurt is here.

Resentment is here.

Whatever word you think describes the emotion that you find.

And maybe repeating that label two or three times once you find what feels like the right word.

And then once you've done this,

Just returning back to your breath.

Waiting for the next emotion to arise.

Repeating the process.

Curiosity about the physical sensations that are attached to the emotion.

And then just taking a little time to find a word that seems to fit.

And then returning to the breath.

So just keeping with this practice.

Maybe noticing if the same or similar emotions are arising.

Or whether they're changing.

As best you can not getting caught up in their stories.

Allowing the emotions to come and go.

As events.

Simply noticing how they feel in your body.

Labeling them.

And then returning to the breath.

Maybe noticing how some are very subtle.

Whilst others are more intense.

Maybe noticing that some come with tension and resistance and tightness.

While others may be more expansive.

More relaxed.

Remembering if your mind wanders.

It's not that you're doing anything wrong.

It's just part of the practice.

Whenever you wake up from the wandering mind.

Just bringing it back onto your emotions.

Simply noticing what's there for you in this moment.

And then letting go of this focus on the emotions.

And allowing your awareness to become more open.

More expansive.

So not choosing where your awareness goes.

But just being open to whatever your experience is in each moment.

So it could be that you're aware of your breath.

Or your body sensations.

Or it could be your attentions drawn by sounds.

By thoughts.

By emotions.

Whichever it is.

Just whichever it is.

Just being aware of them as events that come and go.

So not forcing anything.

But just sitting in a place of gentleness.

Allowing these things to be there.

To come.

And to pass by.

Just being fully open in each moment to what your experience is.

As best you can.

Sitting in this place of non-striving.

Non-judgment.

Simply curiosity and awareness.

Just allowing yourself to be exactly as you are.

And allowing your experience to be exactly as it is.

Not needing to change yourself.

Or the world around you.

And then starting to become aware of your body.

Maybe noticing your body breathing.

Breathing in.

Breathing out.

Noticing how this feels.

And then becoming aware of your posture.

How you're sitting.

Becoming aware of the contact points between your body and the ground.

Maybe noticing any sounds you can hear around you.

Taking a moment to notice how you're feeling at the end of this practice.

Your body.

Your mind.

Your emotions.

And thanking yourself for taking this time to be with what's happening inside of you.

Strengthening your awareness.

What's within.

And then drawing this practice to a close.

Making gentle movements if you wish.

In your fingers.

Your toes.

And stretching your body however you need.

This meditation practice is now complete.