Welcome to the three-step breathing space.
This is a short practice for any time you want to drop into the present moment.
It's not a break or a diversion from reality,
But a way of re-engaging with it.
The intention is to turn towards our present moment experience,
Placing our attention on the mind,
Emotions and the body,
With curiosity,
Openness and kindness,
And gathering our attention on the breath and expanding into the whole body,
Ready to bring this rediscovered awareness into our life.
Whether you're standing or sitting,
Deliberately adopting an erect and dignified posture,
If possible closing the eyes and starting to check in with yourself,
Asking what is my experience in this moment.
So step one is bringing your attention to your mind,
Noticing if the mind is busy or calm,
Clear or messy,
If there are any thoughts simply acknowledging them as mental events,
Maybe labeling them as thinking,
Planning,
Worrying or dreaming.
Welcoming whatever you find,
Not needing to change your experience,
And then moving the attention from the mind to the emotions,
Noticing if there are any emotions present for you in this moment,
Again welcoming whatever is present,
Turning towards any sense of discomfort or unpleasant feelings if that's what you find,
Not pushing anything away,
Simply acknowledging your experience as it is,
And then moving the attention and the emotions to the body,
Noticing any sensations in the body,
So maybe scanning the body quickly from head to foot to pick up any sensations of tightness or tension or holding,
Again being fully open to whatever you find,
Not trying to make anything different from how you find it,
Just allowing your experience to be exactly as it is.
And now step two,
Gathering the attention in onto the breath,
Starting to become aware of the physical sensations of the breath,
Maybe feeling the breath in the nose or in the chest or in the belly,
And practicing following the breath all the way in and all the way out,
Using each breath as an opportunity to connect with the present moment,
And if your mind wanders,
Gently escorting it back to the breath,
And then coming to the final step,
Allowing the awareness to expand,
To include a sense of the body as a whole,
Noticing your posture and your facial expression,
Holding this awareness,
Gentleness with softness,
And if you become aware of any discomfort or tension,
You might want to gently turn towards it,
Maybe imagining your breath could move into and around the sensations,
In this way you can befriend the sensations,
Just allowing them to be there,
Rather than trying to change them,
And simply sitting with this awareness of the whole body,
Allowing yourself to be exactly as you are,
And then bringing this practice to a close,
As best you can,
Bringing this expanded awareness into the next moments of your day.
