When you are experiencing anxiety,
This meditation practice will help you to calm your mind and your body,
Breaking you free from the anxiety that controls your life.
So let's begin.
Find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed,
Turning off or silence any distractions,
And find a comfortable seated position.
Softly close down your eyes.
Take your attention to where your body is in contact with the ground or the chair beneath you.
Take your attention to where your body parts are in contact with other body parts.
This is your anchor,
This is your grounding.
Not just in meditation,
But throughout your day as well.
Any time that you are suffering with anxiety or an overactive mind,
You can take your attention to your body at any time,
And this will help to ground you,
Calm your mind and calm your body.
We will take three deep breaths to help calm the mind and the body ready for this meditation.
On your next inhale,
Take a deep breath in,
Feel as your body expands.
And a full exhale,
Exhaling all of the air out of your body,
Allowing the body to relax.
Taking another deep inhale,
Notice how your body expands.
And a full exhale,
Relaxing the body,
Relaxing your muscles.
Take one more deep inhale.
And a full exhale,
Completely relaxing the body now.
And return back to your natural breath.
Relax all the muscles in your body now,
All the way from the top of your head,
All the way down to your toes.
Just notice the relaxation at the top of your head,
As the face softens,
Unclenching the jaw.
Relaxing into your neck,
Into your shoulders.
Relaxing into your upper arms,
All the way down to your fingers.
Relaxing into your chest and upper back.
Relaxing all the way down to your lower back.
Softening your stomach,
Allowing it to become heavy.
Relaxing into your upper legs,
All the way down to your toes.
Please ensure that your spine is upright in this meditative position.
Now we will take one more deep inhale,
And one more full exhale.
On your next inhale,
Inhale for the count of 4,
3,
2,
1.
Exhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Exhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Exhale for 4,
3,
2,
1.
Continue to breathe like this,
Counting on the inhalation to 4,
And counting your exhalation to 4.
Continue to breathe like this.
If you feel open and you feel like you have more space,
You can increase the count to 5 or 6,
7 or 8,
Whatever is comfortable for you.
If you are comfortable with the count of 4,
Then please stay at 4.
This breathing should be effortless,
You do not want to strain your body,
But the longer breaths that you can take on your inhale and exhale,
It will help to calm your mind and your body.
But just work with what is comfortable for your body,
And over time with regular practice,
You will be able to increase the count of your breaths.
If your attention drifts off to a thought,
To a sound,
A bodily sensation,
A feeling or an emotion during this practice,
That is ok.
Just be kind to yourself and return your attention back to your breath.
It is ok to have anxiety.
Anxiety is a part of the human experience.
Throughout our lives we are exposed to excessive amounts of stress,
And these stresses accumulate on the body,
On the mind,
And these stresses accumulate on your nervous system.
And as these build up,
They start to manifest into problems,
Psychological problems,
Emotional,
Physical.
But this doesn't define you.
This is not who you are.
It is nothing to be ashamed of,
You are not at fault,
You have done nothing wrong.
It is just accumulated stress on your nervous system that has built up over time,
And it has manifested into anxiety.
Anxiety isn't something you should hide from,
Or that you should hide from others.
It is nothing to be ashamed of.
And as you become aware of your anxiety,
And as you can accept that it is there,
With this awareness,
With this acceptance,
You have opened up space for change,
For separation,
To separate you from your anxiety.
And as you break free from your anxiety,
And as you create space and separation,
You are able to lead a peaceful,
Calm and healthier life.
With regular practice of meditation,
You can reduce the stress that is on your nervous system,
As you release and let go,
Calming the mind and the body,
Breaking you free from your anxiety.
Please return back to your natural breath now.
Take your attention off the count,
And just breathe naturally,
In and out through your nose.
Take your attention off your breath now,
And just sit in the stillness that you have created.
You may notice now that you have created space and separation.
The anxiety might not be as intense.
And as you practice regular,
You create more distance,
More separation,
So you are able to live your life free from anxiety,
Living a more peaceful,
Calm and healthier life.
Keeping your eyes closed,
You can start to move your fingers and your toes,
Your hands and your feet.
Start to stretch out into the space that is around you.
And when you are ready,
You can slowly open your eyes,
Starting off gazing down at the floor.
Thank you for meditating with me.
