Welcome to this meditation and breath work for letting go of anxiety and trying to find a balance in your life.
I would like you to lay down in somewhere that feels comfortable and safe and warm.
Maybe you have a blanket nearby.
Just in case.
I want you to start by placing your hand over your heart and your other hand over your stomach.
Just take a really big breath,
Sigh it out.
Activate your parasympathetic nervous system by letting out a big sigh.
Our parasympathetic nervous system is our rest and relax,
Digest and reproduce state of being in our nervous system.
It's important to activate that state so that we can change our state of being.
So when we breathe nice and slow,
Deep into the belly,
We can start to activate that and we can start to get into a headspace that doesn't allow anxiety to thrive.
So take as many sighs as you need right now.
Maybe you shake your shoulders,
Give your head a little shake,
Wobble your jaw,
Close your eyes,
Close your mouth.
None of your senses are needed right now.
This is time to tap into your body and to listen to what it's trying to tell you.
So take a big breath in through the nose and let it out through the mouth.
Pull that breath deep into your belly,
Letting that belly expand out.
Moving that breath into your ribs and letting your ribs expand out.
Pushing into the side body,
Up into the chest,
And then relaxing it nice and slow out the mouth.
Breathe in again,
Deep into the belly.
And let it out nice and slowly,
Either through the mouth or the nose,
Your choice.
Everything about this right now is meant to be done slowly.
Take another gentle deep breath into the belly and slowly let it out.
All the way out,
Is there any extra air you can push out?
Take another breath in and letting it out nice and slowly.
What can you notice as you're breathing here?
What sensations can you feel?
Can you feel your toes,
Your heels against the spot you're lying on?
Can you maybe feel the spot two inches below your knee?
The spot two inches above your knee?
Can you feel your hands,
The space between your fingertips,
Your pulse in your fingertips?
Can you feel your pulse fluttering in your neck?
Can you relax your whole body and just let your breath breathe you?
Breathing in and out.
And with each breath out,
Can you relax your body a little bit more?
Breathe deep into the belly.
Maybe one more sip into the lungs.
What is your breath telling you?
Do you find it difficult to breathe into your belly,
Into your ribs,
Maybe your chest?
Maybe you struggle to exhale.
Maybe your breath is jagged,
Maybe it's smooth.
Is one nostril breathing harder than the other?
Which one?
Let that breath come into the belly,
Expanding the side body,
Expanding into the chest,
And then slowly let it out.
Feel any of the sensations moving through your body right now.
Maybe you can feel that delicious prana and chi moving through your body.
Can you check in?
Ask your body what it needs?
Keep breathing while you do this.
Let your body take over.
Our monkey minds are not needed right now.
If thoughts come in,
Pretend those thoughts are wrapped in a bubble and you pop it and move on.
Always coming back to your breath.
In through the nose.
For your next inhale,
I want you to exhale with your lips pursed as if you were going to blow out through a straw.
So in through the nose,
And then purse the lips.
Let that exhale be longer than your inhale.
Again,
In through the nose.
And then long and slow through your pursed lips on the exhale.
Can you let your body feel a little heavier while you do this?
A little softer?
A little lighter?
A little jello-y as you lay upon whatever you're laying upon.
Letting your body sink deeper into that.
Relaxing your whole body.
When we relax our face,
It tells our body it's time for the whole body to relax.
Taking another deep breath in.
And pursed lips exhale.
Do this three more times.
Big inhale into the belly.
And pursed lips on the exhale.
Two more.
This breathing technique is aptly named Breathe Through a Straw.
And it's one of the best breathing techniques.
For anxiety.
For letting go.
For changing our state of being.
For relaxing.
Getting into our body and out of our minds.
And with a dedicated practice to this,
You can tune into your body.
And hear that you make time to be present for others.
But mostly for yourself.
When you are present for yourself,
You are better able to be present for others.
And there's no greater gift.
