Welcome.
This practice is for those moments when your system feels very on.
Maybe your thoughts are racing.
Your body feels restless or tense.
You feel overstimulated,
Worried,
Irritable,
Or like something needs to happen right now.
We're not going to ask your nervous system to suddenly become completely calm.
We're just going to offer it a little more support.
Begin in whatever position feels comfortable enough.
If you're sitting or standing,
Notice your feet on the floor.
If you're lying down,
Notice where your body makes contact with the surface underneath you.
Keep your eyes open if that feels better.
And take a moment to look around.
Notice where you are.
Let your eyes land on a few familiar objects.
Now gently press your feet into the floor.
Hold the pressure for a moment and release.
Again,
Press and release.
Notice the difference between effort and release.
Now bring your hands together.
You might press your palms gently into one another.
Or if that doesn't feel comfortable,
You could place one hand over the other.
Hold your upper arms,
Or place a hand somewhere on your body that feels supportive.
Nothing needs to feel profound.
We're simply adding a little containment,
A little contact.
If movement feels good,
Begin a very small rocking motion.
You might rock slightly back and forth.
Or gently side to side.
Slow.
Predictable.
Easy.
You decide how much movement feels right.
As you continue,
Notice your breathing.
There's no need to take a big inhale.
Let the inhale arrive naturally.
And if it feels comfortable,
Allow the exhale to be just a little longer.
Perhaps inhale for a comfortable count of four.
And exhale for five.
Or maybe six.
Only if it feels easy.
Inhale 2,
3,
4.
Exhale 2 3 4 5 6 and again.
Inhale 2 3 4.
Exhale 2 3 4 5 6.
If counting makes you more anxious,
Let go of the numbers and simply breathe naturally.
You are not required to control your breath in order to regulate.
If you'd like,
We'll add a gentle hum.
Take an easy inhale.
And on the exhale,
Hum.
Feel the vibration wherever you notice it.
Your lips,
Your face,
Your throat,
Your chest,
Or maybe you don't notice much at all.
That's OK.
Again,
If you'd like,
Easy inhale.
And hum.
One more time.
Inhale.
And hum.
And then let your breathing return to normal.
Now if you have a safety anchor or inner resource,
You can bring that in.
Maybe it's a hand position.
A gesture,
A mudra,
An image,
A place,
A memory,
Or a simple phrase.
You don't have to make yourself feel safe.
Just see whether you can remember even a small experience of steadiness or support.
Feel the floor or surface underneath you again.
Notice your hands.
Look around the room.
And ask yourself.
What do I need in the next few minutes?
Not for the whole day.
Just the next few minutes.
Maybe you need water.
Food.
Quiet.
Movement.
A boundary.
A conversation.
Or simply a little more time.
We're not asking your body to become completely calm.
We're simply seeing whether it can soften by 5%.
Notice whether anything shifted.
And when you're ready,
Take that small amount of steadiness with you into whatever comes next.
