Hi,
This is Stephanie Boxerbaum.
Thank you so much for meditating with me today.
For today's practice,
We're going to be doing a calming overwhelm practice.
This is one of my favorite topics.
I think everyone can resonate with overwhelm,
Whether it's work-related,
Family life,
Relationships,
Just as a word.
I think it's something that all of us experience,
Have experienced,
Will continue to experience.
And this practice isn't about stopping overwhelm,
It's about the calming.
And calming doesn't mean we're stopping it.
It's about finding what that ease can be.
It's kind of getting more clear on what do I need when I'm overwhelmed.
I wanted to read a quick quote from after the ecstasy,
The laundry from Jack Kornfield.
There's a quote from the founder of Japanese Zen,
Dojin,
And he explains,
The human mind has absolute freedom as its true nature.
There are thousands upon thousands of students who have practiced meditation and obtained this realization.
Do not doubt the possibilities because of the simplicity of the method.
If you can't find the truth where you are,
Where else do you expect to find it?
And I really love this last sentence.
If you can't find the truth where you are,
Where else do you expect to find it?
And it's really a helpful guiding star to this calming,
Overwhelmed conversation because often when we're overwhelmed,
The last thing we want to do is meditate.
We don't want to feel calm.
We don't want to settle.
We're in a fight or flight kind of system,
Right,
In that moment.
And it's hard to sort of say,
Okay,
Hold on,
Let me like meditate for a second.
And so I want this practice just to be clear that there's in the moment mindfulness we can practice when we're feeling overwhelmed.
And this practice talks a little bit about that at the end where we are really kind of touching into a place in the body that can act as this source of comfort in overwhelm,
Where if you're in the middle of your work day and something's going on,
You know,
You're likely not to just sit down and start meditating,
But we can connect in with a place in the body.
Maybe it's putting a hand on your leg.
Maybe it's clasping the hands together.
It doesn't have to be anything anyone would notice,
But you,
But we begin to start to cultivate a practice that feels comforting to us when we are really in the thick of it.
And then that way,
When we are practicing meditation at a time and place and space that works for us,
We're allowing ourselves to kind of practice without the actual overwhelm happening.
Although as we know,
And I say,
Every meditation is different.
So you may come to a practice where you are feeling really overwhelmed in that moment and that's okay too.
Sometimes it's just helpful to have a practice and kind of explore overwhelm when you're not actually in the heightened space of it.
Coming to a comfortable seat.
Whatever that looks like for you today.
Taking a deep breath in and a gentle exhale out.
And doing that one more time,
Deep inhale in and a deep exhale out.
Maybe you've had a long day or everything feels like a lot,
Or maybe you've had the greatest day.
This is a time to get settled,
To allow yourself to be exactly as you are.
And know that nothing has to be any different.
With this practice,
We just notice our mind,
Our heart,
As a way to cultivate a sense of ease and presence.
And these two things don't just magically occur.
Your mind may be a little bit distracted today.
And that's okay too.
So we'll take a few moments here and just connect in with the breath.
I'm going to watch our time.
And what we're doing here is really breathing into the body.
So deep inhale in,
Gentle exhale out.
I can see the swaying trees in front of me.
And I invite you to visualize that.
Just like a tree blowing in the wind.
And exhaling out,
Allowing your energy to settle into the body.
And just seeing what this feels like today.
As the thoughts arise,
Just gently coming back to the breath.
Really feeling into your settled body.
If you feel a little sleepy,
Maybe you gently open your eyes for a moment.
And sensing into what does it feel like when your body is at ease.
Knowing there's nowhere to go,
Nowhere to be.
You're simply just being asked to be exactly as you are.
And working with the idea that right now,
This is the truth of you.
In this moment,
Right now,
There's nothing to change,
Nothing to fix.
We can embrace all parts of ourselves here.
And I invite you to think about a time in your life that's already passed,
Where you felt a sense of overwhelm.
Picking something easy,
Not anything too challenging,
Just something to work with.
Kind of recalling how you were feeling,
What was happening.
And bringing the sense of presence that you've cultivated to this moment.
Gently asking yourself silently the question,
What did I need in that moment?
What did I need in that moment of overwhelm?
And there's no right or wrong answer.
It's really whatever comes to you.
Just asking that simple question.
And even if the answer isn't immediate,
It's okay.
Because when we feel overwhelmed,
And we can touch the ground,
And we can touch back in to what do I need right now?
There's often a very subtle answer.
And only with practicing meditation,
We can allow ourselves to get quiet enough to see what that answer is.
Maybe the answer is to breathe.
Maybe the answer is to step away from whatever's happening.
And when we can allow ourselves to kindly investigate what is helpful for us in a moment of overwhelm,
Through meditation practice,
We plant the seed.
We plant the seed for the next time,
And we're feeling all over the place,
Or unsure,
Insecure,
Or whatever it is,
Angry.
We have these moments of overwhelm,
And we can remind ourselves of this very moment right here,
With this simple question of what do I need?
We know that over time,
Our overwhelm exists.
And we don't have to meet it with judgment.
We can be kind.
We can offer self-compassion.
And over time,
Our overwhelm takes on a different story.
So on this next deep inhale in,
And a gentle exhale out,
Kindly bringing your mind's eye to a place in the body where perhaps it acts as the signal,
A calm for overwhelm.
This is kind of the reference of supportive touch as well.
So maybe you clasp your hands.
Maybe it's putting one hand on your leg.
The idea is to align the body with the mind in this moment.
And if perhaps supportive touch doesn't work for you today,
That's fine.
It's finding a space in your mind,
Perhaps just mentally connecting with the heart.
Connecting with the feet on the ground.
It's really about staying true to what feels natural and resonates with how you're really doing in that moment.
So connecting in with this mind-body connection and then we take 10 easy breaths at whatever pace you want.
And really feeling into this place in your body that is representing a sense of ease.
Not to try to bypass over the overwhelm or pretend it's not existing.
It's about having a tool to go to.
It's like the friend that hands you the blanket when you're cold.
This place in the body represents the blanket.
So just counting silently to yourself 10 easy breaths at whatever pace you want to go.
Breathing in that really precious place that you can give to yourself in these moments.
The place that feels good to you,
Feels right.
So the next time you're in the meeting or you're on the phone call or you're in the conversation where the heart starts to race and those feelings of overwhelm start to come in,
We want to bring our mind's eye back to this moment where simply taking 10 breaths and connecting to the body allows for this place of neutrality to be with exactly what is.
Continuing to breathe deeply.
We can invite in the overwhelm.
We don't have to run from it.
Bringing these moments of practice to our daily life can really have a profound impact when stress is arising.
So sharing a kind reminder with yourself of where this place is in the body that's that invitation,
That blanket to provide comfort,
To provide confidence.
It's really just about recognizing whatever overwhelm is showing up.
We have this way of looking at what we need.
And everything we have is right inside of us already.
So taking this next deep inhale in and a gentle exhale out sharing a reminder that you are always enough as is.
And when you're ready,
Gently opening your eyes.
Thank you so much for meditating with me today and I hope to be meditating again with you soon.
