Relax & Release Tension Stored In Your Muscles

Relax and release tension you are storing in your muscles by relaxing the nervous system through the use of your breath and awareness of your current state (mindfulness). This will enable you to switch off and move away from a feeling of tight stiff muscles and into a softer and more comfortable body.

A recording based on skills and teachings from research in neuroscience and Yogic philosophy.

Transcript

Hello and welcome back to my channel.

My name is Tammy and we will be going on a short journey of non-sleep deep breaths,

Focusing on letting go.

So as you begin to get comfortable,

I recommend the use of something like a blanket because when you have something covering you,

It helps the body feel a lot safer.

To help your mind rest a bit easier this journey.

And this idea of letting go can be quite daunting for a lot of people,

So I invite you to travel as deep into this as you are ready for today.

When you are ready,

Closing down your eyes and turning your attention towards your body and noticing if there's anything you can do to make your body even just a tiny bit more comfortable.

Allowing your jaw to begin to soften and your lips to part.

Your eyebrows to naturally drift away from each other and soften through the forehead.

Releasing the shoulders a bit further away from your ears.

Lower back to sink a bit deeper into the surface beneath you and your feet to drop down by their sides.

Allowing your body with each exhale to become a bit heavier.

Tuning in with where you feel your body in contact with the earth beneath you.

Noticing what shape your body is imprinting on the earth beneath you.

And then taking a deep breath in through the nose,

Followed by an extra sip of air in again through the nose and then a long extended breath out through the mouth.

Repeat this two or three more times at your own pace,

Allowing the body to become a little bit heavier with each exhale you take.

And know it's okay for the surface beneath you to hold you in this time and that whatever weight you are carrying does not need to be carried by you alone.

Then turning your attention back into your breathing and you're going to return to breathing in and out through the nose if that's possible for you.

You're going to begin to lengthen through your exhales and it doesn't matter how long they are extended by,

Just try and make them a little bit longer than your inhales.

Noticing the gentle rise and fall of your belly as you breathe,

The expansion as you breathe in and the deflation back down as you breathe out again.

And with each exhale you take,

Allow your body to become a little bit heavier and allow the earth to support you a little bit more with each breath you take.

Allow the earth to hold you a little bit more in this time with each breath that you take.

And I'm going to guide you through parts of your body to find a little bit more release through your muscles.

So drifting your attention to the top of your head,

The crown of your head and just noticing the weight of your entire head on the surface beneath you.

Allowing it to become a bit looser on your neck so it only sits gently onto your shoulders as if someone else is holding the weight of your head and you do not need to use any tension to hold it where it is.

And then drifting your attention down to your forehead and then just bringing your gaze gently between your eyebrows but a little bit higher.

The area of your third eye and keeping your focus in this region.

Taking a deep breath in again through the nose followed by that extra sip of air in and then a long breath out through the mouth.

Keeping this gaze gently between the eyebrows but a little bit higher.

Again another deep breath in followed by that second breath of air in and then again a long breath out through the mouth.

Let it go and then drifting your focus down into your cheeks on your face.

The cheekbones flowing round to each side of your jaw and again allowing that softness and release of both of your lips away from each other.

Into the tip of the tongue and the root of the tongue.

The entire tongue in the mouth becomes a bit softer using as minimal effort as possible to keep it where it is.

Maintaining this weightless feeling of your head into your neck and perhaps even finding a very small gentle movement into the head from left to right,

From side to side.

Only about one centimetre just to allow you to find a bit more softness into the muscles through the neck to avoid this rigidity that we sometimes hold as tension into the neck and the shoulders and then drifting your attention down into your chest.

Maybe you can even feel the beating of your heart.

Maybe the movement of your lungs and your ribs as you breathe.

Feel the chest expand as you take another deep breath in through the nose followed by a long breath out through the mouth.

Repeat this a few more times,

Again a deeper breath in but keeping it quite soft and then a long breath out through the mouth,

Making the exhale a little bit longer than your inhale if possible.

And with each breath you take,

A bit like releasing pressure from a tire,

Allow this pressure to begin to release from the upper back.

Allow the ribcage to melt away from the shoulders with your breath.

Allow the weight of your ribcage to be taken by the earth beneath you and in your mind's eye,

Imagining putting down whatever it is you're carrying in this moment.

Knowing that whatever it is,

It is still safe and it will be there waiting for you at the end of this session.

But just know this time is your time to focus purely on you.

Taking a deeper but gentle breath in,

Followed by this long releasing breath out again.

One more like this,

Let it all go.

We often spend a lot of time helping other people,

Supporting other people,

Holding other people.

But right now I want you to focus on holding yourself and allowing the earth beneath you to hold you.

Allowing the comfort of the blanket on your body to keep you safe.

And then drifting your attention down into your lower back and just let your attention linger here for a little bit longer.

Imagine some of the tension beginning to lift away,

Maybe even as if someone is gently massaging your lower back.

You're being fully supported by a fluffy pillow and it is taking no effort and no energy to hold your lower back in position where it is.

It is just there.

It is just being.

Taking a breath in and a long breath out through the mouth.

It's okay to let it go.

And then bringing your attention to the entire length of your spine this time as it runs from the base by the tailbone all the way up through the torso to the crown of the head.

Even again feeling that gentle weight of the head on the surface beneath you.

And each time you breathe in I want you to imagine that your body becomes a little bit lighter.

As if maybe it even begins to float,

Lifting away from the surface beneath you.

Lighter and lighter with each breath in that you take.

And then as you exhale,

Each time you exhale I want you to imagine and feel your body becoming a little bit heavier with each out breath you take.

So with every breath in you become lighter and then with every breath out you become heavier.

A feeling of weightlessness and a feeling of complete support.

A feeling of letting go.

Knowing you are safe where you are.

You are being held where you are.

And then just quietly saying to yourself in your mind I am safe.

I am protected.

I am loved.

I am loved.

And I am enough exactly as I am.

I am enough exactly as I am.

Just fully allow yourself to be with any emotions that arise from these statements.

Knowing it's okay to feel and express any emotions that arise here.

And again a slightly deeper breath in through the nose and this time we're going to breathe out with a sigh and your sigh can be as audible as you want it to be.

And repeating this again about two or three more times.

Again a deep breath in followed by an audible sigh out through the mouth.

Let go of anything still remaining.

And then beginning to bring some movement into your fingers and your toes.

Arms and your legs.

Take your time as there is no rush here.

You might want to begin to take a stretch out.

Then placing each hand on the opposite shoulder to embrace in a final self hug.

And you can squeeze as much as you want to and allow yourself to hold yourself in this beautiful moment.

After some time you might want to hug the knees into the belly and gently sway from left to right to find a bit of a massage through the back of the body.

And then whenever you are ready you can begin to open your eyes and come back.