Welcome to your guided meditation.
This guided meditation focuses on the topic of self-expression,
On identifying,
Honoring and expressing what needs to be expressed.
In yoga we connect the health of the thyroid gland with a person's ability to express one's own needs,
Desires and values,
And with a sense of being heard.
With a sincere feeling that you are heard,
That you are free to act on your natural need to express your own personal truth,
Without fear or judgment of the environment.
What we choose to say,
When and how we say it,
How we interact with our environment is important to us because sometimes what we don't say,
What we don't express and repress can simmer inside of us and eventually become the seed of anxiety,
Anger or illness.
For this reason it is important to recognize whether and what exists within us that requires space to be expressed and released,
To be set free,
And how that expression can create more space for the free flow of air and relaxation of the muscles and gland of the throat.
To support you in the process of uncovering and expressing what may need to be expressed,
We will begin with relaxation and proceed with introspection.
So let's begin.
Prepare by resting your body on the ground,
Either by sitting and grounding through your sitting bones on a comfortable surface below you,
Or lying the body down,
Grounding through your whole back body,
Signaling to your mind that it is time for rest.
Time to take rest.
In your meditative position of choice,
Become comfortable and begin to relax by settling your attention on your breath,
Noticing your breath.
Inhale aware of your in-breath,
Exhale aware of your out-breath,
Inhaling,
Feeling the body expanding wherever in your body you feel the body expanding,
Exhaling,
Feeling the body grounding wherever in your body you feel the body grounding,
Inhaling,
Inviting relaxation into the body,
Exhaling,
Releasing any tension out of the body,
Feeling how the breath moves the body and how the body is moved by the breath,
How the breath supports the body and how the body supports the breath.
Inhale and exhale,
In and out,
In and out,
In and out,
Giving yourself the time to be in this space,
In this body,
Resting in this body and in this space,
Resting the body in space.
Now with that focus on your breath and your body,
Direct your attention to the area of your throat,
To the area of your jaw and notice any sensation in that area as you breathe.
Feel the temperature of the air as it moves in and out of that area,
The area of your throat,
Hear any sound the air makes as you breathe in that area and observe the space the air creates and closes as it enters and leaves the throat.
Consciously fill that space with every inhale and relax it with every exhale and if it feels nice and easy for you,
You may even chant or hum with every exhalation,
Noticing the sound,
Noticing the vibrations you create in the area of your throat.
Slowly come back to your natural breath,
Staying focused on the area of your throat.
Sometimes,
Especially in the moments when we feel silenced,
We unconsciously close off this space as if we are protecting it from the inside.
Most of us have had experiences where we didn't manage to adequately express our needs,
Desires and values,
When our boundaries were not respected or when we didn't even know how to set them.
If we are too often in such situations,
We become accustomed to censoring ourselves,
To withdraw into ourselves,
Or speak the opposite of what we feel to please our environment.
And little by little,
We may forget to hear ourselves and our needs,
Let alone express them.
If this resonates with you,
Know that you are in good company and know that with reflection and practice,
You can find and express your genuine voice.
Inhale,
Aware of your in-breath and exhale,
Aware of your out-breath.
And exhale,
Aware of your out-breath.
Slowly bring to mind a conversation or a situation in which you were not able to express your authentic self,
A situation in which you felt silenced,
A situation in which your opinion may have been dismissed as irrelevant,
Or misplaced.
As you continue thinking about the situation,
Notice what happens in your throat.
What happens to the flow of air?
Sometimes,
Looking back at these moments,
We may regret we remained silent.
We blame ourselves for allowing the other to silence us.
But instead of judging ourselves,
It's important to understand that the reason we stayed silent was precisely because of our innate need for staying safe.
Our unconscious mind has registered the danger and the price we could have paid,
Had we spoken out.
So that silence,
That retreat into ourselves,
Was a defense mechanism.
And instead of regretting it or blaming ourselves,
We need to understand ourselves.
To be compassionate to ourselves.
For we've done the best we could.
Breathe in deeply and breathe out deeply.
Now slowly bring to mind a conversation or situation in which you felt able to express and assert your authentic self.
A conversation in which you felt confident in your own voice,
In expressing yourself in the way you wanted and in which you were heard the way you wanted.
A situation in which you let your voice run free,
Like a bird set free.
Remember how you expressed your values and your truth.
Your autonomy.
Notice how that feels in your body.
How it feels in the area of your throat.
How it feels in your heart.
To hear your own truth.
To feel your own truth.
Breathing in deeply and breathing out deeply.
And ask yourself,
In my life,
In my relationships,
What part of me is silenced?
What do I need to express more of?
In which areas of my life,
In which relationships,
Is it helpful to be more assertive?
When does my autonomy matter more to me than a desire to please another?
In which relationship in my life,
Maybe even the one to myself,
Do I need to make more space for self-expression?
And if it feels helpful,
Before closing this meditation,
Make a commitment to yourself that you will honor your own truth and strive to find a way to express it in a way that supports you in living in accordance to that truth,
To what makes you who you are.
To what matters most to you.
Through becoming aware of what we have silenced and through practicing self-expression,
We define and redefine what we value and desire in our lives,
Noticing that we always have a choice in how and when to express ourselves.
When we successfully fulfill our need to express ourselves and be heard,
We become a little bit closer to living a life in accordance with our own values.
And when we live a life in accordance with our own values,
We live a little healthier and more comfortable.
One last time,
Direct your attention to the area of your throat,
To the area of your jaw.
Notice any sensations in that area.
Feel the temperature of the air as it moves in and out of your body.
Feel the breath of that area,
The area of your throat.
Hear any sound the air makes as you breathe in that area.
And observe the space the air creates and closes as it enters and leaves the throat.
With the next three exhalations,
Feel that space with the voice and vibrations,
Either by chanting or humming.
Thank you for your trust,
And may you always find a way to express yourself in a way that helps you live your life in accordance to your values.
Namaste.
