Welcome to a dash of meditation.
This meditation is designed to be repeated daily as a way to help you develop a consistent mindfulness practice.
These next five minutes are for you.
So find a seated position,
Put down whatever came before this moment,
And let your body find stillness.
Sit up nice and tall,
Elongating through the spine,
Shoulder blades down and back.
Close your eyes or soften your gaze,
And bring your attention to your breath.
Take a long inhale through the nose,
And exhale through the mouth.
Now let's check in with a gentle body scan.
Begin at the crown of your head,
Melting slowly down.
Soften your forehead,
Relax your brows,
And unclench your jaw.
Notice the neck and shoulders.
If there's tension,
Let it release on your next exhale.
Bring awareness down through the arms and hands,
And allow them to be heavy.
Move down through the chest,
Noticing the rise and fall to the rhythm of your breath.
Continuing down through the belly.
Soften here,
Let it expand freely as you inhale.
Scan the hips,
Legs,
And feet,
Feeling the weight of your body supported by the earth beneath you.
Take a deep breath in,
And let the whole body relax with a long exhale.
As you continue breathing,
See if you can let the exhale be a bit longer than the inhale.
You might find it helpful to introduce inhaling to a count of four,
And exhaling to a count of six.
These elongated exhales are a signal to your body that it's safe to relax.
If your mind begins to wander,
Gently bring your attention back to the count of the breath.
Continue this rhythm,
Feeling more present with each round.
Now,
Release the count,
And let your breath return to its natural rhythm.
Check in.
Notice how your body feels,
Perhaps lighter,
Calmer,
Or more at ease.
Take a final deep breath in,
Filling the lungs completely.
Exhale,
Let it go,
Softening fully into the present moment.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes or lift your gaze,
And come back to your space.
Until next time,
Carry this sense of relaxation with you the rest of your day.
