To begin this meditation please bring kind awareness to why you chose this topic,
How your belly,
Chest,
And head feel when you reflect on this topic,
The emotions that you can associate with these visceral feelings,
The positive or negative impact of any stories you believe in regarding this topic,
The fact that many others are feeling very similarly about this topic as you,
How you might feel with an increased awareness around this topic,
And when you can apply increased mindfulness that you will gain from this practice with me today to this very topic in your day-to-day life.
Hello and welcome to the self-compassionate journey through the body.
This is a meditation that will guide us through the physical body one area at a time while we cultivate kindness as best as we can towards our physical being.
So please note that even though our intention is to cultivate compassion towards the body you may notice that many unkind thoughts will arise.
Some of these thoughts may be critical and negative voices of the past that somehow we have developed to believe that it is our own voice and so on and so forth.
I know that many of us have a difficult relationship with certain parts of ourselves,
Our body,
And so whatever arises is a natural.
If a thought like this arises see if you can simply label it as a thought that is not an absolute truth and return your attention to the present moment.
So take a moment to settle into a comfortable position sitting up or laying down and once you gather yourself into that position I kindly welcome you to start by noticing the surface beneath you.
You can also let your eyes close if that feels comfortable for you.
For many trauma survivors they prefer to have their eyes open and if so please keep a soft gaze on an item of comfort in front of you.
Now notice where you might be resisting being supported,
Where you might still be holding yourself up or holding tension and just see if just for the next few minutes you can gently let go and allow yourself to be held and supported by the earth and gravity.
Now gather your attention at your feet.
Just notice any positive or even negative sensations in this area.
Whether it's discomfort or maybe a sense of relaxation and calm or even no sensation at all.
Feeling nothing is still feeling something.
We often forget this.
Regardless of what is happening see if you can allow some self-compassion to flow down from your head all the way to your feet and as that self-compassion travels down to your feet be mindful of all that your feet have supported you in.
See if you can offer your feet a sense of acceptance or even forgiveness no matter how they feel or how they look.
This is all that we're doing just allowing just a bit of warmth some kindness and some compassion to the flow to your feet and when you are ready gently shift your focus towards your legs and again you might notice a resistance especially if any parts of your legs such as your knees or anything else have given you problems in the past or just something about your legs that have been critiqued and again certain thoughts arise in connection to your legs.
Just notice those thoughts like a car passing through in traffic.
We don't have to judge the thought.
Often when we judge a thought we are already adding stress to an already distressful experience and during these uncomfortable moments take nice cleansing breaths in and on the way out send that compassion to your legs,
To your shins,
Your calves,
Your knees and your thighs and see if you can allow a sense of compassion warmth or maybe gratitude to flow to all of these parts because they have done the best they can over the years and so have you.
Now shifting your focus once again to the pelvic area,
To the stomach,
The digestive organs,
Reproductive organs and even your seat and again gently noticing anything that may arise when we bring our focus to this area.
See if you can allow a sense of ease,
Of goodwill,
Of empathy to seep into your pelvic area,
Your stomach,
Digestive organs,
Reproductive organs and your seat like tea steeping in warm water and you can send them love for the knowledge that they will continue to do their job as best as they can the same way you are.
Allowing whatever is there to be there,
Seeing if you can tune into a sense of kindness and even perhaps a letting go of this area and you may place one or two hands on your belly and see if you can imagine a feeling of unconditional love flowing through them from your heart.
I would like for you to consider how would you feel towards these parts of your body if you thought of them as your friends,
Loved ones,
People you honor and respect,
Care for and feel tons of compassion towards.
What would you say to them?
How would you receive them if they were having a hard time?
And to the best of your ability of course see if you can cultivate a feeling of gentleness and warmth towards those areas in your body.
You might even speak to some of these areas as thank you.
I appreciate what you do to the best of your ability.
I wish you ease,
Health and well-being.
And just notice what it feels like in the rest of your body to model and demonstrate such kindness towards these regions.
Now see if you can allow that feeling of warmth and kindness to spread upwards into your chest area.
Notice how it feels in your lungs to invite compassion and acceptance with every inhale.
Allowing your lungs to fill with air.
See if you can bring a sense of gratitude,
Softness and kind presence to all of the cells that help you to breathe in and to breathe out.
And you might allow your focus now to shift gradually to include your heart as well.
The beating heart,
The ribcage that protects it and the muscles all around.
Filling the space with sensations of kindness.
If kindness is too much we can meet it with neutrality.
And if you like or are or if you're able to,
You can use your hands to connect with this area of your body.
Putting one hand on your lower chest and one on your upper chest.
Giving thanks for the job that these parts of you do every moment of every day.
Noticing again if any self-critical thoughts arise.
And to the best of your ability seeing if you can gently let them go.
And you don't have to force them to leave.
Instead welcome a gentle softening.
If you can feel your heartbeat you can allow each beat to bring you into the present.
Into compassion and into gratitude or neutrality.
Nothing placed in negative judgment.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
And now allow some of this compassion to melt outwards into your shoulders,
Down your arms and into your hands.
Allowing these parts to soak up the kindness that is spreading and expanding throughout your body.
Allowing them to accept as best as they can the compassion that is being offered.
And acknowledge that all of these parts of you like the rest of your body are doing their best to.
Perhaps you have forgotten this in the past but right now in this present moment you are allowing love to flow through.
I welcome you to experience the sensations of your hands,
Wrists,
Arms and shoulders simply being.
Experiencing and receiving compassion just for existing.
And now allowing this sense of self-compassion to rise up into your neck,
To your jaw area,
Your cheeks,
Your ears,
Your nose,
Your forehead and right into the top of your head.
Allowing compassion to permeate every cell,
Every muscle,
Even every tooth.
Because there is nothing you need to do to earn or be worthy of this compassion.
You are naturally born with it and are naturally deserving.
There is absolutely nothing about you that needs to change to be worthy of love,
Security and safety.
That love,
Security and safety although may have been taken away because of negative experiences in the past.
We choose,
It is our option to allow it to be available from our ourselves to ourselves at all times.
We can remember that when we think we are not enough,
That this is simply just a thought pattern that we've learned.
And in the same way we can learn that we are enough.
That we are perfectly and perfect humans worthy of our own compassion and kindness.
We can thank ourselves and our body to come back to this place that is our home,
To the best of our ability.
A place where we try our best to care physically,
Emotionally,
Nourishing it with kindness and gentleness.
And just take a few more moments here to thank your body exactly as it is right now.
And I thank you for practicing with me today.
And when you feel ready you can slowly open your eyes.
