Hello,
Alicia Youssef here.
Today's mindfulness exercise is going to involve food or drink,
So you'll need a bit of time to prepare.
If you're choosing food,
Then I'll invite you to go and get one sultán,
For those in America,
A raisin,
Or prepare yourself a cup of herbal tea.
Herbal,
Because we don't want to have caffeine while we're doing this exercise,
And maybe peppermint or chamomile,
Something soothing.
Okay,
Now you're back,
Just settle in and get comfortable.
Legs relaxed,
Hips steady.
Spine elongated,
Chest open.
Your jaw softened,
And your gaze,
With your eyes either closed or the gaze,
Just gently resting on something without noticing it.
Now you're going to take the sultán,
Or a cooled cup of tea in your hand.
If you're using the sultán,
Just roll it between your forefinger and your thumb,
Just very gently.
Feel what it feels like,
Its ridges,
Perhaps the squishing it makes,
Just roll it around,
Slowly.
If your mind starts to wander,
Just come back to the texture.
For the cup of tea,
The same,
Feel its heat,
Sinking into your palms.
Feel the texture of the cup,
It's held in,
Is it smooth,
Is it rough?
Just keep bringing your mind back to this exercise,
Back to the feeling of touch.
Perhaps as you've kept rolling it,
The sultán has warmed up,
Become more flexible,
Compliant,
More squishy.
Now you're either going to place that sultán gently on your tongue,
Or raise up to your lips,
And take a small sip.
Now,
Come into your sense of taste.
Notice the taste of the cup,
Notice the flavor,
Warmth,
Just be with this experience.
Keep breathing.
There may be an urge to chew or to swallow,
Just notice it,
Without resisting it,
Just be aware of it,
Without moving.
Keep your jaw relaxed,
Your tongue,
The insides of your mouth.
If you're drinking tea,
My invitation to you now is to swallow.
If you have the raisin,
And start to roll it around on you with your tongue,
Just very gently.
If you're drinking tea,
Take another sip,
And just notice the sensations of the warmth flooding your mouth.
Just be with the scent of the herbs.
With the sultán,
You may notice the scent too,
The sweetness,
And also the taste,
The texture of the sultán on your tongue.
Really savor.
Perhaps,
You might push the sultán against the top of your mouth.
Just keep breathing,
The mind wanders come back to your mouth.
Keep taking slow,
Deep breaths.
There may be an urge again to swallow or to chew,
Just notice.
For those drinking tea,
The urge to swallow may be so strong,
Your brain telling you,
If I don't swallow,
I won't survive.
It's your amygdala,
Just notice it,
And keep breathing.
Notice how this isn't King Uriah Ways,
How you can breathe through your nose.
Stay with it as long as you can.
Once that impulse to swallow passes,
Then you can swallow.
The same with the sultána.
There may be an overwhelming urge to chew,
To squish,
To masticate,
And then swallow.
But again,
Just notice it.
These urges only last a couple of minutes.
At the most,
Just breathe.
Not resisting,
Just noticing.
If it feels hard to do,
Just come back with the breath,
The expansion and the contraction,
The rise and the fall.
For those drinking tea,
Now you've swallowed,
Have another sip and continue on with what you just did.
For those having the sultána,
Now is the time to chew.
I want you to start with your front teeth.
So very gently,
Using your tongue,
Place the sultána between your front teeth,
And gently bite down.
Notice any change in taste,
Or in texture.
Perhaps roll it to the next set of teeth,
Your incisors,
And try it again with them.
Just notice if there's any slight of sweetness.
Notice the texture,
Smell.
Now,
Move it to your molars.
Just slowly,
Just slowly,
You masticate.
Notice how that feels,
Squish the sultána between those strong,
Flat surfaces.
As you release the chew,
Just let your jaw soften,
And then notice as it tenses up again.
And relax it again.
You may need to use your tongue to scrape the sultána from between your molars,
As you get to the final piece,
The swallow.
Just notice,
Is your mouth full of saliva now?
Is it ready to take that sultána down?
Just keep breathing,
And notice as you swallow,
What happens in your throat,
What happens with your tongue,
To bring this intensity of focus to that area.
And now that that's complete,
Just come back.
If you're drinking tea,
Just put the sultána down.
Place the cup down.
And just notice how you feel.
Your mind,
And your body,
And your emotions.
Just take a few breaths here.
And when you're ready,
You can finish,
And open your eyes.
Thank you for joining me for this exercise.
