Hi friends,
I'm Amberlee,
And first I just want to welcome you today.
Wherever you are,
Whatever you've been doing,
I'm really glad you're here.
If you're able,
I would love for you to find a comfortable position,
Sitting or lying down,
And if you're doing this first thing in the morning,
You can even stay in bed.
Before we begin,
I want you to know,
Your nervous system has been working so hard to keep you safe.
And right now,
We're going to give it a little bit of time and the permission to soften.
So let's start by noticing.
Not changing,
Not moving,
Just noticing.
What does your body feel like right now,
In this moment?
Maybe there's some tension in your jaw,
Tightness in your chest,
Or even a heaviness in your shoulders.
For me,
Some mornings it's all three.
So whatever's there,
It's okay.
Your body is communicating with you,
And that is so beautiful.
Now let's bring some gentle awareness to your breath.
Not forcing it to be deep or different,
Just feeling it.
Notice where do you feel your breath most clearly?
Maybe it's in your nostrils,
Maybe it stops at your throat,
Or maybe it makes it all the way down to your belly.
And now,
Let's begin to lengthen your exhale,
Ever so slightly,
Breathe in naturally through your nose,
And let's exhale a little longer than before,
Like a gentle sigh.
Again,
Breathe in for three,
And softly release for four.
This longer exhale is a signal to your nervous system.
It's a small whisper that says,
You're safe,
You can rest.
Now let's bring attention to your hands.
Notice,
Without moving them,
Can you feel the temperature of your palms?
Maybe there's a slight tingling,
Maybe they're cold.
I'd like you to gently press your palms together in front of your heart.
Not hard,
Just enough to feel the contact.
Maybe you can feel your breath deepening as you do.
This is called grounding through touch.
We're reminding our body,
I'm here,
I'm present.
Keep that gentle pressure with you for three slow breaths.
Inhale for three,
Exhale for four,
Inhale for three,
Exhale for four,
And repeat this a couple more times as your palms gently press together.
Now release your hands and let them rest wherever feels natural.
Notice if anything's shifted,
Even if it's the smallest shift.
Maybe your shoulders have dropped just so slightly,
Or your jaw has unclenched.
Or maybe nothing's changed yet,
And that's so okay too.
Let's do a gentle body scan together.
Not to fix anything,
But simply to land in your body.
When I started this practice,
Body scans were really difficult for me.
Staying still for anything longer than a couple of seconds often left me feeling trapped.
And yet the more I gave myself permission to see what I was feeling,
The more in my body I could be.
So if you've been doing something else,
Or maybe multitasking,
I invite you to just pause.
Take a seat if you can,
And let's just notice.
We're going to start at the top of our head.
Notice any sensations.
Maybe you have your hair up.
And it's tight.
Maybe you have tingling.
Or maybe there's nothing at all.
Let's move the awareness down to your face,
Your forehead,
Your eyes,
Your jaw.
And if you notice any tension,
See if you can gently soften it,
Or even just acknowledge it.
We'll move down to the neck and shoulders.
These places hold so much.
And if it feels good,
You can slowly roll your shoulders back.
Maybe lean your neck to the left,
To the right,
Ever so slowly.
And now your chest,
Your heart space.
If you'd like,
I invite you to place one hand on your chest.
Feel your heartbeat.
Feel your breath on the back of your hand as you breathe in and out.
Let this be a reminder that you are alive.
You are here.
And now let's move to our belly.
Let it soften.
As women,
So often we can be tempted to suck it in,
Or be thin,
Or sit up the straightest you need.
And just an invitation here.
Let the belly soften.
Notice your hips,
Your legs,
All the way down to your toes.
Maybe your feet are touching the ground,
Or the back of your legs resting on your bed.
A reminder that you are held.
Held by your body,
By the earth,
By this moment.
And as we close our time together,
I want you to think of one word.
Just one that describes how you desire to feel today.
Not what you want to do,
But how do you want to be?
Maybe it's calm,
Soft,
Grounded,
Open.
What's that word that comes up for you?
Take a couple of deep breaths.
Don't overthink it.
I want you to hold that word gently in your awareness as you go through your day.
And as you take your next breath in,
Imagine breathing in that quality all the way through your body.
Start at the crown of your head and let it just fill every inch of your being.
Breathing in the calm,
Soft,
Whatever your word might be.
And as you exhale,
Let go of anything that doesn't serve that feeling.
And as you come back,
You may start to wiggle your toes,
Your fingers.
You may start to blink your eyes as you come back to the day.
And may you carry this feeling with you.
May it be a reminder of what's possible and what a gift our body can be and our mind can be.
I'm so glad you joined me for this practice.
I'd love it if you shared in the comments or reached out how did today's practice feel for you.
And share with the other students what word you took with you.
Until next time,
I'm Amber Lee.
