Welcome.
Make sure you're as comfortable as possible.
If you need to make any adjustments to get yourself even more comfortable,
You can do that now.
Gently close your eyes if they're not already closed.
And let's begin by focusing on your breathing.
Notice how the air feels as it moves in and out of your nostrils or your mouth.
Take a moment now to follow your next several breaths.
If your mind wanders,
You can gently return your attention back to your breathing.
Bring your attention now to the surface beneath you and see if you can really let your body soften and surrender into that surface.
Let your entire body feel the support of the cushion or the surface beneath you.
Nothing to hold up,
Nowhere else to be.
Allow your facial muscles to soften and relax.
Give your forehead and your eyes and your jaw permission to relax even more.
Feel your neck and shoulders soften as you breathe.
With every exhalation,
Allow tension to roll right off of your shoulders.
As you breathe,
Feel your back expanding as you inhale and releasing all tension as you exhale completely.
I will be reciting a series of statements that are intended to be directed to your body.
You can listen to my words and try to absorb them,
Or you can repeat after me silently or out loud,
And you can direct these statements to your body.
Of course,
Feel free to change or leave out any words that don't resonate for you.
We're going to start with compassionate body apologies.
You can feel free to keep your arms and hands resting by your side,
Or you can place one or both hands on your heart or anywhere on your body as we direct these compassionate apologies to your body.
Dear body,
I'm sorry for criticizing you.
I'm sorry for comparing you to others.
I'm sorry for pushing you past your limits.
I'm sorry for the times I've ignored your signals.
I'm sorry for all the times you felt hurt.
I'm sorry you've had to endure the wounds created by our culture.
Let's take a couple of deep breaths now.
If any emotions have come up,
I encourage you to welcome them with permission and compassion.
Now I'll give you a moment to see if there are any additional apologies that you want to make to your body or any particular body part.
It's important to remember that anything you've done to your body or thought about your body that was anything less than kind was not your fault.
It was learned.
So these apologies are intended to be filled with compassion,
Not self-blame.
I'll give you a moment now to see if you'd like to express any additional compassionate apologies to your body.
Now let's move to gratitude,
Expressing appreciation to your body.
Again,
You can try to absorb my words or you can repeat after me and speak directly to your body.
Thank you,
Body,
For all the amazing things you do.
Thank you for the experiences you enable me to have.
Thank you for functioning even when I forget about you.
Thank you for being my buddy in this life.
Thank you for enabling me to be here on this planet.
Let's take a couple of deep breaths together now.
I'll give you a moment now to see if there are any additional appreciations that you'd like to express to your body or any particular body part.
Or you can simply focus on breathing and feeling the surface holding you up.
And now for the last part of this practice,
We'll be setting some intentions.
As always,
You can feel free to change up any of my words if they don't fit for you.
Dear body,
I will treat you with care and respect.
I will look at you with a kind gaze.
I will appreciate you more.
I will treat you like a beloved child or friend.
I will honor your signals and needs.
Let's take one final moment to see if there are any other intentions that you want to set with your body.
You can even check inside and see if any intuitive messages come up around intentions that your body would like you to set.
And I'll be back in a moment.
I wonder how this practice was for you.
If your connection with your body has been anything less than kind and respectful,
It's really important to remember that you were taught to disconnect from or judge your body through no fault of your own.
We are not born with body judgments.
We learn them.
And fortunately,
We can unlearn them.
We can unlearn patterns that are unkind or unhealthy,
And we can learn new ones.
And just like parenting a child,
We don't have to and we don't get to do this perfectly.
Now,
Once again,
Return your attention to your breathing.
Become aware of all the places your body meets the surface beneath you.
See if you can notice any sounds around you,
Close by,
Maybe further away.
If you're ready,
You can open your eyes and take a look around your surroundings.
Notice a few colors and shapes.
You can move your body a little bit.
Take a little stretch if you'd like.
Thank you for joining me in this process of befriending your one and only body.
I am wishing you lots of self-compassion and self-care.
