In this meditation,
We're going to practice some body and breath awareness.
And then I'm going to drop in the words coronavirus to see if there's any impact in the mind and the body and to see if you can be okay with that.
And then we're going to see if we can imagine some positive effects of this situation that's unfolding.
So finding a comfortable position to either sit in or maybe it might be nice to lie down and it might be a nice thing to do to place your hand somewhere on your body that could do with some soothing.
So maybe on the belly area or on the heart to give yourself some self-soothing.
Taking some deeper breaths out in through the nose and out through the mouth.
In through the nose and out through the mouth.
By deepening the breath and lengthening the out-breath,
We're sending a signal to the nervous system that it's okay to rest,
To relax.
But in this moment,
You're okay,
You're safe.
Closing the eyes,
If you haven't done already,
And allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm.
Feeling the contact with the chair,
The floor.
And allowing yourself to sink down into it.
To feel held,
To feel supported,
Rooted,
Grounded.
Noticing any sounds you can hear right now.
Not searching for sounds,
Just letting sound arrive in your hearing.
Noticing the mood that you're starting this meditation with.
Maybe there's a sense of agitation or maybe you feel calm.
Is there anxiety or stress?
Maybe a sense of contentedness or neutrality?
Seeing if you can just notice and accept whatever you're feeling right now.
Softening the forehead.
Softening the eyes.
Softening the mouth and the jaw.
Softening the whole of the face.
And seeing what it's like to allow a slight smile.
This again sends a signal to the nervous system that it's safe.
Feeling the neck,
The shoulders.
If there's any tension here,
Then imagining that as you breathe in,
You breathe into the shoulders.
And as you breathe out,
You're breathing out from the shoulders and the neck.
And as you breathe in,
You're breathing out from the shoulders and the neck.
And as you breathe out,
You're breathing out from the shoulders and the neck.
Feeling the back area.
Feeling the chest.
Feeling the belly area.
Feeling the chest.
Seeing if it's possible to feel the breath down in the belly.
Feeling the arms hanging dead weight either side of the body.
Feeling the hands.
Shape of the hands.
Temperature.
Texture,
Pressure that your hands can feel.
Feeling the buttocks,
The hips,
The groin.
Feeling the thighs,
The knees,
The lower legs,
And the feet.
Choosing a place in the body that feels the most relaxed and calm as a safe zone that you can come back to.
Maybe the belly area,
Maybe the feet or the hands,
Or any area that feels particularly relaxed in the body.
And I'm now going to drop in the words coronavirus.
And just observing if there is any effect in the body or the mind when I say the words coronavirus.
If at any point it becomes too much,
You can move your attention to that place in the body that feels relaxed or even open your eyes.
But if it's possible,
Just letting yourself feel any feelings that arise when I say the words coronavirus.
Perhaps in the forehead or the jaw,
The shoulders or the belly.
Is there any tensing,
Energy moving emotion?
And is it possible to just let yourself feel it,
To let it be there?
Asking yourself the question,
Can I be with this?
Can I breathe with this feeling?
Trusting that if I can breathe with it,
Then I can be with it.
And now taking a deeper breath in.
And as you exhale,
Imagining any anxiety that you might have in your body floating away from you in a red balloon.
Higher and higher,
Up into the sky,
Getting smaller and smaller.
Drifting away from you.
Bringing your attention into the sensations of breathing.
And reminding yourself that right here,
Right now,
You're safe.
Everything's okay.
And starting to imagine if you can,
Positive outcomes that might result from this current situation.
Positive outcomes for you.
For the people you know.
For the wider society.
Positive outcomes for the environment.
Noticing how this feels in the body.
Noticing if there's any doubt or skepticism that something positive could happen.
Dare to dream.
I'm going to finish this meditation with the poem Allow by Dana Foulds.
There is no controlling life.
Try corralling a lightning bolt containing a tornado.
Dam a stream and it will create a new channel.
Resist and the tide will sweep you off your feet.
Allow and grace will carry you to higher ground.
The only safety lies in letting it all in.
The wild and the weak.
Fear,
Fantasies,
Failure and success.
When loss rips off the doors of the heart or sadness fails the vision with despair.
Practice becomes simply bearing the truth.
In the choice to let go of your known way of being.
The whole world is revealed to your new eyes.
In the choice to let go of your known way of being.
The whole world is revealed to your new eyes.
