Begin by sitting up straight with your back away from the back of the chair and your feet flat on the floor so that your posture is relaxed and alert.
With your eyes open,
Looking straight ahead,
Taking some deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth.
In through your nose and out through your mouth.
Breathing in calm.
Breathing in calm.
Breathing out tension.
As you breathe in,
Feel your body expanding.
And as you breathe out,
Feel your body softening.
By slowing down the breath,
We are calming the mind and relaxing the body.
On the next out breath,
Closing the eyes and allowing your breathing to return to its natural rhythm,
Not trying to breathe in any special way.
Feeling the weight of your body on the chair.
Noticing if you feel comfortable,
If you feel balanced.
Feeling the connection between your feet and the floor.
Noticing how your whole body is feeling right now.
Does your body feel tense in any way or does it feel relaxed?
Are there any feelings around at the moment?
Do you feel relaxed or tense,
Happy or sad,
Stressed or calm or maybe just neutral?
Whatever you're feeling,
Seeing if you can be okay with that.
Breathing in.
Breathing out.
Breathing in.
Breathing out.
Notice what your mind is doing right now.
Is it very busy or is it quiet?
Does it feel tense or does it feel relaxed?
Is it foggy or is it clear?
Whatever your mind is doing,
Whatever you're experiencing in your mind,
Seeing if you can be okay with that.
And now bringing your attention into your breath.
Resting your attention on the deepest place in your body that you can feel your breath.
Seeing if it's possible to be disinterested by your thoughts and curious about the sensations of breathing.
Investigating if your breath is deep or shallow.
If it's subtle or if it's heavy.
If it's regular or irregular.
If your mind wanders off,
That's completely normal.
Every time you notice that's happened,
You're improving your ability to stay present and to concentrate.
So you can celebrate it as a moment of progress.
So coming back to the breath each time you get distracted.
Resting your attention on the deepest place in your body that you can feel your breath.
You might find it helpful to count your breathing.
Breathing in counting 1,
Breathing out counting 2,
Breathing in counting 3,
Breathing out counting 4,
Up to 10 and then back again.
Breathing in counting 5,
Breathing out counting 6,
Up to 10 and then back again.
Seeing if it's possible to let go of control over when the in-breath arises.
It's impossible to get it wrong.
Just pay attention as best you can.
Preparing your breath.
No where to go,
Nothing to do.
Just sitting here,
Breathing.
Breathing.
Each time you notice that you've become distracted,
That's a moment of progress.
Acknowledge what you are thinking about and then bring your attention back to the breath.
Training your tension muscle.
Breathing.
Calling to mind someone or something that you feel grateful for in your life.
And as you hold this thing or this person in your mind,
Noticing if any feelings arise.
It's fine if nothing happens.
And now letting go of any focus for your attention.
And if your mind wants to wander off,
If it wants to think,
Let it do whatever it wants.
And now bringing your attention back to the body.
The weight of your body sitting on the chair and your feet connecting to the floor.
Noticing sound.
When you're ready,
Slowly opening your eyes,
Taking a moment to notice how you feel.
Congratulating yourself for taking this time to look after yourself,
Your mind.
