Mindfulness Made Simple: Breath Awareness For Stress Relief

Mindfulness Made Simple is a series of gentle, accessible practices to support stress relief in everyday life. Each session offers a simple way to explore a core mindfulness skill. In this practice, you’ll use the breath as an anchor for attention, noticing when the mind wanders and gently returning again.

Transcript

This is part of a short series called Mindfulness Made Simple. A collection of gentle practices for beginners and anyone returning to meditation. For the next few minutes, We'll focus on the breath. I invite you to find a comfortable, Safe, And quiet place to practice. And if it feels right to do so, Gently close your eyes or take a soft gaze downward. I invite you to notice the support beneath you, Your chair, The floor, Wherever you are. And remember that you can adjust yourself at any time. This is your practice. We'll start by bringing attention to the breath. Go ahead and take a deep breath in. And a deep breath out. The breath can be thought of as an anchor. A steady place to rest your attention. The breath is something that's always available to us. So it's an easy place to return to again and again when our mind wanders. And as you breathe right now, Just notice. Notice the temperature of the air as it enters your nostrils. And the temperature and the sensation as the air leaves your mouth. You might notice the gentle rise and fall of the chest or the soft movement of the belly. Breathing in. Breathing out. Breathing in. From breathing out. And continue to breathe at your own pace. You may notice that your attention doesn't always stay here. It may drift or move away at times. And that's completely normal. When you notice that has happened, There's no need to judge it. Simply return to your anchor, Return to the breath. Begin again. Because each time you notice and return, You're practicing mindfulness. So for a few more moments we'll continue in this way, Simply breathing in and breathing out at our own pace. We'll end this practice where we began with a deep breath in. And a deep breath out. And now I invite you to expand your awareness to the room around you. Flutter your eyes open. And take a moment to just notice how you feel. Thank you so much for taking a few minutes to practice breath awareness today.