Hello there,
And welcome.
I'm Asya,
And today I will guide you through a mindfulness and embodiment-based practice I've written specifically to support you in navigating difficult emotions.
If this is something you feel called to explore with me today,
I invite you to find a quiet space,
If you can,
Where you may allow yourself to gently release any armor you may have been carrying and soften in your own time.
Notice whether there is anything that might distract you,
Such as buzzing or loud devices.
You might consider setting them aside just for a short while to reap the most benefit out of our time together.
I encourage you to bring to the practice any supporting element that may nurture a sense of warmth and compassion for yourself,
Whether it's a fuzzy blanket,
A grounding mat,
Loose or warm clothes,
A dim light,
A comforting cushion or pillow to place below your neck,
Knees or lower back.
The choice is yours.
Remember that you're responsible for taking care of yourself,
And in each moment,
You're free to pause or interrupt the practice if you wish.
May you trust your unique timing,
Individual process and edges.
May you trust your body and may you trust yourself.
May this space remind you that,
Just for now,
There's nothing you need to do,
No one you need to be and nowhere you need to go.
My invitation for you is to courageously come as you are,
Whatever that might mean for you at this time,
Giving yourself permission to bring any parts of yourself you feel safe enough to share in the space we're co-creating.
Drop as best as you can into your body and feel.
Now,
In your own time,
You may find a position that promotes a real sense of ease in your body,
Knowing you can make any adjustments if needed.
You might choose an inverted sitting position,
Also called the astronaut position,
Or you might prefer to lie down on a padded surface or mat.
Sit,
Ensuring that your hips are above your knees or stand with your feet hip-width apart.
Allow your body to lean into a position that feels kind,
Bringing your hands together over your heart and turning your awareness inwardly.
You may set an intention to support your practice.
The following questions may guide you.
What has brought me here today?
What does my heart yearn for?
Allow your answer or answers to be birthed intuitively and if nothing arises at this time,
That's okay too.
Alternatively,
You may say a prayer,
Connecting to your own image of God or a bountiful force greater than yourself.
When you're ready,
You may release your intention or prayer and trust that it will unfold and fulfill itself throughout and beyond the practice in a way that is outside of your conscious control.
I invite you to close your eyes or lower your gaze,
Whatever feels most comfortable,
Slowly adjusting your vision to your inner landscape,
Including physical sensations,
Thoughts and emotions.
Take your time with this.
You may place one hand or both hands on your belly or chest or you may prefer to allow your arms to rest heavily along the sides of your body.
You may choose an anchor for your awareness.
This may be your breath or an area of your body you may return to whenever you notice your mind has drifted off to thoughts,
Worries,
Memories,
Fantasies or narratives as it will naturally do.
Now allowing the whole of your body to settle into this space,
Becoming aware of where the body contacts the surface below you,
Gently scanning your body from the tips of your toes to the crown of your head.
Noticing perhaps any judgments or expectations,
Wanting your body to be or not be a certain way.
And as best as you can,
Kindly stirring your awareness from the judgments or expectations back to your body or your chosen anchor.
Now,
In your own time,
Becoming aware of the fact that you are breathing,
Not changing or fixing your breath,
But allowing it to be as it is right now.
As best as you can,
Leaning into it,
Trusting its rhythm and tempo.
By befriending your body and breath,
You are befriending yourself.
It takes great courage,
An act of opening and softening of the heart to meet yourself in this moment as you are.
Whenever your mind gets carried away by passing thoughts,
Acknowledging without judgment that the mind has wandered,
As it will naturally do over and over again.
Congratulating yourself for noticing,
And kindly stirring your awareness back to the breath,
The body,
Or your anchor of choice as many times as you may need.
If the breath is a comfortable place for you to be right now,
I invite you to become aware of your inhale and your exhale.
And here is my inhale.
And here is my exhale.
Perhaps noticing the air entering your nostrils,
Filling up the pockets of your lungs,
And expanding your belly,
Grounding you into your body a bit more each time.
And noticing your belly now contracting as the air travels back through your mouth and out of your body.
Like the incessant and reliable motion of the ocean's waves,
Your breath too,
As the flowing wave crashes against the shore on each exhale and shyly retreats.
As the ebbing wave does,
As you take in the oxygen around you,
Replenishing your lungs.
Now,
As best as you can,
Tuning in to what you can sense in your body at this time,
Without forcing anything to happen or not happen.
Just curiously noticing what's there.
I encourage you to be specific about the sensations you can sense.
Where might you be experiencing them in the body?
Are they persistent or intermittent?
What feeling might they come with?
A feeling of heaviness or lightness?
Tightness or expansiveness?
Numbness or tingling?
Warmth or cold?
Ease or tension?
Or a mix of both?
Is your experience of them pleasant,
Unpleasant,
Or neutral?
On a scale of 1 to 10,
What's the intensity of the sensations?
Resting your awareness on them through a lens of compassion,
One that may remind you of your humanity and that what you're experiencing is valid and deserves a kind and non-judgmental container of loving awareness.
Just for now,
There is nothing you need to make sense of,
Assign meaning to,
Or judge.
Instead,
I invite you to sense and feel into your wise,
Physical vessel.
There is no right or wrong,
No good nor bad.
There is merely your experience right now,
Which is unique to you and only temporary.
Now,
Becoming aware of the whole of your body,
Allowing it to be the way it longs to be at this time.
And as your body softens,
Noticing any resistance that may arise.
Fear,
Perhaps,
Of what may or may not happen if you allow yourself to soften,
Allowing the fear to be there too.
Where can you sense the fear or resistance in your body?
Noticing yourself tensing up against the body's longing to be the way it is.
Reconnecting to your breathing if this feels comfortable.
Allowing yourself to sink into the ground below you.
Allowing the weight of your body to be held.
The earth can hold you.
The earth longs to hold you,
Carry you,
Witness you,
Hear you.
Noticing any emotions that may arise at this time as the earth's wide and compassionate arms embrace you as you are.
Your emotions are a physical sensation or a cluster of physical sensations coupled with a thought or a narrative about yourself,
Others,
And or the world.
You may give your emotion or emotions a name,
If you'd like.
A literal name or one of your own creation that makes sense to you.
Now,
Bringing a sense of curiosity to your present experience,
If your body were a canvas and your mind were a canvas,
Now,
Bringing a sense of curiosity to your present experience,
If your body were a canvas and your mind were a canvas,
And your emotions the paint,
Where might the paint be on the canvas?
What color or colors might the paint be?
What shades?
Noticing perhaps any imagery accompanying your exploration.
There is no need for you to make sense of anything right now.
Rather,
I invite you to honor whatever may arise as part of your personal healing process.
Now,
Lending your voice to your emotions.
What might they say?
What might they need you to know?
If you are comfortable doing so,
I encourage you to say out loud or whisper exactly what your emotions might say.
Noticing perhaps any judgments towards your emotions' truth.
Knowing that that's just what they are.
Judgments.
And you can gently release them by returning your awareness to the sensations in your body,
Your breath,
Or your chosen anchor.
Noticing any shifts occurring in your body as you speak,
And once you've spoken your emotions' truth.
Each emotion carries the gift of your personal truth.
One more piece to the puzzle of your integrity.
One step closer to wholeness.
So that you may know yourself and share yourself authentically with yourself,
Others,
And the world.
Hidden in each emotion is a treasure,
A jewel of profound wisdom,
Which you can only access when you welcome the emotion,
Allowing it to express itself through you.
Your tears fertilize the soil of your being for future growth.
As we come to a close,
I invite you to ask yourself what you might need right now.
What might best support you?
What do you feel called to do or not do?
What might feel most nurturing for you and your body?
Be gentle with yourself as you allow your whole being to return to a state of equilibrium.
Thank you for listening and for giving yourself the time to be present and feel.
To end a prayer from my heart to yours.
May you be happy.
May you be well.
May you be free from suffering.
May you come to love and accept all that you are,
Even your mistakes.
May you live with ease.
May you give yourself permission to rest.
May you be reminded that you are enough,
Just as you are.
May you allow yourself to be who you are and own who you are.
May you allow yourself to love what you love and own what you love.
And may you know joy.
Until next time,
Just love.
