Hello!
Today we're going to do a practice that helps us cope with all the feelings inside of us.
Have you ever played school and pretended to be the teacher?
Today's practice is kind of like this.
We're going to pretend we are the teacher and we're going to pretend that each of our feelings is one of our students.
Don't worry,
It's easy and I'll walk you through it step by step.
Let's go!
Just like the teacher,
You are going to start by taking attendance.
You're going to notice which one of your students,
And remember the students are your feelings,
Are here today.
You are the very best teacher,
Which means you are patient and kind to all of your feeling students,
Even the difficult ones.
You say hello to each of them,
You allow them to be here,
And you even give them a hug if they need it.
Are you ready to become the feelings teacher?
Start by scanning your body from your toes looking for feelings.
Move up your legs,
To your hips,
To your tummy.
When you find a feeling in your body,
Pause there.
Notice the sensations in your body.
Is this feeling hard?
Soft?
Heavy?
Light?
See if you can name the feeling.
It might be worry,
Fear,
Sadness,
Happiness,
Or excitement.
It might be a mix of two or more feelings.
You might feel scared and excited.
You could call that one,
Skited.
Maybe you can feel the sensation of a feeling in your body,
But you don't know the feeling's name.
Don't worry,
That is 100% normal.
There are millions of feelings,
And we don't even have names for all of them.
So,
You can make up a name for that one.
Maybe you call it Fred,
Or Wanda.
Call it whatever you want to,
But the first step is to name that feeling and say hello.
You might say,
Hello frustration,
Or hello numbness,
Or hey there Wanda.
Remember,
You are a patient teacher,
And you're taking attendance.
The first step is to say hello to the feeling.
The second step is to say,
It makes sense that you're here.
Let your feeling be.
You might say,
Hello sadness,
It makes sense that you're here.
It was a tough day.
Or,
Hello excitement,
It makes sense that you're here.
I can't wait for tomorrow.
Or,
Hey there Wanda,
It makes sense that you're here.
Feelings come around whenever they want.
The third step is to tell that feeling,
It's okay to be here.
Everyone feels this way sometime.
The last step is to give that feeling a hug.
Since the feeling is inside of you,
It can be challenging to wrap your arms around it,
So I'm going to teach you a trick.
Here's the trick on how to hug a feeling.
You gently place your hand wherever you feel that sensation in your body.
Did you find it?
And then you take a big breath in.
Hold your breath at the very top,
And then let it go.
You did amazing!
Let's find a few more feelings.
Move your awareness to your belly button,
Your ribcage,
Your heart,
Space.
Notice what you feel.
Is it heavy?
Is it light?
Does it flutter?
Does it kick?
Name that feeling whatever name you want to give it,
And say hello.
Hey there,
Feeling,
It makes sense that you're here.
It's okay to be here.
Everyone feels this way sometime.
And now it's time for the big hug.
Let's make it an even bigger hug than last time.
Gently place your hand wherever you feel the sensation.
Take a big belly breath in.
Hold it at the top,
And then all the way out.
You're doing great!
One more feeling.
Today you're a teacher with a class of three.
Move up to your collarbone.
Feel around in your throat area,
Your head,
Your ears.
What do you feel?
Notice it.
Is it hot or cold?
Is it smooth or rough?
Does the feeling have a color or a shape?
Give it a name.
Hey there,
Feeling,
It makes sense that you're here.
It's okay to be here.
Everyone feels this way sometime.
Very,
Very gently place your hand where you feel the sensation,
And give this one an even better hug.
The best hug you've given yet.
Breathe all the way in.
Hold it at the top,
And breathe all the way out.
Let that feeling go.
You can practice being the teacher to your feelings whenever you want.
Your feelings want to be noticed.
They want to be seen,
And they want to be heard.
The more that you can take the role of the patient and kind teacher,
Giving each and every one of the feelings in your body,
Your gentle and loving attention,
The more you can have control over them.
Before we go,
I want to say how proud I am of you for trying this practice.
It can be hard and scary to face our feelings,
But you did it with patience and kindness.
This is such a powerful practice.
Take a moment to feel proud of yourself for how far you've come in learning to handle your feelings.
It's not easy to be a patient teacher to so many big feelings,
And you did it.
Just think of all the incredible things you will do from here.
You can listen to this guided meditation anytime you want.
This might be a great one to listen to every day before school or after school or right before you go to bed.
Then you could make it a habit to give each and every one of your feelings your attention and a big hug.
Thank you for practicing with us today and every day.
We're wishing you the best day yet.
