Mindfulness Practice For Stress Reduction

This mindfulness practice invites you to let go of stress and discover greater ease and well-being as you create the space to become more present and aware, and experience harmony of body and mind.

Music by Thaddeus: "Healing Treatment" used with permission.

Disclaimer: The following meditation is purely for educational purposes and is not intended as a psychological intervention or as a substitute for professional mental health or other services.

Transcript

Welcome to this meditation practice.

Take a moment to acknowledge that this time you have set aside is just for you.

Know that for right now,

There is nowhere else you need to be,

Nothing else you need to do,

But to be here in this moment.

When you give yourself this kind of undivided attention to just be and not do,

You allow for harmony of your body and mind.

You create the space to slow down and quiet.

You can attend to the deepest parts of yourself,

And you can replenish so that you can bring your best self into the world.

Throughout this meditation,

You may notice that your mind wanders away from time to time.

That is normal.

That is not a problem.

Our minds tend to wander.

Every time you notice you are lost in a thought,

Simply bring your attention back to the sound of my voice,

Back to being here,

Right now,

In this moment.

Allow yourself to get into a comfortable position where you can remain uninterrupted.

If you are seated,

See if you might rest your feet flat on the ground with your spine upright.

Take some time to inhabit your body.

How is your body feeling right now?

As you ask this question to yourself,

Listen quietly for the answers.

Whatever might come to mind,

Whether pleasant,

Unpleasant,

Or neutral sensations arise,

See if you might allow whatever is here to be here.

You don't need to resist anything or push anything away.

You don't need to change anything about your experience.

Just observe with openness,

Curiosity,

And a kind-hearted attention towards yourself.

In our busyness,

It is so easy to become disconnected from our bodies.

Take this time to sense your body in space.

What surface are you sitting or resting upon?

Where does your body make contact with the surfaces that are supporting you?

Is there firmness,

Softness,

Hardness,

Solidness beneath you or behind you?

What do those sensations feel like in your body?

See if you might invite your body to let go of its habitual holding,

To remain upright in posture,

But at the same time to accept the support that is there for you and to let go into this support.

Become aware of your breathing.

Use the natural expansion and contraction of your body with each breath.

Don't try to force or change your breathing.

Just let it be as it is.

Sense the rhythm of your own breath as it comes in and as it goes out.

Each out-breath can become an invitation to soften,

To let go,

To let be.

Each in-breath can be an invitation to fill yourself back up with whatever you might need.

Continue to feel this breath,

Your life force flowing through you.

Breathing in,

Open to the possibility of energy,

Vitality,

Clarity,

Calmness,

Peace,

Or something else.

Breathing out,

Open to the possibility of ease,

Letting go,

Letting be,

Acceptance,

Surrender and trust.

Each cycle of breath is an opportunity to notice unnecessary holding,

To invite tight muscles to soften.

We hold tension unconsciously.

We clench our muscles and we don't often notice.

These patterns become habits as we go through our day.

Right now is an opportunity to become more conscious.

In the noticing,

We create more space.

Dance into that open space with each breath.

Bring your awareness to the muscles of your face,

Jaw,

And scalp.

Notice where you might be holding tension,

Tightness.

With each breath,

Invite your muscles to soften in whatever way they want.

Don't force anything or need things to be any certain way.

Notice that your body will know just what it needs,

What is right for you.

Feel the natural flow of energy in your body and notice what happens when you create this breathing space for yourself.

Allow your attention to travel down through your body.

Notice the muscles and the sensations in your neck and upper back.

Feel your breath flowing in and out through these areas.

Know that as you bring breath into different places in your body,

You create a natural flow of energy.

When a hose has a kink,

The water can't flow freely,

So too constrictions in our body can block our natural flow of energy.

Give your body permission to feel and be in any way that it wants.

Notice what your energy feels like as you give yourself this space to be present,

Open,

And aware.

Bring your awareness to the area around your heart and to the center of your chest.

Imagine for a moment that you could breathe in and out directly through your heart center.

Notice if it feels tight and constricted,

Open and spacious,

Heavy or light,

Closed or open.

There is no right way.

There is only noticing what is there and bringing some compassion and kindness to whatever you are experiencing.

If it feels right,

You might invite in a sensation of softening around your heart as you take this time to be present within,

As you take this time to take care of yourself.

Whatever your experience,

See if you might meet it right where it is.

Bring your awareness into your arms and down into your fingers.

Allow your awareness of breath to travel through your lower chest and stomach,

Down through your torso.

Become aware of the sensations in your low back.

Open to the sensation of your belly softening and feel the natural expansion and contraction as breath flows in and out.

Notice your breath as it flows down through your hips,

Into your upper and lower legs,

And then down into your feet.

Feel how your feet connect to the solidness of the earth.

Sense into the stability.

It is safe to relax.

Allow yourself to rest here.

Rest in the precious pause of this moment.

Rest in the knowing that you are giving yourself undivided attention and the gift of presence.

Imagine throwing a stone into a pond or lake.

Watch the ripples on the surface.

Those are like the thoughts your mind generates that come and go.

Now watch the stone as it travels downward,

Far below the surface,

To rest upon the solid earth at the bottom of the water.

There is stillness below the surface.

Sense into the stillness that is here,

Right now.

Your mind may be busy.

Your mind may be quiet.

Whatever thoughts might be present on the surface,

Let them come and let them go.

Watch them like ripples on a lake as they travel further and further away.

Your mind generates thoughts,

But your thoughts are not who you are.

We tend to identify with our thoughts.

We get stuck in our thoughts.

Unknowingly our thoughts can contribute to our stress.

Watch your thoughts come and go like ripples on the lake.

There is stillness deep within.

Sense into that stillness at your center.

Imagine throwing another stone into a pond or lake.

Watch the ripples on the surface of the water.

Those are like the emotions your body generates that come and go of their own accord.

Now watch the stone as it travels downward,

Far below the surface,

To rest upon the solid earth at the bottom of the water.

There is stillness below the surface.

Sense into the stillness that is here,

Right now.

Your emotions may be strong at times.

They may be pleasant or unpleasant or neutral.

Just notice what is there.

Whatever feelings may be present,

Let them come and let them go.

Watch them like ripples on a lake as the emotions naturally flow through you.

We cannot stop the ripples as they react to the stone.

And we need not try to stop our feelings.

But as we learn to let be,

We are no longer swept away by our emotions,

By our stress,

By our day to day challenges.

Your body generates feelings,

But your feelings are not who you are.

We tend to identify with our feelings.

We get stuck in them.

Unknowingly our feelings can fuel our stress.

Let your feelings come and go like ripples on the lake.

There is stillness deep within.

Follow the rock to the still earth below.

Sense into that stillness at your center.

We all need opportunities to reset,

To step out of the busyness of our day,

To take a precious pause.

I appreciate that you are making this time for yourself.

This is good for your body,

For your mind,

For your soul.

You are taking care of yourself in an important way.

Bring your awareness to the area around your heart once again.

Notice what sensations are present there.

Send yourself feelings of appreciation for making and taking this time for you.

If it feels right,

Imagine sending care and compassion back out to others around you,

In your life or in the world.

Whenever you are ready,

Take several slow,

Intentional breaths,

Bringing your awareness back into your body.

Taking your time,

Coming back into the room at your own pace.

Reviews

Just what I needed. Got rocky in the middle with thoughts I didn’t want to see, but your words brought it back to refocus. Very nice for resetting my practice. Thank you!

Perfect lengths and great speech cadence and content. Thank you!

Calming session to work on observing your body and noting your experience.

I loved this meditation. It helped me find the stillness within that I so much needed. Thank you!

Soft, soothing voice and nice guidance. Felt more relaxed afterwards.

Great messaging! A perfect break during my hectic day. Will be revisiting this one.

Very calming, just what I needed for myself today 😌

Hyper illuminated~~
Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart~~
~사랑해~❥~이지유~

Such a gently grounding practice, and you shared it with us in a deeply gentle spirit, too. I am grateful for you, and for this blessing that you’ve given us. Thank you, and may you be blessed in meaningful ways, too.

Thank you. It was a very nicely structured and helpful exercise!

Just what I needed to help me relax and center myself.

I love her voice. Gentle, almost childlike but wise & caring.

This was one of the best mindfulness meditations I’ve experienced!

Very helpful chance to pause and step back from stressful emotions. Thank you 🙏

Very effective meditation that helped me recenter and find my inner quiet during a very stressful time. Thankful for this gem today!

This track always makes me feel loved and so calm and relaxed. Thank you!

I find all of Beth’s meditations to be SO helpful: her calming, reassuring voice; the perfect pacing; the gentle, unobtrusive music (when used), and her powerful, well-chosen, and effective words. Thank you so much!

Thank you! I was really stressed and about to blow! I’m now ready and relaxed to continue my day x

I literally felt an outer body experience. Thank you for grounding and centering me!

Thank you for this grounding session. I needed this today. Namaste.