Welcome.
This series offers practical,
Easy-to-implement tools to help you cope in the here and now with symptoms of anxiety,
Stress,
And overwhelm.
You may consider these tools not as a one-size-fits-all approach,
But rather like a menu from which you may explore and select what feels best for you and your nervous system.
A butterfly hug is a form of bilateral stimulation which can be very calming for the brain and nervous system,
And it helps us to cope with stress and difficult emotions.
We will begin and end this practice by using a gauge to check in with ourselves and notice how we are doing.
I invite you to do this now,
Bringing a sense of curiosity to your mind and body,
Noticing how you are without trying to change anything,
Without judging your experience.
You may use a gauge by choosing a number from 1 to 10 to represent how you are feeling,
Or perhaps something more visual like a thermometer.
You also have the option to choose something more physical,
Like the quality of your breath,
Whatever resonates most with you.
So taking a mental note of where you're at with your gauge right now.
Now I invite you to begin the butterfly hug by crossing your hands and placing them on your heart,
With your right hand touching the left side of your chest and the left hand touching the right side of your chest.
Or,
If it's accessible to you,
Placing your hands on your opposite arms and giving yourself a hug.
Notice which placement feels better for you,
And choosing which hand position works best for you right now.
Noticing the container of the placement of your hands,
The container of your whole body,
How your hands are making contact with the body,
And the body is making contact with your hands.
Observing the temperature,
Pressure,
Any sensations that may arise.
Perhaps there's a warmth or a tingling or buzzing,
And just noticing what's there.
And when you're ready,
You may start to alternate either tapping or squeezing one side and then the other,
Moving at a pace that feels right for you.
Finding an amount of pressure or contact that feels soothing,
And we will aim for two to three minutes.
However,
You may stay with this for as long as you wish.
Noticing how your body responds.
Is your preference for a slower pace,
A faster pace,
Deep pressure,
Or very light pressure?
And how does your body let you know what your preference is?
Simply following your own rhythm and observing.
Give yourself permission to make any adjustments you need at any point in the practice based on the feedback from your body.
Alternating one side and then the other.
Engaging the right hemisphere of the brain and then the left hemisphere of the brain.
Helping us to find integration in the brain and regulation in the nervous system.
Moving at your own pace.
Noticing any thoughts that might pop up without judgment.
Rather,
Observing them pass by like clouds in the sky.
And if any judgments do arise about your thoughts or experience,
You can observe those as well.
Letting them pass through.
As Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron says,
You are the sky.
Everything else is just the weather.
So know that you are the sky and all of the feelings,
Thoughts,
Sensations,
Images,
Or other experiences that arise come and go just like the weather.
Staying with the rhythm,
Staying with your awareness.
And wherever you're at right now,
I invite you to return to the gauge you used at the beginning of this practice.
Checking in with yourself.
Noticing if anything has shifted for you.
Perhaps there is more ease in the breath.
Or muscles have softened.
Maybe thoughts have slowed.
Just observing any changes,
Even slight changes.
Allowing yourself to really take in these shifts in your nervous system.
And see if you can allow the shifts to expand throughout the body.
And staying here for as long as you'd like.
You may return to this whenever you wish.
Or you may explore other coping tools in this series.
You may also consider layering the other tools from this series with more practice.
For instance,
You may use the butterfly hug along with breathing or grounding simultaneously.
This may have even more of a calming effect.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
