Finding Lightness In Your Heart Again

Take the first steps towards dropping your social mask and facing the bubbling emotions that lie beneath the surface. Allow me to support you in a safe space where there is no judgment and we can emotionally regulate together, where the inner child can feel all it needs to.

With the freedom to give the difficult emotions space, you create more room for balance, clarity, and appreciating glimmers of joy and lightness again, creating a more balanced space from which to act, accept, and move forward in your life.

Photo Credit: Melanie

Transcript

Welcome.

Today I want to explore.

Explore the fact that we live in such a complex,

Emotionally charged world.

Each of us experience many feelings and emotions in our lives.

Often,

These emotions make it very challenging to be human.

Many of us are unable to use the tools of emotional regulation as adults.

This is a very challenging topic,

But one that I invite you to start in some small way with me today.

Sit with me a moment and create your quiet,

Calm space and take the first steps towards shifting the weight of what is hard to carry for you.

You are not alone and being here right now takes courage.

If this feels like it may help you,

Let us begin this meditation together.

Begin by finding a comfortable space.

A space where you will not be disturbed for the duration of this meditation.

Choose a space that feels quiet and calm,

Even comforting.

You may have a favourite spot,

A favourite chair,

Even a favourite item that feels comforting.

Take some time now to choose and set up this space for these quiet moments.

When you're ready,

Bring your attention to the position of your body.

If you are sitting in a chair,

Ensure that you're sitting right back against the chair.

Ensure your body isn't slouching,

But equally ensure it's not stiff and upright.

Allow your spine to rest in its natural curve.

Place your feet flat on the floor and place your hands wherever they feel comfortable,

Whether by your side or in your lap.

If you choose to lie down today,

That's also okay.

Ensure that your body feels supported wherever you are laying down.

The same principles apply,

Making sure that your spine is gently in its C-curve and allow your feet to just rest in a position that feels natural.

And again,

Place your hands where they feel comfortable.

Taking in a deep breath now and exhaling.

Allowing your body to start to settle into the space.

You may like to roll your shoulders gently to encourage any tension release and then allow them to drop away from the ears.

Gently tuck your chin in just slightly and allow your jaw to relax.

And now,

Prepare yourself to explore the world around you through your senses,

Beginning with your eyes open.

Gently allowing the eyes to wander around the room.

Noticing the lights,

Whether the room is bright and filled with sunlight or whether it's slightly dark.

Just noticing and observing.

Noticing the objects in the room,

Whether the room has lots of objects or whether it's quite sparse.

Focusing your vision on one object that you can detect.

Observe its shape,

Its texture.

Perhaps it's smooth or has rough edges.

It may even be an unusual shape.

Notice its color.

Perhaps it's vibrant,

A muted color,

Or perhaps it has many colors.

Allow this curiosity to be the center of your focus on this object and hold that gaze there gently.

When you feel ready,

Gently close down the eyes.

Or if that feels uncomfortable,

Shift them into a downward gaze and find a spot to focus and hold your vision.

If at any time you feel uncomfortable in this meditation,

Know that you can gently open your eyes at any time.

Continuing to explore through your senses.

Next,

Your sense of hearing by tuning into the sounds around you.

Noticing sounds that are in the distance and sounds that are close by.

You may hear birdsong in the distance or traffic noise.

Or there may be nothing at all.

You may only be able to hear the sound of your own breathing.

That's okay.

Listen intently,

Without judgment.

No sound is good or bad.

We're inviting any sound into this space,

Any sound that presents itself.

Now noticing some of your other senses.

Bringing the awareness to the tip of your nose and your nostrils.

Noticing if any scent lingers in the air or whether there's an absence of any smell.

Now swallowing purposefully and drawing the attention down into the mouth Noticing the tongue.

Noticing if any taste lingers on the tip of your tongue.

And then using the tip of your tongue to explore textures in your mouth.

The ridges of your teeth or the smoothness on the inside of your mouth.

Again,

Purposefully swallowing and noticing how that feels down your throat.

The senses of smell and taste delicately intertwined.

Now noticing your fingertips.

Perhaps gently wiggling the fingers and then exploring with those fingertips wherever your hand is.

Noticing where your hands are placed.

Moving them around gently.

Noticing the texture of your clothing.

Whether it is smooth or textured.

Just noticing the sensation.

That sensation is your sole focus right now.

Focusing that curiosity and observing if it feels intensified more than it normally would.

Taking interest in the exploration and then letting your hands relax and fall wherever they feel most comfortable.

Now bringing your attention to the breath.

Noticing the breath in and out as you breathe.

The air flowing in and out of your body.

Not trying to control the rhythm but allowing it to be as it wants to be right now.

Air flowing in,

Nourishing your body,

Cool air in,

Warm air out.

Perhaps placing your hands over your chest or your belly to emphasize the rhythm of the rise and the fall.

Allowing that rhythm to steady you and center you as you tune into how your body feels as a whole.

Right here,

Right now,

After having explored through each of the senses,

Appreciating the body as a whole.

Noticing the body's energy.

Being grateful for the body.

And now encouraging the body to relax further as we focus on the muscles slowly,

A few at a time.

Starting with your head,

Particularly in your face.

Drawing the focus to your forehead and allowing the muscles in your forehead to tense and release.

And repeat that action,

Tense and release.

On the release,

Actively encouraging any tightness to drop away from the forehead.

Moving down to the jaw and the cheeks.

Repeating that same action,

Tense and release.

Allowing any expression from your face to fall away and the muscles to let go.

Noticing your neck now and your shoulders.

Encouraging this muscle area to tense and release.

Tense and release.

As you do this action,

If you notice any discomfort,

Gently continue either rolling the shoulders or doing one more tense and release.

Supporting your body to drift into ease.

Moving now into the back muscles.

Noticing the length of your spine.

Noticing the muscles in your back,

A large muscle group.

And inviting you to repeat the action again.

Tense and release.

Tense and release.

Allowing the back and the spine to settle into what supports you.

Allow the weight of the back to drop into the chair or the floor.

Wherever you are,

Know that the weight of you can be held.

Giving your back muscles permission to let go.

Now focusing on the arms and the hands by tensing and releasing.

Tensing and releasing.

You may like to emphasize that tense and release in the hands by making a fist action and actively letting go.

On that final letting go,

Allow the arms to drop.

Now focusing on the chest and the tummy area.

The tummy area can be where we hold a lot of emotional tension.

So allow yourself to really focus by tensing those muscles and really releasing out,

Expanding the belly muscles.

And again,

Tense and release.

Allowing yourself to shift that focus down on the lower half of the body now.

Focusing on the hips,

The buttocks and the pelvic area.

Tensing those muscle groups and releasing.

Tensing and releasing.

Now drawing the attention to the legs.

Noticing the muscles of the thighs by tensing and releasing.

Tensing and releasing.

Flowing down over the knees,

Into the calves and repeating the action again.

Tense and release.

Tense and release.

Noticing the ankles and the feet,

All the way down into the muscles of every toe.

Repeating the action again.

Tense and release.

Tense and release.

Now allowing the legs and the feet to drop,

To fall however they wish to.

And thank your body,

All the muscles and all the parts of you as they carry you through each day.

Thanking them by allowing every body part the space to let go right now.

And as you do so,

Begin to notice any feeling,

Any sensation or any predominant emotion in the body that presents itself.

We as humans,

Often carry a socially acceptable mask as we present out in the world.

But sometimes below the surface,

We have bubbling feelings.

Allow whatever is bubbling beneath the surface,

Behind your mask,

In your body,

The freedom to present itself.

It may be unease.

It may be sadness.

It may be anger.

It may be overwhelm.

Or it may be loneliness.

Allow yourself the space to listen in.

Allow your body to speak to you.

If you can label a feeling,

Also bring a color to mind that you want to associate with this feeling.

Sadness or loneliness may be a melancholy blue.

Anger or frustration may be a deep,

Fiery red or orange.

If you can label that emotion,

Try and bring to mind a color.

It may not be very comfortable,

But have the courage to know that you are not alone.

In this moment,

It is safe to drop the mask.

That mask is not needed in this space.

Allow your inner child to be unguarded.

The weight of being an adult can be a really heavy burden to bear.

But by dropping the mask,

And allowing yourself to label that feeling,

You are giving yourself important permission to acknowledge the emotions within your body.

These emotions often come with a physical body reaction.

Tense muscles,

Tears,

Discomfort,

Raised voices.

It's not seen as socially acceptable to have the adult equivalent of a tantrum.

And so you may suppress it in your body.

But through observing this color,

And labeling this emotion,

The suppressed adult tantrum has the space to present itself right here,

Right now,

With no judgment.

You are meeting yourself at this stage of this tantrum.

There is no shame.

In your mind,

Or even if you feel safe enough to say it out loud,

Let that defiance go.

Say whatever words need to be said.

It may be as simple as,

It's not fair.

Can't do this.

I'm scared.

Or perhaps,

I don't know what to do.

You may even just want to scream or shed a tear.

Have the courage to meet yourself with this resistance,

With this defiance,

And allow it out in a safe way.

Acknowledging this,

Meeting it,

Giving it space is the first step towards helping yourself regulate,

To moving the emotion and feeling through your body in a healthy way.

So meet yourself where you are.

Express it.

When you feel ready,

Notice if there's a difference now.

Has there been some kind of release?

Even the slightest space between the heaviness and how you feel now.

Encourage yourself to gently move through it.

Know that your emotions do not own you.

Do not control you.

They are not an immovable part of you.

You can move through them.

You are brave.

Continue breathing and allow your body some space to settle.

Gentle breathing.

You may even like to place your hands over your heart,

Feeling the weight,

The warmth and the love in your hands as you bring compassion to yourself for your bravery just now.

Tune into that feeling.

As you do,

In your mind,

Bring a glimmer of light and hope.

This glimmer of light and hope,

Bring it to something you can do today.

This will be a step forward in a positive direction.

A step towards finding lightness in your heart again.

This glimmer of light and hope doesn't have to be complicated.

It is something that can bring you a glimmer of joy.

It may be as simple as the warmth of a cup of coffee.

It may be calling a friend or family member.

It may be going on a walk in nature.

Or it may be listening to some soothing music.

Allow yourself to think of something you can find today that brings you joy.

That brings you joy and rewards your bravery as you take these steps forward.

It becomes easier as you find one glimmer to find another as you support yourself and continue to have courage to label your emotions and release in a safe space whenever you can.

A moment at a time as you collect your glimmers.

Know that the feelings in your heart will eventually ease to present more lightness.

A lighter,

Clearer mind which will in time help you deal with the weight of what you've been carrying under that mask.

Finding lightness doesn't solve all problems.

But it can help ease the mind,

Restore some balance,

Allow you to centre yourself on more solid ground,

Drawing on mindfulness and clarity.

Allowing you to find and decide what is the best way forward for you.

It may allow us acceptance where there may be nothing we can do in a situation.

Whatever this has represented for you.

Hold the glimmers and the lightness that you have found,

No matter how small.

Hold them in some reflective silence for a few moments now.

And now,

Holding on to the idea of those glimmers,

Keeping them in your mind and tucking them in deep within your heart,

Visualising them surrounded by a beautiful golden wall of light.

Knowing that you can look forward to those today.

But for now,

Allow us to reawaken the body by listening out for sounds.

Sounds in the distance,

Sounds nearby.

Gently wiggling the fingers and the toes and taking a deep breath in and out.

Returning to the natural breathing rhythm and gently moving the neck muscles,

Rolling the shoulders.

Now placing the hands on the belly,

Focusing on the rise and fall of the breath.

In and out.

In and out.

Allowing the breath to steady you and centre you.

And when you feel ready,

Gently opening the eyes again to let light in and reacquaint yourself with your surroundings.

Gently move when you are ready.

There is no rush.

Thank yourself for your bravery,

For your courage,

And for taking a positive step to help yourself at a difficult time.

Thank you for meditating with me and remember,

You are never alone.

Thank you.