Learning To Release & Relax

Gaining a better understanding of how anxiety lives in the physical body and how to return to relaxation again and again will invoke deep healing. In this brief and simple practice (great for beginners), we explore humming to soothe the mind's wandering and strengthen the Vagus Nerve (ie our calming response) as well as a gentle body scan to relax stress in the body.

Transcript

Welcome to this simple meditation to soothe and regulate tangled up tension,

Stress,

Or anxiety in your body.

I'd love us to begin our practice with calming humming sounds.

Your hums could be soft and quiet,

Or maybe a little louder if your surroundings allow for it.

When we hum,

We stimulate the vagus nerve and we activate the rest-digest comfort branch of the nervous system.

Let's enjoy five hums together,

But first take a cleansing inhale and an audible exhale.

And now another inhale to begin five hums.

And now another inhale to begin five hums.

And now another inhale to begin five hums.

And now another inhale to begin five hums.

Be mindful of how those sounds affected you and your state.

Observe any areas of your body that seem stuck or any areas that feel easeful.

Scan through your body and invite in reminders of relaxation.

Take your focus down into your low belly.

Think about your stomach.

What if you released hardness in your stomach with a soft exhale?

Be aware of your shoulders and neck.

Is there anything you can release around your shoulders?

Think about your mouth and all the muscles around your mouth.

Inhale and soften here.

Rest your focus into your eyes now.

Then furrow your eyebrows and let your eye muscles let go fully with another exhale.

As though you are watching your body or looking at it,

Keep redirecting the focus down into your body and relax areas of tension.

Consciously relaxing like this is a return to healing.

You are cultivating a state of ease and healing.

Notice tension and relax even further.

You can let go again and again and surrender to this moment.

To finish,

Take your palms together and rub them quickly together to create some heat.

Then lightly cup your palms over your eyes and feel this soothing sensation.

Take a full inhale and exhale.

And thank your body for knowing how to relax.

Reviews

Wonderful and relaxing in such a short meditation. Just what I needed tonight. Thankyou 🙏🙏💕

What a sweet few moments this provides! Soothing and relaxing, a definite keeper. Thank you so much! 😊

I like chants and humming for the vibrations, patterns, and because of the simplicity. Forming intentions is difficult for me to remember outside of the meditation.

Very soothing and calming. Thank you ❤️

So wonderful! Such a short meditation and yet I felt completely relaxed and at ease afterwards. Tried humming for the first time as a meditation and I´m very surprised at how effective it is. Will definitely do this again!

That was so wonderful. I've never tried humming before - I'm amazed at how relaxed I felt after just 5 hums. Thank you, thank you!

I am so happy that i found you here on insight timer. Your meditation are wonderful.

I loved this meditation! It was very calming and just what I needed.

Thank you , I find this meditation very helpful today ♥️

Beautiful meditation for winding down before bed. Thank you!

Amazing meditation thank you 🙏🏼

What a lovely meditation. Thank you so much.

This is an amazing practice!! It helped me relax and release tension in my body in a gentle and kind way. I’ll keep it on hand for frequent practice.
I’m very grateful for this practice 🙏🏻

I needed this today! Thanks!!

Nice! I like the humming as part of the relaxation process. Hmmm. ☺️

That was very relaxing - 🙏

Love starting my day with a meditation from you Carolyn...

Very helpful. Thank you and Blessings 🕊🙏🌻

Thank you I have been holding a lot stress very soothing 🙏🏻

Thank you 🙏