Welcome,
This is Dr.
Katherine Cooke-Gatone and I am so glad you've chosen to spend these next few moments here.
Spending time with you.
This practice is part of the three intelligences embodied practices.
For eating disorder recovery.
A series designed to help you reconnect with yourself through compassion,
Curiosity,
And embodied awareness.
Each practice is grounded in three complementary sources of wisdom.
The wisdom of your body.
The wisdom of your mind.
And the wisdom of your heart.
Recovery is not about asking one of these to become louder than the others.
It's about learning to pause long enough to hear each one.
With kindness and respect.
Today's practice is an invitation to prepare for nourishment.
Not by changing yourself.
Not by convincing yourself.
But by arriving.
Before we nourish our bodies.
We first have an opportunity to arrive in this moment.
Allow yourself to settle into a comfortable position.
Perhaps you're seated at a table.
Perhaps you're preparing your meal.
Wherever you are,
Allow yourself to pause just for a moment.
Notice the support beneath you.
Feel your feet making contact with the floor.
Maybe you notice your body being held by a chair.
Allow your shoulders to soften just a little.
Not because they should.
Simply because they could.
They can.
Take a slow and natural breath.
Hmm.
There's nothing special you need to do with your breathing.
Simply notice the inhale.
Noticing the exhale.
Allow your breathing to find its own comfortable rhythm.
With each breath.
Allow yourself to become just a little more present.
You don't have to leave behind everything that happened earlier today.
And you don't have to know what comes next.
For these few moments,
Simply arrive.
Now,
Gently bring your attention to your body.
Not to evaluate it,
Not to judge it.
Simply to notice it.
What sensations are present?
Right here,
Right now.
Perhaps you notice warmth.
Coolness.
Pressure where your body meets the chair,
The floor.
The movement of your breathing,
Your breath.
Perhaps you notice energy.
Perhaps fatigue.
Maybe both.
Whatever you notice,
Welcome it in.
Your body communicates in many quiet ways.
Today,
You are simply listening.
Now gently turn your attention toward your mind,
Your thinking self.
Notice the thoughts that are present.
There may be many.
Maybe there's only a few.
Whatever is here.
See if you can simply acknowledge it.
It could be noisy,
It could be quiet in there.
Dot com.
Thoughts go.
You don't need to argue with them.
You don't need to believe every single thing they say.
You don't need to push away any thought.
Only have to notice.
Simply notice.
And gently return to your breathing.
Now bring your attention to your heart.
Ask yourself quietly.
What feeling is present with me today?
Is there hope?
Anxiety Uncertainty,
A longing.
A gratitude.
A sadness,
A grief.
A silliness.
Perhaps there's something there that doesn't even have a name.
Whatever is here.
Can you make a little bit of room for it?
We don't need to make it bigger or smaller.
Simply to allow it to be acknowledged.
I want you to connect with your heart on one more thing.
The heart is a place where we find connection.
And this can be with others,
Ourselves,
The world.
And it also is about a sense of meaning and value.
And purpose.
And this sense of meaning,
Value,
And purpose is something that we can just be curious about.
Maybe it comes right to mind.
I'm here for this.
Or maybe it's something you're not quite sure about right now,
But it is this very thing.
That helps the heart,
The body,
The thinking self.
Move in attunement.
So open space for a sense of meaning,
A sense of purpose.
And what matters to you.
Not in an idealistic way.
Just really,
What matters?
What's important.
Take another.
Easy breath.
Allow your body,
Your mind,
And your heart,
Your purpose,
Meaning,
Value,
To share this moment together.
Ask yourself gently.
What does my body need in this moment?
Ask yourself,
What does my mind want me to remember?
What quality of heart would support me right now?
Kindness.
Maybe courage.
Perhaps patience.
Or how about some curiosity?
Whatever arises,
Simply notice.
As you prepare for nourishment.
Remember that nourishment is about more than food.
It includes breathing.
Rest.
Connection.
To yourself,
To others,
This broader world.
To a sense of meaning and purpose.
Big that one's a big one Compassion,
Not just to everyone else.
But for you.
You are worth this effort.
You are inherently worthy.
You are worthy of nourishment.
Of care.
Moments of quiet.
And food is one meaningful way we care for ourselves.
Today.
May this meal become one expression of that care.
Not in a way that's super perfect.
Are perfect at all.
Simply present.
Take another slow breath.
Notice the colors around you.
Maybe name three of them.
Notice the light in the room.
Notice the shadows.
Notice patterns.
Notice the sounds nearby.
In the room where you are,
Maybe outside of that room,
Maybe in your neighborhood.
And now notice yourself here.
This moment does not ask you to have everything figured out.
It simply invites you to begin where you are.
As we come to the end of this practice,
Allow yourself to carry one gentle intention into your meal.
Perhaps I will meet this moment with curiosity.
Or I will practice kindness.
I will remain present one bite at a time.
Or you can use my go-to,
My favorite.
I am worth the effort.
I am inherently worthy.
There is no perfect intention.
Only the one that feels supportive today.
Take one final breath during this practice.
As you continue with your meal.
May your body be met with respect and worthiness.
May your mind,
Your thinking self,
Be met with understanding.
And may your heart.
Be met with compassion.
And passion.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
And until next time.
May you continue listening with your body.
May you continue choosing with your mind.
May you continue living with your heart.
May each act of nourishment become another opportunity to care for yourself.
With kindness.
