Welcome and thank you for joining this trauma-informed yoga practice for tending to emotions and holding space for yourself.
This class isn't about creating big emotional releases or making anything happen.
Instead,
This is an invitation to slow down.
Arrive in the present moment.
And gently support yourself exactly as you are.
If emotions feel ready to surface,
We'll practice meeting them with kindness.
Curiosity,
And care.
There are no props required,
And if you're ready to begin,
I invite you to start in a comfortable seat of your choosing.
Resting your hands anywhere you like.
And as you get comfortable,
I offer a gentle reminder for you to move at your own pace,
Knowing you can take breaks or end early.
And wherever you are,
You might choose to settle into the surface supporting you.
Maybe you elongate in your spine,
Soften your shoulders.
Maybe deepen your breathing.
Taking a moment to fully arrive here.
If you're comfortable in bringing awareness to your breath.
You might notice how you breathe in and out.
With no need to change anything.
Maybe just noticing the temperature of the air.
Maybe you notice how it feels as you inhale.
And exhale.
You might bring awareness to your shoulders.
Your face.
Abdomen,
And links.
Nothing to change here.
Just meeting yourself exactly as you are.
Welcoming all parts of you to today's practice.
And you might stay here or if you're comfortable with a self-touch.
You might explore a gentle body taps.
Using one or both hands,
Starting at your chest.
If you're not comfortable with self-touch,
You might continue grounding or find a restful shape that speaks to you.
If you're joining in these tabs.
You might imagine emotions loosening.
Or just giving them permission to rise to the surface.
You could also simply just be here with the sensations.
With nothing to achieve.
You might stay in your chest area.
Or you could explore other parts of your body,
Maybe moving your taps to your shoulders.
Down your arms.
Up your arms.
To your abdomen.
Upper links.
Lower length.
And gently back up to your heart space.
Maybe you tap along your jawline.
Your temples.
Forehead.
Top of your head.
Back of your head.
And back to your chest.
Maybe placing one or both hands over your heart space.
Taking a deep breath in,
Maybe breathing into your belly.
Exhale letting it all go.
Moving forward,
You might join me in gentle hip circles.
Finding soft movement.
Maybe involving your neck and shoulders as much as you like.
Perhaps noticing how your body feels as it moves through space.
If any internal awareness or awareness on your body is too much,
Maybe instead you focus on the edges of your body.
The outermost part of you.
Or even the energy around you.
A few more moments here.
You might continue this as long as you like.
Might choose to join me in a gentle kneeling position.
Option to do the standing if you prefer.
Maybe you roll up your yoga mat or place a blanket under your knees for more comfort.
Creating length through the crown of our head.
Soft shoulders.
Letting your arms rest by your side.
No effort.
And you might stay here.
Or you could gently rock from side to side.
Allowing your arms to be weightless.
Maybe you gently tap the opposite side of your body as you do this.
And there's no perfect way to explore this,
Just moving in your own time,
Your own pace.
As fast or as slow as you like.
You might choose to gently slow down.
And maybe you join me as we bring our knees as wide as feels comfortable.
Big toes to touch.
Sending our seat back and arms forward.
And melting your head and heart to the mat or to a bolster for more support.
Making any small adjustments to get more comfortable.
Letting this be a place where you can be held.
Maybe you rock your head from side to side if you crave a little more movement.
Allowing full rest here.
The ground is here to support you.
You don't have to hold yourself up.
And softening here for a few moments.
You might wish to stay here as long as you like.
And if you would like to longer,
I invite you to honor this.
But if you'd like to move forward,
I welcome you to bring your palms to the mat.
Walking yourself up.
Inch by inch.
Then you might choose to join me as we make our way onto our backs.
Take all the time you need to arrive.
And when you do,
You might find a gentle bend in your knees.
Feet flat to the mat.
You can have them hip width distance apart or perhaps wider on the mat so you can rest your knees together.
And your hands can rest anywhere.
Or maybe you place one hand on your heart.
Other on your belly.
Maybe sending love to your heart space.
And then breathing into your hand on your belly.
Maybe you soften in your face.
Your jaw.
Shoulders.
Arms.
Chest.
Abdomen.
Upper links.
Lower lengths.
And V.
Sometimes,
In these classes,
We can get so caught up in trying to find an exact emotion.
Or wanting to have a big release.
So maybe we can explore just allowing this moment Letting anything arise if it feels ready.
And accepting that sometimes we may not feel much or anything at all.
And this is entirely okay.
If something does arise.
Maybe you can see.
You can let go of trying to find a story behind the emotion.
We're trying to analyze what we're feeling or not feeling.
Seeing if we can move into a state of being.
Rather than thinking.
What is it like?
To simply be here.
In this space.
With yourself.
Allowing rest.
Allowing support.
There's no wrong way to feel.
And no wrong way to rest here.
You're welcome to fidget,
Move your hands,
Adjust your posture.
Or end at any time.
And we'll be here for a few moments.
You're welcome to stay here as long as you like.
Or maybe you reach your arms and legs out for a big stretch,
Maybe with an inhale.
And exhale releasing it all.
Maybe allowing a yawn if it feels natural.
And rolling to one side of your choosing when you're ready.
Maybe using your arm as a pillow or an actual pillow.
Allowing a few moments of rest here.
If you like,
You might choose to join me in a comfortable seat of your choosing.
Taking all the time you need to arrive.
And when you do,
You might choose to take a deep breath in as we reach our arms up overhead.
And exhale,
Hands through prayer center.
And two more just like that in your own time and pace.
Inhale,
Reaching up.
Exhale,
Letting go.
Inhale,
Arms up.
Exhale,
Release.
And you might choose to ground into the support holding you.
Or you might take a gentle self-hug.
Wrapping your arms around yourself.
Your own support.
Maybe you stay here or you could rock side to side.
If you like,
You might offer yourself some kind words.
Anything that speaks to you or feels right in this moment.
It can be a single word.
A sentence.
Like well It doesn't have to make sense to anyone else but you.
Whatever feels right in this moment.
Gently releasing your hands as you feel ready.
Maybe bringing them to your heart space.
And I invite you to take a moment to send compassion to yourself.
For arriving to this practice.
Maybe emotions surfaced.
Maybe nothing there.
Or maybe you felt confused about how you felt.
These are all normal to feel.
You being here in this space is what matters.
Taking time to show up for yourself.
Even if you're not sure what the outcome would be.
That takes courage,
And I honor you for this.
If your eyes are closed,
I welcome you to slowly bat them open.
If they are open,
Coming back to the room and space around you.
I thank you for joining this gentle practice to take time to explore your emotional landscape and tend to yourself.
Offer a gentle reminder that pinpointing an exact emotion or feeling is never the goal here.
That simply arriving is.
I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.
Then we get to practice again soon.
And from my vulnerable heart to yours.
Take care.
