Hey,
I'm Chubzo Kereke and today's meditation is going to help you start the day slowly,
Calmly and intentionally.
Because for some of us,
As soon as we wake up and open our eyes,
Our mind's already going over our to-do list.
We automatically start scanning for problems and our thoughts jump ahead to everything that might go wrong in our day.
And that's because cortisol,
The stress hormone,
Spikes in the morning to help get our systems going.
But for many of us,
That energy boost can feel more like anxiety than motivation.
The good news is,
We can set our nervous system up for success.
By gently stimulating the vagus nerve,
We send a signal to the body that it's safe to relax,
Reset and step into the day with clarity instead of chaos.
This morning,
We're going to do things a little differently.
We're easing into the day.
We'll be using gentle breathing techniques,
Mindful body awareness and some soft,
Intentional movement.
We'll start slow and gradually wake the body up as we go,
Calmly preparing you for the day ahead.
There's nowhere else you need to be and nothing else you need to do.
This is your time.
Let's begin.
Eyes open or closed,
Sitting down or maybe we're still lying in bed.
Whatever feels right today.
Before we move into the breath and the body,
Let's take a moment to gently set an intention for the day.
It doesn't need to be big or profound,
Just something that anchors you.
Maybe your intention is,
I move through today with calm and clarity or I respond instead of react.
If nothing comes to mind,
Maybe you can simply say,
I've got this,
Because you have got this.
Let your intention sit quietly in the background.
Like a steady hand on your shoulder as you move through the rest of this practice.
Okay,
Good.
We're going to start with a gentle breathing technique that helps regulate the nervous system and stimulate the vagus nerve.
It's going to be simple.
We're going to make the exhale a little longer than the inhale.
This tells the body you're safe.
Let's try it together.
Inhaling through the nose for a count of four and exhaling gently through the nose or the mouth for a count of six.
Let's do a couple together and then you can do a few in your own time.
Keeping the body relaxed as we breathe in,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Breathing out,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Breathing in,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Breathing out,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Breathing in,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Breathing out,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Doing a few more breaths like this in your own time.
And dropping the count if the count doesn't feel helpful.
Just making sure that the out-breath is nice and slow.
We're finding our own rhythm,
Letting the breath be easy.
Each exhale is like a reset,
A small signal to the body that it doesn't need to be on high alert.
Not yet,
Not now.
We're not trying to force anything,
We're just giving our system some space to settle.
Okay,
Good.
And now,
Whenever you're ready,
We can allow our breathing to return to its natural rhythm.
And notice how the body's breathing.
Is it a slow breath or is it a rapid breath?
Is it a deep breath or a shallow breath?
Maybe we're breathing into the chest or perhaps into the stomach.
Is the inhale longer than the exhale or is the exhale longer than the inhale?
We're just noticing.
Now we're not so much watching the breath,
We're experiencing the breath,
We're feeling the breath.
So what does it feel like to breathe?
Perhaps we can feel the cool air coming in through the nostrils as we breathe in,
As the lungs,
The chest and the stomach expand.
And then we might notice a short pause as the breath changes direction,
As the body softens and relaxes and the warm air leaves the nostrils and the body sinks deeper into the chair or into the bed.
We breathe in and the body expands and we breathe out as the body softens and relaxes and sinks deeper.
Now if you notice your mind drifting off into thought,
Thinking about the day,
Making plans or running through your to-do lists,
That's completely normal.
This is the mind's way of trying to help us by anticipating and solving potential problems.
But this type of thinking can end up creating stress.
So when you catch yourself lost in thought,
Please don't be hard on yourself.
Instead,
I want you to gently and patiently guide your attention back to the breath and simply pick up where you left off.
Back to that next inhale.
Back to that next exhale.
And now we're going to gently scan through the body,
Slowly waking it up,
Part by part,
Using gentle awareness and little movements to ease our body calmly into the day.
Let's bring our awareness all the way down to the feet.
What sensations can we feel in the feet?
Perhaps tingling,
Warmth or just the weight of your heels resting.
Maybe there's a gentle urge to wiggle your toes.
What's the smallest,
Most relaxing movement you could make?
Just enough to gently let the feet know the day's begun.
Allowing your awareness to move into the ankles and lower legs.
Maybe there's a tiny stretch or the softest rolling of the ankles.
Gradually drifting our awareness into the knees and thighs.
Noticing any sensations here.
If it feels good here,
Maybe straightening the leg,
Slightly flexing the thigh muscles.
Bringing our attention now to the hips and pelvis.
Allowing this part of the body to feel heavy,
Grounded,
Supported.
We're welcome to make any slow,
Gentle,
Tiny movements we like as we move through each of these body parts.
Allowing our awareness to move into the belly and chest.
Noticing the gentle rise and fall of the belly.
The chest expanding and softening.
Noticing that we don't need to do anything here.
The body knows exactly what to do.
If it feels good,
Maybe resting a hand on the chest,
Perhaps one on the belly.
Moving into the shoulders now.
Maybe there's space to drop the shoulders slightly,
Or maybe not.
Just noticing.
Moving our awareness into the arms.
Upper arms,
Elbows,
Wrists,
Hands.
Perhaps letting the fingers stretch,
Or gently wiggle,
Or simply rest.
Moving up through the neck,
The jaw,
The face.
If it feels natural,
Maybe softening the corners of the eyes,
Or even letting a small,
Gentle smile form on the face.
And now,
Let's expand our awareness to include the whole body.
From the top of the head to the tips of the fingers and toes.
Noticing what it feels like to have a connected,
Calm,
Gently energized system.
We're not forcing wakefulness,
We're simply meeting the day with quiet presence.
Now,
Before we wrap up today's meditation,
Let's use a technique called the three-part energizing breath,
Which helps to gently build energy in the body,
Without overwhelming the nervous system.
This breathing shouldn't be intense,
Just enough to gently lift our energy and prepare us for the day ahead.
We'll breathe into the belly,
Feeling it gently expand,
Then the ribs,
Widening softly,
Then into the chest,
And then exhale slowly.
Now,
Don't worry about getting it perfect,
And if you're wondering whether or not you're doing it right,
Just take the pressure off yourself,
And simply take a deep breath in,
And a slow breath out.
But if you'd like to join me in the three-part breath,
Let's try it now.
Inhaling into the belly,
Now into the ribs,
Now into the chest,
And then exhale gently.
Again,
Breathing into the belly,
Ribs,
Chest,
And breathe out slowly.
Breathing into the belly,
Ribs,
The chest,
And breathe out slowly.
And allowing the breath to return to normal.
And noticing how the body is breathing now,
Not changing anything,
Just noticing.
Noticing the body now,
More present,
But still grounded.
If an intention came to you earlier,
You might like to repeat it again now,
Softly,
Quietly.
And if not,
Maybe just a gentle phrase like,
I'm ready for the day.
Congratulate yourself for taking the time to start the day in a different way.
Instead of jumping into your to-do list,
Instead of letting your thoughts run the show,
Instead you paused.
You breathed.
You gave your body the message it rarely gets first thing in the morning.
You told your body it was safe.
You told your body that it's okay to start slowly.
And as this meditation comes to an end,
Let's bring our awareness to sounds.
Sounds inside the room,
Sounds outside the room.
We can gently wiggle our fingers and toes.
Having a little stretch if we need to.
And whenever we're ready,
Gently opening the eyes if they were closed.
Let's take one last deep breath in.
And a slow breath out.
And now you can take this calm,
Steady energy with you as you move through the rest of your day.
