Hi everyone,
Welcome to today's mindfulness practice.
My name is Jon Unal and I'll be your guide today.
Today we are going to do a focused awareness practice.
Finding a comfortable and relaxed posture,
Sitting with a straight spine,
If possible both feet on the floor.
Your body is fully relaxed and at ease.
Taking a few moments to settle into your posture.
Connecting with your body and your breath.
Gently closing your eyes or lowering your gaze to minimize any distractions.
Scanning your body from head to toe to notice if you are holding on to any tension or stress from the day,
The week or maybe even from the month.
Especially paying close attention to the areas around your neck and shoulders,
Your jaw,
Some of the major areas where we hold a lot of our tension.
If you notice any tension or stress,
The invitation is just to let it go with each outgoing breath.
Breathing in a sense of calmness.
And breathing out stress.
Breathing in calmness.
And breathing out stress.
With each cycle of breath,
Imagining yourself going deeper and deeper in a state of relaxation.
Relaxing your body.
Relaxing your head.
Relaxing your face.
Relaxing your shoulders.
Relaxing your upper body.
Relaxing your arms.
Relaxing your hands.
Relaxing your legs.
Relaxing your feet.
Your body is fully relaxed and at peace.
Your mind is calm and settled.
Now bringing your attention to a particular object of your choosing.
This can be your breath or the physical sensations in your body.
Maybe start becoming aware of each incoming breath and each outgoing breath.
When you're breathing in,
You know that you're breathing in.
When you're breathing out,
You're aware that you're breathing out.
Noticing the breath coming in and out of your body.
Where do you feel your breath most vividly right now?
You may be noticing the rise and fall of your chest.
Expansion or contraction of your abdomen.
Or maybe noticing the subtle sensations in your nostrils.
Simply breathing in and breathing out.
And sooner or later,
You will realize that your mind has a life of its own.
It will keep wandering into the past or into the future.
Maybe judging your experience,
Worrying,
Criticizing,
Daydreaming.
Which is absolutely normal and expected.
When you notice that your mind has wandered off,
All we need to do is to notice this.
And then bring our awareness back to our breath or back to the physical sensations in your body.
Not feeling agitated or frustrated when the mind keeps wandering off.
Knowing that it is a process and each time we bring our attention back to this moment,
We are strengthening the attention muscle in our brain.
Allowing yourself to relax completely while keeping your attention on your breath.
Slowing down and observing the cycles of breath.
And simply resting in the present moment awareness.
Let's begin to deepen our breaths into our abdomen.
Inhaling and letting go.
Noticing how you are feeling after 9 minutes of practice.
Gently start moving your hands,
Your fingers,
Maybe having a gentle stretch.
If your eyes have been closed,
Slowly opening them.
And before you go back into your daily life,
Setting your intention for the next moment.
To bring the qualities of mindfulness into your working day.
Remembering to be present,
Curious,
Kind.
I wish you a wonderful day and look forward to continuing our journey together with you.
