Focus, Release, And Flow

In Focus, Release, and Flow, we’ll be connecting with the breath, connecting with the body, and creating space for some beautiful calming energy to just flow nicely through us. This meditation is a wonderful way to release any stresses you've been hanging onto in the body through a technique called progressive muscle relaxation where you tense up specific muscle groups, hold for a few seconds, and then release. I invite you to find a comfortable, quiet spot to lay down relax, and just let go.

Transcript

I like to call this practice focus,

Release and flow because we'll be connecting with the breath,

Connecting with the body and just getting some nice calming energy just flowing nicely through us.

This meditation will be done lying down and I invite you now to find a nice comfy spot maybe with a pillow placed under your head,

Maybe a blanket if you think you'll get cold,

Maybe placing another pillow under the knees for some height.

Just making sure that you're comfortable in a nice quiet restful place.

Making sure that you have your back nice and long and straight,

Your front nice and soft so you're breathing freely and deeply from the diaphragm,

Arms resting gently at your sides,

Feet just falling gently away from each other,

Chin just slightly tucked towards your chest just to open up the throat and get some nice air flowing in that space.

Just settling in and breathing easily,

Normally and freely,

Just starting to relax.

Beautiful.

Just resting and knowing that this time is all about you.

We're going to start in a moment by taking three nice deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth,

Breathing out with a nice big releasing sigh if that feels right for you.

So let's begin.

Taking a nice deep breath in right from the belly and exhaling.

Feeling any tension you've been holding just beginning to roll right off the body.

And again,

A nice big deep breath in and releasing that.

Just enjoying how that feels.

One more time,

A nice big deep breath in and letting that go.

Just sinking into the ground.

Just letting yourself relax and melt right into it.

Just letting go.

Just breathing normally now and easily for a few moments and just allowing the mind and the body to begin to settle.

We're now going to set an intention for today's meditation,

An intention for releasing any stock energy,

For allowing that energy to just release and to flow.

So taking a moment now to feel into that intention for letting go,

For releasing in whatever way feels most right for you.

Thinking of anything in your life that maybe you'd like to let go that you've been maybe hanging on to just a little longer than you should,

Than is right for you.

Just feeling into that.

And forming an intention now in either a sentence or maybe an image.

Just forming an intention for letting go in whatever way it comes to for you.

Just feeling that intention connect gently now with each soft beat of your heart.

Starting with each soft beat and just resting like this for a few moments.

And now repeating this intention to yourself three times.

Now taking a nice big deep breath in and exhaling.

Letting that intention traveling out on a wave of nice light,

Positive energy and just letting it be known that this is your desire for this practice today.

And knowing there is nothing more you need to do.

Just allowing that intention to unfold for you in the way that it's meant to.

Beautiful.

And placing the awareness now on the breath.

And just noticing it now,

Following it as it flows in and out through the nostrils.

Becoming aware of the belly rounding and the chest rising on the inhale.

Becoming aware of the chest falling and the belly flattening on the exhale.

And just noticing and following this movement and flow as you draw the senses further and further inward with each breath.

Becoming aware of the sound of the breath as it flows in and out of the nostrils.

Becoming aware of the feeling of the breath as it enters and as it leaves.

Becoming aware of the darkness behind the eyelids as you start to turn your sight inwards.

Noticing any colors or maybe any shapes behind the eyelids.

Maybe noticing now on the next inhale the heart beating.

Maybe noticing now on the next inhale the heart beating just a little bit quicker in your chest.

Maybe noticing now on the next exhale the heart beating just a little bit slower.

Creating this natural perfect balance of your heart rate,

Of your nervous systems,

Of your internal energy.

As you draw further and further inward with each gentle easy breath.

We'll begin in a moment to just draw the exhale out a little bit further than the inhale.

Adding an extra beat each time to the exhale.

Seeing our parasympathetic nervous system which is our nice calm soothing rest and digest state.

We'll be breathing in and out through the nose and remembering to always breathe at a pace that feels right for you.

And returning to your natural breathing if ever this does not feel right for you.

So let's begin.

Breathing in now to a count of four beats.

Breathing out now to a count of five beats.

Breathing in to a count of five beats.

Breathing out to a count of six beats.

In for six.

And out for seven.

And in for seven.

And out for eight.

And in for eight.

And out for nine.

And in for nine.

And out for ten.

And just releasing that now and breathing easily and normally.

And just placing the awareness on the breath as it flows in and out of the body.

Energy flows where attention goes.

And emotion is in a very simple sense energy and motion.

And sometimes that energy can get stuck and build up making us feel tense and heavy in the body.

Emotions like the kind that are results or a contributor to stress vibrate at a lower frequency than emotions like excitement or joy or gratitude.

Making them heavier or less flowing.

Kind of sluggish and kind of like how they make us feel in the body.

Heavy.

We can help move this heavy emotional energy by observing it from a neutral state by noticing it just like we notice the breath in meditation.

By placing our attention and awareness on it.

By not attaching ourselves to the heavy emotion or energy but instead getting curious about it.

Allowing us to respond with intention to it rather than reacting.

And allowing it to just move on through rather than getting stuck or blocked in the body.

We're now going to gently release any stuck or blocked energy from the body by practicing a simple progressive muscle relaxation.

As we do this we'll be tensing specific muscle groups in the body and I invite you to see if you can tense just those muscles that are being targeted.

And while it's important to tense the muscles as much as possible please be mindful not to strain or hurt yourself.

There shouldn't be any pain and if there is just to release the tension right away and just breathe normally.

As always it's important to do what feels most comfortable and right for you in this moment.

So let's begin.

Placing the awareness now in the feet.

Just taking a moment to feel it there to connect with it now right in the feet.

Noticing how the feet feel.

Noticing any tension or tightness there in the feet.

Now taking a nice deep breath in through the nose.

You gently tense and curl the toes downward.

Holding that there for five seconds.

Feeling into that tension and noticing it.

And then exhaling,

Relaxing the feet and curling the toes and just feeling the energy releasing and flowing more freely in the feet now.

Just taking a moment to notice the difference between the feeling of tension and the feeling of release,

The feeling of flow versus the feeling of constriction.

And now placing the awareness in the lower legs and feet.

Just feeling into them,

Feeling into this area and just noticing,

Observing how this area feels.

Observing how the energy feels here.

And taking a nice deep breath in as you gently pull the toes towards the nose and tighten the calf muscles.

Just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension,

Noticing it.

And exhaling,

Relaxing the feet and the calves,

Feeling the energy move in this space,

Feeling it release and starting to,

Starting to flow.

And just feeling the energy move now in the calves and the feet.

Now placing the awareness on the legs,

The entire leg from the very tips of the toes all the way to the tops of the hips.

Just feeling into this entire area now,

The whole leg.

Just taking a moment to notice how this area feels,

The energy feels here that's heavy.

There's any tightness.

And taking a nice deep breath in as you squeeze the thigh muscles while tightening the lower leg.

And just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension,

Noticing it.

And then exhaling,

Just releasing that feeling the energy flowing in the whole leg,

Feeling it move.

Just noticing how that feels.

And now placing the awareness in the hands,

Just feeling into the hands now.

Now taking a nice deep breath in as you clench the hands tightly into fists.

Just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension,

Noticing it.

And exhaling,

Releasing those fists,

Relaxing the hands and noticing the energy flowing in the hands and the palms,

Maybe up and down the fingers,

Out to the fingertips,

Just feeling the energy there now.

And placing the awareness now in the arms,

The entire arm from the very tips of the fingers,

All the way up to the very tops of the shoulders.

Just placing the awareness here now and feeling into this space and just noticing.

And taking a nice deep breath in now as you draw the forearms up towards the shoulders,

Tightening the biceps and clenching those hands into fists.

Just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling that tension,

Noticing it.

Exhaling,

Releasing that now,

Bringing the forearms gently back down and clenching the hands and just feeling that energy moving now in the entire arm,

Feeling it flow,

Feeling it move.

Just noticing.

Placing the awareness now in the stomach and just feeling it there now in this space,

Noticing what the energy feels like there,

Observing it.

Now taking a nice deep breath in as you pull the belly button in towards the spine,

Just holding it there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension,

Noticing and observing it.

And exhaling,

Letting that go,

Feeling the energy loosen there in this space,

Feeling it lighten and flow there in the core.

And placing the awareness now on the chest and the heart,

Just noticing how this area feels and is always paying just a little special attention to how the heart is feeling.

Just noticing and taking a nice deep breath in from the belly,

Noticing the belly around and the chest and the heart rise.

Just holding that breath at the top for five seconds,

Feeling into the tension and releasing that breath now,

Allowing the energy to flow,

Feeling the heart softening and opening as it releases,

Noticing and observing how it feels to just let go.

And placing the awareness now on the neck and shoulders,

Feeling into this space,

Noticing any tightness.

Just noticing how it feels in this area,

What the energy there is like.

Taking a nice deep breath in as you raise the shoulders up towards the ears and just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension,

It's noticing.

And exhaling,

Just releasing that,

Lowering the shoulders gently back down,

Feeling that energy flowing through the neck and shoulders and moving easily now and all this space that you're creating for it to flow in the body.

And placing the awareness now on the jaw,

Noticing it,

Maybe taking a moment now to unclench it,

Noticing if it feels tight.

Just taking a moment now to feel into this area,

To notice and to observe.

And taking a nice deep breath in as you open the jaw as wide as you can,

Feeling that stretch and just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into the tension in the jaw muscles.

And exhaling,

Just releasing that,

Gently closing the mouth and feeling the energy flow within the jaw area,

Feeling it flow with that release,

Noticing the difference between the feeling of the release and the feeling of the tension.

And placing the awareness now on the eyes,

Feeling into this area,

Noticing how the muscles around the eyes feel,

If there's any tightness.

And taking a nice deep breath in as you draw the eyebrows together towards the bridge of the nose,

Just holding that there for five seconds,

Feeling into that tension and noticing.

And exhaling,

Just relaxing the brows,

Softening the area around the eyes,

Releasing,

Releasing the energy there now,

Just feeling it flow.

And placing the awareness now on the forehead,

Feeling into this space,

Noticing how it feels,

Noticing any tightness,

Noticing what kind of energy is being held there in the forehead.

Taking a nice deep breath in as you raise the eyebrows up as far as you can,

Holding that there for five seconds,

Just feeling into that tension.

And exhaling,

Releasing that and gently lowering the brows,

Allowing the energy to flow easily within this space and just feeling it moving and swirling there freely now,

Naturally.

And finally,

Placing the awareness on the whole body,

The whole body from the very tips of the toes to the very top of the crown,

Just noticing this area and noticing any spots where energy still feels tight or stuck or blocked.

And taking a deep breath in now as you tense the entire body,

Flexing the foot as you bring the toes towards you,

Tightening the calves,

Tightening the thighs,

Clenching the hands into this,

Pulling the belly towards the spine,

Opening the mouth wide if that feels right for you,

Raising those brows and holding that now for five seconds.

And exhaling,

Releasing that and just feeling the energy flowing now in the whole body.

Maybe seeing now if you can intentionally move this nice beautiful energy throughout the body now with just your awareness,

Moving that energy with just your consciousness,

Moving it up and down the legs,

Moving it up and down the arms,

Up and down the torso,

Maybe in the throat,

Maybe in the face,

Maybe resting on the very tip of the nose now.

We'll do this two more times.

Taking a nice deep breath in,

Tensing the whole body.

Just holding that now for five seconds and exhaling,

Releasing that now,

Feeling the energy flowing freely in the whole body.

And again now with just your awareness,

Seeing if you can move that light flowing energy throughout the whole body,

Just noticing how it feels to just flow naturally,

Freely and all this wonderful space you've created for it to move.

And one more time,

Taking a nice big deep breath in as you sense the whole body flexing the foot as you bring the toes towards you,

Tightening the calves,

Tightening the thighs,

Clenching the hands into fists,

Pulling the belly button towards the spine,

Opening the mouth wide if that feels right for you,

Raising those brows and holding that for five seconds now.

And exhaling,

Releasing the entire body,

Enjoying the feeling of release of lightness,

Feeling all this energy flowing freely within the whole body.

And one last time,

Using the awareness now to move this light flowing energy easily throughout the body,

Throughout the whole body,

Just moving this beautiful flowing energy.

And releasing that awareness now and just placing it now on the breath,

Following it as it flows gently in and out of the nostrils.

We'll rest in this space now for three minutes,

Just allowing all of this beautiful unblocked energy to just flow freely unhindered throughout the whole body.

After three minutes,

I will slowly guide you back with the sound of my voice.

If any thoughts arise,

Know that this is completely normal,

Completely okay,

Completely human.

Just notice them,

Acknowledge them,

And release them,

Returning the attention back to the breath as it flows in and out.

So let's begin and enjoy.

Namaste.

I'm just continuing to breathe now.

Normally now,

Then easily.

Just resting.

As we begin the process of closing our practice and turning the senses back outward.

Just placing the awareness now on the breath.

Noticing how the breath feels as it moves in and out through the nostrils.

Noticing the sound of the breath as it enters and the sound as it leaves.

Taking a nice deep breath in now.

Exhaling through the mouth slowly.

Feeling the sensation of the breath against your lips.

Feeling the temperature of the air and allowing the sensation to bring you gently back to your physical space.

Let's do this again.

Taking a nice deep breath in and exhaling slowly through the mouth.

Experiencing the sensation and allowing it to gently coax the external senses to come back online.

And just breathing normally now,

Easily.

Becoming aware again of the room.

Noticing any sounds now close to you in the room.

Maybe noticing now any sounds further away in the distance.

Becoming aware again of the ground supporting you.

Envisioning now the outline of your body back here in this physical space.

Remembering again your intention from the beginning of this practice and just taking a moment now to feel into it again.

Now repeating it to yourself three times.

We're going to close our practice today with three nice deep energizing breaths.

In through the nose and out through the mouth.

So let's begin.

Nice big deep breath in.

And release.

Coming back to this space with the energizing power of the breath.

Then again,

Nice big deep breath in.

And releasing that feeling refreshed,

Invigorated,

Embodied.

And one last time,

A nice big deep breath in right from the belly.

And releasing that back here now in this space.

And just breathing normally now and easily.

Maybe wiggling the fingers now,

Maybe wiggling the toes,

Maybe stretching the arms above the head if that feels right for you.

Energy flows where attention goes.

I invite you now when you're ready to gently slowly open your eyes.

Thank you for sharing your practice with me today.

Namaste.