Welcome to the Sunshine and Gratitude Meditation,
A meditation to lift your mood,
To get you back into alignment,
And to help you have an amazing rest of your day.
Please find a comfortable seat,
Making sure that your pelvis is neutral so that you can ensure that your spine is nice and long.
If you would be more comfortable sitting in a chair with your back propped up against the back and your feet on the floor,
That is fine.
I would recommend to stay seated instead of laying down,
So find the most comfortable seated position that you can find now.
When you're ready,
Close your eyes and begin tuning in to your breath.
Notice how you're breathing at the beginning of your practice.
Are you breathing deep or shallow,
Fast or slow,
Smooth or choppy?
Begin deepening your breath,
Breathing in and out through the nose as long as your nose isn't plugged up.
Breathe in to the count of four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And exhale,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Continue breathing in to four and out to four,
Expanding the ribs as you inhale,
Keeping the spine long but letting the outer body soften and relax as you exhale.
Inhaling,
Expand.
Exhaling,
Let go.
Inhaling,
Expand.
Exhaling,
Let go.
As you make your way through this meditation today,
Let your lips form a slight smile.
When we smile,
It releases dopamine in the brain.
Dopamine is the happiness chemical.
So we're sitting here together for a few minutes.
You might as well get the most out of this time together by releasing this happiness chemical.
Deepening the breath,
Slowing it down.
And start to visualize that you are sitting outside in nature.
It is a beautiful sunny day.
The weather is warm but not hot.
Feeling this warmth sink into your skin.
Start to feel the sun radiate and land upon the crown of your head.
Being grateful for the warmth of the sun.
Being grateful for the mood that the sun creates within your psyche,
Your mind.
Being grateful for the growth that the sun creates on the planet,
For the flowers that it nurtures,
The trees,
The grasses,
All of the plants that in turn nourish you on all levels.
As you inhale,
Bring the sunlight down into the body,
Filling the head with this warmth,
With this happy lightness.
Bringing it all the way down through the neck as you inhale.
As you exhale,
Just letting go of any darkness,
Any cobwebs,
Anything that is ready to be released.
Making way for more light.
Breathing this warm light in through the shoulders,
The collarbones,
The upper back,
The chest.
Exhaling,
Letting go,
Making way.
Inhaling,
Drawing this light and this warmth down through the chest,
The mid-back,
The rib cage,
The upper belly.
Exhale,
Letting go,
Making way.
Inhale,
Enjoying this light and this warmth in through the belly and the low back.
Exhaling,
Letting go,
Making way.
Inhale,
Drawing this warmth and this light and through the pelvis,
The hips,
The glutes,
The hip flexors,
And the tailbone.
Exhaling,
Letting go,
Making way.
Continuing to move downward through the body as you inhale,
Drawing this warmth and this light all the way down through the legs,
Through the feet,
And the toes.
As you exhale,
Letting go,
Making way.
As you inhale,
Draw this warmth and this light in through the crown of the head all the way down through the body to the tips of the fingers and tips of the toes.
Exhale,
Let go,
Make way.
Continue doing this for a few rounds on your own,
Staying present,
Staying connected to this visualization.
Bringing your awareness to your heart center,
Lips still forming a smile.
Breathe in a feeling of gratitude,
Feel gratitude in your heart space.
Feeling so grateful for the sun.
Bring in anything else into your mind that makes you feel gratitude.
Could be things that you love in nature,
Could be people,
Places,
Pets,
Things.
Breathe in gratitude.
As you feel more gratitude,
More often,
You will inherently attract and create more things in your life experience to feel grateful for.
Bringing your awareness now back to your body.
Start to feel the earth beneath you.
Start to hear the sounds around you.
Remembering the space you are seated in.
Deepening the breath,
Coming back to the body.
Expanding the ribs in every direction as you inhale,
Letting go of anything you worked up to the surface as you exhale.
Take a cleansing breath with me in through the nose,
Out through the mouth on a sigh.
One more.
Start to bring some movement into the fingers and toes.
If it would feel good,
Reach your arms up overhead as you inhale.
Bring your palms together as you exhale,
Draw your hands down in front of your heart center.
Slowly lower your head and let your lips form that slight smile.
Take a moment to show gratitude to yourself for committing to your practice today and doing something so good for yourself on all levels.
The energy within me acknowledges the energy within you.
Thank you so much for everything that you do in the world.
Thank you so much for committing to your practice and have a great and blessed day.
Namaste.
