Mindfulness practice eight,
From reaction to response,
Cultivating open-heartedness.
Get comfortable in a seated position.
Breathe.
With your eyes closed or gazed down,
Focus on your inhales and exhales.
Let go of any distractions that come into your awareness.
When you're ready,
Tighten up your body,
Slump your shoulders,
Cross your legs and slightly lean forward if that's available to you.
And now tighten up the muscles in your face.
Close in on yourself.
As you continue in this constrained posture,
Bring to mind a stressful situation in your life,
Something that has or continues to irritate you.
Hold it in your mind for a moment and notice your reaction.
Notice how your body feels thinking about this stressful,
Even triggering situation.
Notice what happens in your gut,
In your heart,
In your body.
Notice any difficulty in breathing in this posture.
When you are ready,
Let the situation go or at least put it away for a moment.
If it is challenging for you to let it go,
Do what you would tend to do when your phone rings and you're in the middle of something else and you have to answer it.
Compartmentalize this triggering situation for just a moment.
Shake off this confining posture in whatever way feels appropriate for your body,
Including standing up and stretching or twisting if that's available to you.
Shake out your hands or any other part of your body.
Now I invite you to get comfortable again in a seated position.
Breathe.
Breathe.
With your eyes closed or gaze down once again,
Focus on your inhales and exhales.
When you're ready,
Sit up taller if you can.
Sit proudly in whatever way that has meaning to you.
Perhaps open your chest wide.
Make sure your legs are uncrossed.
Take a few more deep breaths and with your chest open you will likely notice that you can breathe more freely.
Now recall the triggering or irritating experience once again.
Hold it in your mind for a moment and pay attention to your reaction.
Notice how you experience it in your body.
Notice your breath.
As you maintain your proud and empowered posture,
Notice how your body receives the situation.
Sometimes this posture can even produce a compassionate,
Loving response to the situation that had not occurred to you before.
Sit with whatever is arising for a few moments to gain the full benefits and warmth that comes from experiencing and living in open-heartedness.
When you are ready,
Take a deep breath and flutter your eyes open.
Stretch your body and take a moment to transition your focus back into the room.
Breathe.
You Welcome back.
Feel free to journal now about your experience or about any ideas or insights that arose for you during this process.
