Body Scan: Traditional Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

This traditional body scan practice supports peace, well-being, and calm through mindful embodiment. This meditation is both a foundational mindfulness practice and one that can support your practice for a lifetime. Feel the immediate, calming effects as you release unnecessary worries or tension.

Transcript

This will be a period of body scan meditation.

With the body scan we're cultivating mindfulness through our felt sense of the present moment,

Through body awareness.

We are cultivating mindfulness from within.

And so finding a supportive posture,

Whether lying or seated,

And taking a little time to transition.

Just settling into place.

Before closing the eyes,

Taking a few moments to look around.

Just with a soft gaze,

Noticing what's here to notice.

Beginning to slow down.

And taking in the surroundings with their colors and shapes and objects and space.

Consciously acknowledging being here now.

It's not important to feel any particular kind of way during meditation.

Feelings and thoughts may remain in awareness,

But we can set an intention to allow the body to remain in the foreground.

The felt sense of the body just as it is.

And when ready,

Allowing the eyes to gently close.

Turning inward.

Bringing awareness to the fact that you're breathing.

Perhaps taking a few deeper,

More intentional breaths in.

And then settling into a way of breathing that feels natural.

And the breath is a bodily sensation.

Feeling the rhythm of the breath in the body.

Connecting with the body through the breath.

Whatever emotions may also be here,

Whatever thoughts,

Whatever sensations elsewhere.

Sensing the breath,

Moment to moment.

Just letting things be.

And now inviting awareness to expand beyond the sensations of the breath to include the entire body.

Embodying the body with awareness.

Acknowledging the body.

Recognizing that meditation includes the body.

And mindful awareness can be focused like a spotlight or it can be broad like a searchlight.

Right now inviting the light of awareness to settle with the toes of the left foot.

And as attention settles with the toes,

Sensing what's here to notice.

Feeling into the toes.

Sensing what's happening in this very moment on the level of sensation.

Buzzing,

Warmth,

Coolness.

Noticing what's here.

There's no need for words or to add a story.

Just sensing the direct experience of the left toes,

Just as they are in this moment.

And if there are no sensations,

Just noticing that.

And now letting awareness expand to fill the left foot.

Noticing what comes into awareness.

Perhaps a sense of position.

Maybe pressure.

Maybe temperature.

Perhaps a sense of the space around the left foot.

Becoming an active observer.

Letting go of the question of time or what might happen next.

And just being present with how things are.

Sometimes thoughts arise.

It can be like drifting away or a sense of being drawn into a story or visual imagery or a soundtrack.

And then awareness dawns and there's recognition of sensing,

Feeling,

Sensations coming and going,

Sense of presence.

And what's on our mind is often not actually happening in this moment.

So connecting,

Reconnecting,

Letting yourself be.

And on an exhale,

Letting go of the focus on the left foot and inviting awareness into the lower left leg between the ankle and the knee.

Sensing the surface and down below the surface into the muscle and bone.

Sensing what comes into awareness.

Whatever sensations are here.

Often our experience within is changing from moment to moment.

With mindfulness we can become aware of this changing,

This flow.

Sensing into the left knee joint,

This connector between the left lower leg and the left upper leg.

Noticing this point of transition between the upper and lower and any sensations that are here.

Feeling into the left upper leg.

The invitation is to connect.

Just holding this region in awareness.

And when the mind becomes distracted,

Just reconnecting.

Coming back to awareness of the present moment.

Here in the upper left leg.

The inner left thigh,

The outer left thigh,

Front and back of the left thigh.

Lightness,

Heaviness,

Firmness,

Softness.

Letting go of assumptions and expectations and just bringing a curiosity to what's happening right now,

Right here.

Sensing skin,

Sensing bone,

Muscle,

The felt sense of this area.

Extending all the way up into the hip joint where the leg meets the torso.

Now a sense of awareness filling the entire left leg.

From the toes through the lower leg,

The upper leg.

Just holding it in awareness and letting it be.

Allowing yourself to be just as you are.

Letting go of expectations.

Consciously releasing the focus on the left leg and inviting attention to the right.

Bringing it into the right foot.

Cradling this region and awareness and just sensing what's here.

Feeling into the right toes,

The big toe,

The little toe.

All the toes in between and feeling into the spaces between them.

Sometimes there's an absence of sensations and if that's what's here,

Just noting that.

There are fewer sensations.

It can be helpful to connect a little more fully with the breath.

Just breathing with awareness of the right foot.

Letting it be.

Now inviting attention up into the region of the lower right leg between the ankle and the knee.

Dropping in fully,

Noticing whatever is here to notice.

What's arising in this moment?

Where does it begin and end?

Sensing without moving.

What's here?

Ankle,

Calf,

Shin,

The joint of the knee.

Perhaps feeling sensations of clothing on skin.

Sense of temperature.

Warmth or coolness or somewhere in between.

Noting any other details that come into prominence.

Perhaps the wandering mind comes in and out of awareness.

No need to suppress thoughts.

Just allowing them to stay in the background while the body stays in the foreground.

The breath in the foreground.

Allowing yourself to be just as you are.

And with an exhale releasing the focus on the right lower leg and inviting it up into the right upper leg.

Between the right knee and the hip.

Just dropping in and observing any and all sensations.

Perhaps noticing sensations in the region of the right inner thigh,

The outer thigh,

Front and back of the thigh.

Sensations present in the joint of the knee or the joint of the hip.

Any and all sensations can be included.

And now inviting awareness to fill the right leg.

Breathing with awareness of the right leg.

And letting it be.

And now taking a deeper more intentional breath in.

And with the exhale releasing the focus on the right leg and with the legs entirely.

Moving attention to the torso.

The central part of the body.

And taking a few moments to sense the entirety of the torso.

Perhaps feeling the rhythm of the breath in the torso.

Perhaps sensations where the body is supported by the chair or floor or wherever you are.

Sense of pressure,

Lightness,

Heaviness,

Or something else.

Just connecting with awareness of the torso.

And here in the torso letting attention drop into the pelvis.

This area that's so involved with many types of movement.

Just noticing what's the felt sense of the pelvis.

Perhaps the bones that give the pelvis its structure.

The hip bones,

The pubic bone,

The bones of the sacrum and tailbone.

Perhaps there are sensations in the muscles of the groin.

Maybe sensations in the web of muscles that make up the pelvic floor.

Whatever comes into awareness.

Maybe feeling the sensations of breathing all the way down into the space of the torso.

This place that's central to functions of elimination or reproduction.

Moment by moment just bringing curiosity to what's happening here now.

It's possible to distinguish between thoughts about the body and the actual felt sense of the body on the level of our very aliveness.

Just staying close to what the actual experience is of the body in this moment here in the pelvis.

And now inviting awareness to flow into the lower back just above the sacrum.

Connecting with awareness.

Those sensations arising,

Changing,

Coming and going.

Maybe pulsing,

Maybe radiating.

Arising in awareness and passing out of awareness.

What's arising in this moment here in the lower back.

The felt sense of the body rather than through thinking or analysis.

Feeling into the mid-back where the ribcage wraps around and connects with the spine.

Numerous muscles connecting with other regions.

Perhaps feeling sensations of breathing here in the back of the torso.

Maybe expanding or contracting or any other sensations present here and throughout the back.

Whatever they may be.

Perhaps awareness of the points of contact between the body and any supporting surface.

Sensing the torso from within.

Noticing sensations in the abdomen.

Perhaps awareness of the rising and falling of the belly with the breath.

What is the felt experience of the abdomen?

What the various organs reciting here.

So much happening without our needing to make it so.

And so much outside of our perceptions.

How are things now here in the region of the abdomen?

How can we be with what's happening?

Inviting a sense of patience,

Kindness for the body and any challenges it may be facing.

Letting go of interpreting or of creating a story in the mind.

And just experiencing the body as it is.

Noticing what's here to notice in the abdomen.

And then sensing back toward the spine.

The flow of sensations.

It's feeling into the torso from within.

Perhaps feeling the breath in the back of the body.

And in the region of the abdomen.

The primary breathing muscle resides just above the abdomen.

Situated below the ribs.

This thin dome shaped muscle that presses downward with the inhale causing the abdomen to rise.

And it relaxes with the exhale.

The belly falls.

Sensing this rising and falling of the belly with the breath.

Movement,

Stillness,

Lifting,

Expanding,

Contracting.

Broad variety of sensations.

And sensing into the chest.

The muscles of the ribs expanding to accommodate the breath.

Relaxing with the exhale.

The ribs cradling the internal organs of the chest.

The region of the breasts.

Perhaps sensing the heart beating.

The lungs filling and emptying.

As long as we're breathing there's more right with us than there is wrong.

An inherent wholeness and integrity to the system.

Our being human.

Present,

Aware,

Alive.

Sensing the ribs at the front of the body and around to the back.

Breath sensations from within.

Perhaps the rising and falling of the shoulders.

The skin of the chest stretching with each inhale and relaxing with each exhale.

360 degree perspective on the chest.

Into the back between the shoulder blades.

The three-dimensionality of the breathing experience.

Inviting awareness into the upper back.

Breathing here with the muscles that are connected to the ribs and shoulder blades.

Muscles that connect with the spine and extend up into the neck and shoulder.

If there's tension,

Noticing how many different types of sensations may go with the experience of tension.

Perhaps squeezing or aching or radiating.

Going beyond any specific word and noticing direct experience.

The felt sense of the body.

Paying attention as if listening to the body.

Expressing itself with its own language.

Feeling into the muscles of the upper back,

Into the shoulders,

The neck,

The sense of the spine all the way to the top of the neck where it meets the head.

Perhaps some sensations even seem to extend up into the skull.

Now inviting awareness into the shoulders.

Many muscles from the back connect with the arms.

Forming what we call the rotator cuff.

Feeling into this region what's here to notice.

Bone,

Muscle,

Firmness,

Softness,

Sharp sensations,

Dull sensations.

Inviting awareness to flow into the arms.

Left arm and the right arm.

Just feeling what's here to notice in the arms.

Sense of their position.

Maybe sensations of clothing on skin.

Without aiming for any particular kind of experience or trying to make anything happen.

Perhaps there's a sense of the structure within.

The framework of bones in the forearms,

The elbow,

The wrists.

All the way down into the hands.

Paying attention with the kind of patience and intentionality that one might bring to being in nature.

Taking in the nuances of everything happening.

What's here now?

Tingling,

Pressure,

Contractions,

Expansions,

Tension,

Ease.

Sensing the hands at rest.

And now just breathing with awareness of the hands,

The entire arms,

The shoulders,

And letting them be.

Awareness of thoughts may be arising.

Not a problem.

The natural aspect of having a mind,

Of having a brain.

But what's happening right now in this moment?

Breathing with awareness of the entire torso.

Sensing it from within.

From the pelvis,

All the way up through the sacrum and the spine,

Through the neck.

Sensing the abdomen and the chest and into the shoulders and arms.

And letting yourself be just as you are.

On an exhale,

Letting go of the focus on the torso and bringing awareness to the region of the neck and throat.

What's happening here?

Perhaps sensations related to swallowing.

Maybe a sense of the air as it passes in and out of this region.

Inviting awareness up into the jaw,

The face,

Tuning into the chin.

Sensing the region of the mouth,

The lips,

The teeth,

The tongue,

The gums.

Moment to moment awareness of what's happening in the mouth.

Perhaps a sense of dampness or dryness.

Rough sensations or smooth.

Considering the sinuses and experiencing the face as if from the inside.

The eyes gently resting in their sockets.

Feeling any and all sensations here in the region of the face.

And letting it be consciously sensing the ears and without any effort to interpret anything.

Just notice how they're perceiving sound.

Letting go of judging or striving and just letting things be.

And inviting awareness into the entire head.

Perhaps there are sensations flowing between the head and the neck and shoulders or even the back muscles.

Consider the brain gently resting in the skull.

Noting sensations without interpreting.

Just the felt sense of the head.

Sometimes the mind drifts into thoughts,

Into stories.

And then with awareness we reconnect with what's here now in this moment.

Sensations of the head and perhaps other areas of the body.

Sometimes the mind drifts into thoughts,

Into stories.

And then with awareness we reconnect with what's here now in this moment.

We're expanding our capacity to be aware.

To put out the welcome mat for whatever's happening because it already is.

Inviting awareness to fill the body.

Noticing what's here.

Sense of the skin covering the entire surface.

Below the skin.

Perhaps a sense of structure like with the frame of bones.

Perhaps a sense of presence.

Of being,

Of knowing.

Any and all sensations.

Just resting in awareness.

Breathing with awareness of the whole body.

The whole body breathing.

Being with ourselves as one might with a dear friend.

Patience.

Acceptance for how things are in this moment.

Considering that things are constantly changing.

And as this meditation starts to come to a close,

Consider that the practice doesn't have to end with the bell.

In many ways as we move on to whatever comes next,

We're simply increasing the context for the practice.

In the ways that we meet ourselves in each moment.

To connect.

To be aware.

Noticing when we fall into habitual patterns of mind or behavior.

Congratulate yourself for giving yourself this gift.

Reviews

Namasté Denise
Thank you

Amazing. Such a deep and thorough body scan. Soothing voice, excellent pace. Will return again soon!

This was my first body scan and I love it! It's so relaxing. Thank you for this meditation.

It’s wonderful to have easy access to your body scan Denise. I’ve missed your voice.

Beautifully grounding

That was nice. Quiet instruction. Thorough body scan. The time seemed to go quickly. Thank you.

It helped me fall asleep 😴 thank you

Wonderful thank you

Very well done. Nicely modulated voice and good pacing. Calm and relaxing. Bookmarked! 💕

Thank you 🙏🌺🌸🦋

Such a relaxing and comprehensive body scans by one of my favorite teachers ever!

Beautifully shared- much appreciated.

Thank you Denise very precise meditation!

A great bodyscan meditation. Felt like ten minutes. Thank you.

This is a not only a very restful body scan, but it really teaches you how move through a body scan very deeply. Good if you're new to body scan or yoga nidra, or for any time you need to get out of your head and relax into stillness. Very calming. Thank you.