Hello,
I'm Dr.
Candice Kreesman,
And this guided meditation is on connecting with your heart.
It's so easy to become disconnected from our basic wisdom,
The wisdom that lives in our hearts.
We hurry from one obligation to the next and try to silence the emotional messengers that arise if they conflict with what our egoic minds tell us we must do or must be focused on.
Feelings of sadness,
Tiredness,
Heaviness,
Or even pleasant emotions like joy arise in the heart,
But then get brushed aside as being less important than our ego-based stories and objectives.
This guided meditation is intended to help us show up to our emotions,
Which is one way we can reconnect with our hearts.
Emotions are signposts that help us know what we need in any given moment.
Whether an emotion is pleasant or unpleasant,
It contains important seeds of wisdom.
By taking time to be still with our hearts,
We cultivate trust that our emotions are tolerable and there to help us.
We also grow our capacity to be compassionate and gentle with ourselves and with others.
So whether you are drawn to this heart meditation in order to reduce negative emotion,
Or if you feel generally disconnected from your heart and have difficulty sensing specific feelings,
This meditation can help.
We will begin and end with a bell.
To begin,
Close your eyes if that's comfortable and take three deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth.
Take a moment to notice any sounds you hear around you,
Grounding in the present by engaging your sense of hearing.
Allow the breath to flow in through the nose and out through the nose,
Noticing the qualities of the breath.
Is it shallow or deep,
Smooth or choppy,
Restricted or expansive?
Notice the experience of the breath without getting too bought into it being good or bad or right or wrong.
Now shift your focus to your hands.
Roll one or both hands into a tight fist.
Create enough pressure that you can feel the tension,
But don't push so hard that it causes pain.
Hold the fist for a few moments and notice the sensations of tightness,
Pressure,
Heat,
And any other qualities that grab your attention.
Now release your fists and allow your hands to relax.
Notice the qualities of your hands at rest.
They may feel open,
Tingling,
Warm.
Once again,
Clench your hands and notice.
Then relax the hands and notice once again.
Now bring your awareness to your heart space.
Rest your attention in the center of your chest and notice the sensations there.
Does your heart space feel more similar to the clenched fist or the open hand?
If your heart feels closed and you notice sensations of tightness or pressure,
Imagine opening your heart with as much ease as you opened your hand.
Allow whatever is arising in your heart to breathe and move more freely.
Allow your awareness to create a sense of safety.
Let your heart know that whatever arises here will be treated with care and kindness.
If you continue to feel resistance or tightness,
Gently acknowledge these sensations and allow the moment to be just as it is.
Thoughts,
Memories,
Plans,
And judgments may arise as you contact your heart space.
Notice them and then return your attention to the physical sensations in your chest.
The thinking mind is only one small part of the wisdom available to us,
So we will give it some attention,
But save most of our attention and awareness for this heart-based wisdom.
As we come to the end of this meditation,
Take a moment to cultivate some gratitude for yourself and for your willingness to take care of your heart.
Set an intention to check in with your heart space as you go throughout your day.
