Hello,
I'm Dr.
Candice Kreesman.
This guided meditation is on helping us cultivate a kinder and gentler relationship with our bodies.
This is intended for folks of all genders,
Shapes,
Sizes,
Races,
And abilities with an awareness that the type of body we have is impacted not only by how we experience our bodies,
But by how our bodies are treated in systems of inequitable power and privilege.
We will begin and end with a bell.
Let's start with a deep intentional breath in through the nose and out through the mouth.
Bring your awareness to your breath at a single point on the nose,
The chest,
Or on the belly.
You may feel tightness or resistance immediately as you start to encounter your body along with the breath,
And that's a good sign.
Your mind and the conditioning of your experience of your body are arising to help you see where the hurt is so that we can nurture it together.
Continue these slow deep breaths for a few more cycles.
Now let's find a neutral space in the body to connect and ground to.
You might focus on your earlobes,
Your knees,
Or possibly the palms of your hands.
Just find a space on your body that doesn't generate any particular negative or positive feeling.
Breathe with this awareness of the body for a few breaths.
Next with some of your attention grounded in the neutral aspects of your body,
Allow some negative feeling about your body to join your awareness.
This may be a feature of your body that you don't like,
That you wish you could change,
Or that people in your life have been critical of.
See if you can contact the bare experience of not liking some aspect of your body without getting too caught up in the story of it all.
If a laundry list of problems grabs your attention,
See if you can focus on just one aspect at a time.
If you get swept away with negative emotion,
Painful memories,
Or other content that arises as you contact this body feature or aspect,
Just come back to that neutral space in your body for a moment and ground here as long as you need to before returning to the negative aspect of your body.
Now that you are familiar with what it feels like to have a negative experience of some part of your body,
Imagine that this aspect of your body knew you felt harshly toward it.
Take a moment to connect with this area or aspect of your body as being conscious of your disdain,
Of your longing to make it go away or to change it in some way.
Notice the sadness that arises in this body space.
See if you can touch into this sadness without blame or judgment of yourself.
Our goal isn't to shame ourselves for being critical,
So we are going to offer ourselves grace as we encounter how hurtful we have been to our bodies,
Knowing that our bodies really love us unconditionally.
Touch into regret for this harshness,
Knowing that you are not the soul creator of whatever feelings you have about your body.
Breathe with the sensations of knowing your body's pain.
Breathing in,
I am aware of my body's sadness.
Breathing out,
I support my body through this pain.
Breathing in,
I am aware of my body's sadness.
Breathing out,
I support my body through this pain.
As you breathe,
See if you can feel some compassion for this body aspect that has been carrying so much negativity.
Rather than wishing it were different,
In this moment,
With this breath,
See if you can wish it relief from the discomfort of being judged or criticized.
Breathing in,
I soften to my body's pain.
Breathing out,
I wish my body well.
Breathing in,
I soften to my body's pain.
Breathing out,
I wish my body well.
Stay in this space of conscious awareness of your body's pain around judgment or criticism or rejection.
Softly and compassionately encountering this pain alongside your body.
Stay in this space of conscious awareness of your body's pain around judgment or criticism or rejection.
Set your intention to check in with your body as a being on a regular basis.
The more we make room for our body's reaction to painful judgments or criticism,
The more compassion we can begin to feel for our bodies.
Where compassion grows,
Acceptance and even love can follow.
