Hello,
I'm Elizabeth Cush,
Also known as Biz.
And I'm a therapist and a life coach for highly sensitive women.
And what I found in my journey as a highly sensitive person is that at times I can get easily overwhelmed,
Especially if I'm in an environment where there's a lot going on and I'm feeling like there's just too much information or too much stimulus coming at me.
And meditation has really,
Really helped me find a grounding presence within myself so that even if I'm in an environment that might feel particularly stressful for my system,
I can use my mindful meditative practices to bring me back to myself so that I can listen,
Hear what I need,
But also just feel more settled and grounded even within a less comfortable environment.
And one of the practices that's really in particular helped me a lot is a listening,
Like a listening practice,
A mindful listening practice.
And what I love about it is that it's something you can do anywhere,
In a crowded room,
On a walk in nature,
At a concert where there's lots of people,
Trainings,
Wherever you are,
You can practice mindful listening anytime.
And so that's what we're going to do today.
For this meditation,
We are going to practice mindful listening.
So before we get started,
Finding a comfortable position where you can sit for a few minutes.
Sit or lie down,
Sit on a cushion,
Sit on a chair,
But just get yourself comfortable.
Get your body in a position that feels good to you.
And we're going to take a few slow,
Deep breaths just to bring us here,
Right here,
Right now.
So breathing in and exhaling all the air out.
And we'll do that two more times.
Breathing in deeply to your chest and your belly.
And exhaling out.
And one last time,
Breathing in and letting it go.
And now just let your breath return to its natural rhythm,
Its natural rhythm.
And maybe following the breath for a few cycles.
And now I want you to bring your awareness to the sounds around you.
Just focusing on sounds that are nearby.
Letting the sounds flow in and out of your awareness without focusing on any particular sound.
Just listening to the flow of the noises and sounds around you.
And now bring your awareness to sounds that are farther away.
Maybe they're outside the room where you're sitting.
Maybe if you're in an office space,
They are further down the hall or in another part of your office.
If you're at a gathering,
Like a party or a concert,
Just opening up your ears and allow the sounds from farther away to flow in.
Letting as they come and go,
Shift and change.
Allowing your attention just to be with whatever is coming and going in this moment.
And now allow your focus to encompass all of the sounds,
Those that are nearby,
Those that are further away.
Just allowing as if your ears had funnels or just you could feel the sound channeling down into your consciousness,
Into your awareness as they come and go.
As we bring this meditation to a close,
You can slowly begin to move your body in any way that feels comfortable to you.
Wiggling your fingers and toes or stretching,
Taking another slow deep breath,
Whatever feels right for you and your system.
Coming back to yourself and your environment and the here and now.
As I said before,
I find this type of awareness to be incredibly helpful if I am feeling overstimulated and overwhelmed.
Even though we're listening for stimulus,
For sounds and noises,
Just allowing them to flow through us versus having to attune to any individual sound to me has been very,
Very helpful in just feeling more grounded and centered in myself and the world around me.
As I said,
I'm Elizabeth Kusch and you can find more of my meditations here on Insight Timer and you can find out more about my therapy or coaching practices out there on the internet.
I hope you found this helpful and thank you for joining me today.
