Welcome to a meditation practice.
My name is Elena and I will be your guide.
This session will help you quiet your thoughts,
Slow down a busy or overwhelmed mind,
Reset your nervous system,
And cool down your brain.
It will also teach your body and mind to relax easily and let go of all mental and physical tension.
Instead of getting tangled up in your thoughts and feelings,
You will practice being a witness of all your internal processes and stories.
Learning to disengage from the drama of the mind and take on an observer's perspective will help you grow into a more conscious human being,
Regulate your own emotions,
Soothe anxiety and stress.
Learning to witness your mind and thoughts is one of the fundamental teachings of many different meditation traditions and it offers countless health benefits,
Such as improved sleep,
Better focus,
And mental clarity.
You are welcome to use this practice whenever you need a break in the middle of the day or to slow down your mind before sleep.
Before we begin,
Find a calm,
Relaxing place for your practice where you won't be disturbed.
Minimize any potential distractions.
Silence the sounds and notifications.
Remember to turn off autoplay.
To experience best results,
Use headphones and practice this meditation daily for at least a month.
If you fall asleep during the session,
Just let it happen.
A part of you will remain awake and receive all my guidance.
If you skip a day,
Just return back to the daily flow of your practice and make sure you don't skip it twice in a row as it might break your new habit.
The longer you practice this meditation,
The deeper you will experience the benefits.
With each repetition of the practice,
You are rewiring your brain and creating a foundation for solid and lasting results.
Now,
As we are about to dive in,
Let your body find the most comfortable position,
Resting on your back on a yoga mat or in bed.
Everything about your position feels relaxing and pleasant and with every breath,
Your position is becoming even more comfortable and your muscles start to relax and soften.
You may find that it feels good to close your eyes.
As your eyelids softly close,
Your attention is starting to turn inward.
Very good.
This practice is an invitation to slow down and connect with yourself on a deeper level.
Allow your practice to create space among your busy thoughts,
A restful oasis of tranquility and peace where you can just be,
Nothing to do,
Nothing to achieve or accomplish,
Nowhere to go.
There.
In this moment,
You have all you need so you can just let go and melt into a state of complete relaxation.
Yes,
Very good.
You don't even need to focus on my words.
It's enough to just let a part of you passively receive my message while the rest of you simply surrenders to relaxation.
Whether you stay awake or fall asleep is not important as your subconscious is always listening.
Your mind will receive and take in exactly what it needs and what is most useful for you and simply let the rest go.
Now I would like to invite you to think of your intention,
Your sankalpa.
Think of something that is really important to you and that you would like to manifest in your life.
This can be something like I am calm and at peace.
I am deeply rested and relaxed.
I am nurtured,
Safe and protected.
Or this can be something else that resonates with you.
When you are ready,
Formulate a short and simple positive statement as if it is already happening.
Remember it word by word and internally repeat it to yourself three times.
In a moment I will ask you to internally count back from ten to zero as you observe your thoughts slow down and release the grip.
With every count and breath your thoughts will slow down and dissolve more and more leaving behind a feeling of calm and peace,
A feeling of pleasant openness and emptiness where you can really rest.
You are welcome to begin now.
Yes,
Just like this.
Very slowly counting down from ten to zero letting each count correspond to a breath.
As you reach zero your mind is even more relaxed,
Calm and serene.
Completely relaxed,
Calm and serene.
Your brain and your nervous system are enjoying a feeling of complete relaxation,
Calm and tranquility.
Now let your awareness arrive in your physical body.
In a moment I will guide your awareness through different parts of your body and as we move through your body you will observe how different parts of you will tense and relax.
You don't need to try hard or actively apply any effort.
Just let your body tense and relax all by itself.
It's like you're giving your body an order and relax part by part and just witnessing your body do it for you.
You might be surprised to find out that your body is perfectly capable of doing it.
First your lungs will fill with breath.
Let the breath fill your lungs to the max.
Observe how they expand in all directions.
Front,
Back and sides.
How the air travels to the tips of the bronchial branches.
The air is expanding your lungs omnidirectionally like a balloon.
Observe a moment of light tension at the top of your lungs.
Let the breath travel out of the body slowly.
As the breath is released all tension is leaving your body.
I wonder how your breath feels right now.
Let another deep breath arrive like an ocean wave.
The breath expands your lungs.
Creates space in your lungs.
Opens all the bronchial branches.
Let the breath slowly flow out.
Yes,
Just like this.
Even slower now.
Let a deep breath arrive.
The breath expands your chest and ribcage even more now.
The air pushes all the dust and toxins out of your lungs and expands them in all directions.
A moment of tension at the top of the in-breath.
Slowly let the breath be released and allow the tension to melt and leave your body.
Your chest is now completely relaxed.
Very good.
Now your awareness moves to your fingertips.
Your fingertips tighten slightly or perhaps a bit more or maybe squeeze into fists.
I wonder what this activation feels like.
With your next exhale the fingers relax and soften completely.
Your awareness moves to your arms.
Your arm muscles slightly tighten or perhaps noticeably or a little.
Notice what this activation feels like.
With your next exhale your arms completely relax and soften.
Yes,
Very good.
Your awareness moves to your chest.
The muscles of your chest tighten slightly or perhaps a bit more.
I wonder what sensations accompany this process for you.
With your next exhale the chest relaxes and softens completely.
Your awareness moves to your belly.
The muscles in your belly tighten slightly.
Notice your sensations.
With your next exhale the belly relaxes and softens completely.
Your awareness moves to the pelvic floor.
Observe a slight activation of your pelvic floor muscles.
With your next exhale your pelvic floor relaxes.
Your awareness moves to your legs.
Your leg muscles tighten slightly or perhaps a bit more or maybe squeeze and tighten a lot.
Notice what this activation feels like.
With your next exhale the legs relax and soften completely.
Your awareness moves to your feet and toes.
Your feet and toes tighten slightly.
Or maybe the toes squeeze towards the center of your feet.
Notice what this activation feels like.
Notice all sensations.
With your next exhale your feet and toes relax and soften completely.
Yes,
That's it.
Your feet and toes are completely relaxed.
You may feel your whole body gently tensing up.
You might feel your neck,
Shoulders,
Back,
Chest,
Belly,
Hips,
Arms and legs tensing up on an in-breath.
On your next exhale allow your whole body to go completely limp.
Your body is now ready to soften and melt completely like snow melting in the sun.
Now give permission to any of the remaining tension to leave your body.
Imagine it melting and being absorbed by the earth.
Yes,
Let anything that isn't serving you be released.
The physical and mental tension,
Emotional tension,
Thoughts that have been spinning on repeat.
All of them are ready to be released right now.
You'll begin to notice that as you are allowing yourself to release the tension from your body,
Your mind is starting to slow down.
The more your body relaxes,
The more your mind is letting go of all thoughts.
The more your body melts into relaxation,
The more your brain is slowing down.
A feeling of deep relaxation is now beginning to spread through your whole body like liquid honey.
It's slowly filling every cell of your body with warmth and softness.
Visualize how it's making its way into your head,
Relaxing your mind.
Then your torso,
Your back.
The relaxation is now spreading into your arms and the fingertips.
Then into your lower belly,
Your pelvis.
Your hips.
Traveling down into your legs,
All the way down to your ankles and your feet.
Reaching to your toes.
Your whole body is filled with this feeling of softness,
Warmth,
Effortless relaxation.
As your mental activation begins to transform into ease,
The need to react to the circumstances will fade away.
And instead of being in a reactive state,
You will find yourself shifting into a role of the observer.
You may notice how a part of you is passively observing the thoughts,
Emotions and physical sensations as they come and go.
While another part of you is completely relaxed.
Maybe even asleep or just about to fall asleep.
It's like stepping out of the main character role and remembering that you are not your thoughts.
You are not your feelings.
You are not your body.
You are beyond all the external things that you used to identify with.
The real you is pure awareness.
A loving awareness that is witnessing this moment right now.
It's observing your thoughts and feelings as they come and go,
Moment by moment.
Or perhaps by now it's observing a state of peaceful,
Calm presence that you have shifted into.
If thoughts continue to emerge,
You can imagine them passing by,
Like clouds floating across the sky.
Slow,
Peaceful,
Constantly changing clouds drifting across the sky.
You can also imagine your thoughts,
Feelings and sensations as northern lights dancing in the sky.
Appearing seemingly out of nowhere,
Moving and dancing across the sky and then fading into nothingness,
Moment by moment.
The clouds and the northern lights may temporarily change the look of the sky.
But underneath them the sky is always the same.
Open,
Clear,
Expansive.
Yes,
It's a lot like your mind.
The thoughts may seem to stain the clear canvas of the mind.
But they don't have the power to change it.
They just come and go.
Just like this,
As a thought has passed,
You can see the true nature of your mind again.
Open,
Clear,
Expansive,
Infinite.
And now I invite you to visualize your thoughts,
Emotions and physical sensations as ripples on the surface of the lake.
They can move across the surface of the water,
Appearing and dissolving.
But if you dive just a little deeper,
There is only stillness,
Tranquility and peace.
Yes,
That's a lot like your mind.
There can be thoughts and emotions on the surface.
But deep inside,
Calm and peace are always available to you.
You just need to take a moment and dive a bit deeper.
Layer by layer,
Your thoughts are beginning to untangle and settle down.
Your inner dialogue is slowing down.
I will now give you a few minutes of quiet space to enjoy this wonderfully restorative place,
Where you can recharge and replenish your inner resources in a thoughtless realm.
And now,
Come back to breath awareness.
As your breath is slow and relaxed,
So is your body.
As your breath is slow and relaxed,
So is your mind.
As your breath is slow and relaxed,
So is your brain.
As your breath is slow and relaxed,
So is your nervous system.
As your breath is slow and relaxed,
So is your whole being.
A feeling of complete relaxation,
Tranquility and calm.
Letting go of anything that is in your way of experiencing complete rest.
You are surrendering to a profound feeling of peace,
Relaxation,
Calm and serenity.
Deep inhales.
Deep exhales.
Slow inhales.
Full inhales.
Full exhales.
Now remember your intention,
Your sankalpa.
Remember it word by word and internally repeat it to yourself three times.
Now as our practice is about to come to an end,
I will ask you to slowly count from 1 to 10 as your awareness is beginning to gradually return to the present moment and to this physical space.
Or if you prefer,
Let yourself stay in this meditative state as you drift into relaxing,
Restorative sleep.
