Hi,
Welcome!
My name is Anneliese and today I am sharing a short practice to soothe anxiety and stress by calming the nervous system and connecting you with the present moment through your own body and environment.
Our physical bodies are always in the present moment,
Differently from our minds that can wander in the past and future.
So before we come to stillness,
Let's bring some movement into the body,
Inviting it to be here now,
With us and for us.
If you're able to stand up,
I encourage you to do that.
And if you aren't,
That's okay,
You can practice sitting down.
If you are sitting down,
Come to the front edge of the chair and plant your feet on the ground.
And if you're standing up,
Bring your feet to hip width apart.
Close your eyes and focus your attention on the soles of your feet.
Feel the parts of your feet that are making contact with the floor.
Feel the support of the ground.
Taking a deep breath in through the nose.
Bring your shoulders close to your ears and with the exhalation,
Let them drop down.
If you're standing up,
Allow your knees to be soft and to bend and straighten with the breathing.
Breathing in the shoulders up to the ears and straighten in the knees,
Breathing out and releasing the shoulders down,
Lightly bending the knees.
Let the breath come out as it wants to come out.
If any sounds arise,
Embrace them.
Let them all out.
Whatever way you are carrying today,
Release it with the out breaths.
Imagining that all the stagnant energy is leaving your body through your hands and feet.
Mentally make the intention to release the weight and send it out to the ground through your body.
If you are seated,
Keep moving in this way for a few more moments.
And if you're standing up,
Start to shake your legs,
Shake your hips,
Shake your torso,
Your shoulders,
Your arms and your hands.
Relaxing the neck and letting the head gently follow the movement of the rest of the body.
Shake your muscles,
Shake your bones,
Shake your skin and your organs,
Letting the energy move and release so it won't get pent up in your body,
Creating blockages,
Tension and tightness.
And slowly finishing the movement,
Bringing our body to stillness,
Either standing up or sitting down.
Notice the energy flowing within you and through you.
There are times when it feels so hard to sit down and being in stillness.
Our bodies feel restless and so do our minds.
Engaging the body in this way allows energy to be released and it usually makes it easier for us to quiet down afterwards and also for us to notice sensations and feelings.
So notice how the movement has awakened sensations in your body.
And with eyes closed,
Take a deep breath in through the nose and a slow breath out through the mouth.
Again,
Breathing in through the nose,
Expanding the muscles in the abdomen and breathing out through the mouth,
Lengthening the exhalations so they become as long as the inhalations.
Breathing in deeply,
Releasing the belly and breathing out through the mouth,
Slowly and completely.
Breathing in,
The belly expands like a balloon full of air and breathing out through the mouth,
Slowly and completely.
We will continue to breathe in this way for a few minutes,
Inhaling through the nose with a soft belly and exhaling through the mouth,
Slowly letting all the air out,
Following the breath,
Feeling it in the abdomen,
Noticing the expanding and the contracting.
When we breathe in this way,
Slowly and deeply in through the nose and out through the mouth.
With the belly soft and relaxed,
We allow more air to get to the bottom of the lungs where there can be better oxygen exchange.
This activates the vagus nerve that passes through the belly and chest to the central nervous system in the brain,
Quieting the amygdala,
Which is associated with our body's fear and stress responses.
Activating the vagus nerve will slow heart rate,
Lower blood pressure,
Relax the big muscles in our bodies and support healthy digestion.
So this type of breathing is a great resource to use when we are dealing with feelings of anxiety and stress.
Breathing in slowly and deeply through the nose,
Softening the belly and out through the mouth.
When you are ready,
Letting go of any manipulation of the breath,
You can feel it,
Allowing it to be natural.
Breathing in and out through the nose and keeping your eyes closed,
Bring to mind a color.
It can be any color.
When you open your eyes,
I invite you to notice something in your surroundings,
In that color that you chose and name it.
Describe this thing without using its official name,
Noticing its shape,
Size,
Lines,
Texture,
Noticing its function,
And maybe even imagining a new function for it.
Notice as much detail as possible and name it either mentally or out loud.
And as you do that,
See if you can continue to be connected with the breathing in your body,
Sensing the air moving in and out,
The belly soft,
Expanding and releasing,
The chest rising and falling.
And once you are done with this first object,
Find another one in that same color and name it,
Again describing it without using its name in as much detail as possible.
And when you're done with the second object,
Choose a third one and repeat this process.
Look at these objects as if it is the first time you are seeing them with a beginner's mind.
And when you finish,
Take one more deep breath in and release it with a sigh.
And with your eyes open this time,
Feel your feet on the ground.
Feel the parts of the feet that are making contact with the surface beneath them.
Notice how your body feels and notice your state of mind.
Thank you for practicing with me.
I hope this has brought some ease into your day.
Remember that you have in your own body the wisdom to navigate safely through these wild waters.
As you move through your day,
May you have peace in your thoughts,
Peace in your words,
Peace in your heart and peace in your actions.
Ciao.
