Comfort During Uncertain Times
Through simple and effective embodiment practices you can find a deeper sense of comfort during uncertain times. Whether you are going through personal challenges or feeling affected by world events, by building up resources that can be brought into daily life can help reduce overwhelm and reconnect you to your inner strength and resilience. This is a guided process that invites you to gently physically move your body. If for any reason you are not able to, you can visualise the steps instead, though gentle movement is recommended if possible.
Transcript
Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the world today?
Whether you watch news stories or whether you have personal challenges in your life,
Sometimes things can get a little overwhelming.
Sometimes there's just too much to take in,
Which is why having a practice to come back to your breath,
Come back to the body,
Is so beneficial.
Not only does it help to regulate the nervous system,
Help you to come back to a place of center and balance,
It also creates a ripple effect.
When you come back to you,
When you look after you and your well-being,
That has a knock-on effect on how you show up in the world with your immediate relationships,
Family,
Friends,
And also on an energetic level that creates an impact in the world.
So here's a simple practice and the invitation is to do this by connecting with your body physically,
Though if you're not willing or not able to do so,
You can visualize the following steps.
What we place within our focus,
Within the mind,
Creates a direct impact on the physical well-being and emotional well-being.
The body is constantly listening,
So make sure you're in a place where you're undisturbed,
That you're able to connect with yourself,
That you're not operating any machinery,
And that you can place your full attention on this audio.
So connecting with the breath,
Noticing that gentle rise and fall as you breathe in and as you breathe out,
Noticing the spine gently extending upwards as you breathe in and this gentle softening down the front of the body as you breathe out.
And with the next three breaths,
I invite you to breathe in,
Allowing your shoulders to rise up all the way up to your ears,
Holding that for a moment,
And then as you breathe out,
Letting that drop,
Letting your shoulders drop down and your arms to drop down by your side.
This can be even more beneficial if you're sitting down and your arms can drop fully down by your side,
That they're not resting on anything,
So you allow that full drop to happen,
Allowing yourself to let go,
To let go in this moment of any stresses,
Worries,
Anything that you may be holding on to that you don't need to in this moment.
And once again,
Breathing in,
Allowing the shoulders to rise up to the ears,
Holding that,
And then breathing out,
Letting go,
Allowing the shoulders and the arms to drop down.
And if you want to sound out a sigh,
This can be helpful too,
Allowing the breath to be the gateway to release tension,
Stresses,
And worries.
Let that go.
The mind doesn't need to know how.
What we're doing with these practices,
These embodiment practices,
Is that we're creating change through the body,
Using the body to create a difference,
And simply just setting that intention through what you're placing your focus on can create a change.
Once again,
Breathing in,
Allowing the shoulders to rise up to the ears,
Holding that,
And then sighing out,
Releasing,
Breathing out,
Dropping the shoulders,
Dropping the arms,
Letting that go.
Noticing the contact that your body has with the chair or the ground or whatever it's in contact with,
Noticing that support that's holding you throughout this process,
The support that's always there for you.
The more awareness we place on what is holding us in our surroundings and the meaning that we attach to that can create a huge difference in our experience of that.
Noticing what changes as you connect to the mantras,
I'm being held,
I'm held,
Supported.
This holding,
Noticing this holding,
How life is holding you right here,
Right now.
Often,
The challenges occur when we're up in the mind with the worries,
The doubts,
The what-ifs,
Should-haves,
Need-tos.
But when we come back to the present moment,
Come back to the breath,
Come back to what is right here,
Right now,
We start to realize that we are held and have always been held by life.
That doesn't mean that there aren't challenges.
It's noticing these little big things,
Noticing these points of support that we can connect to,
That help us move through those challenges and help us find comfort in uncertain times,
Help us find comfort in an uncertain world.
This is not about avoiding challenges,
This is not about turning a blind eye to whatever may be happening in the world.
This is about finding real practical embodiment tools that can help you navigate all of that,
So you can find your center,
Come back to a place of more calm and ease,
And therefore be in a position where you can support yourself and others with more calm and ease.
Gently placing your right hand on your left elbow,
And your left hand on your right elbow,
And allowing yourself to gently sway from side to side,
Ever so gently,
Creating a rocking motion.
Find what feels good for you,
Slowing things down,
Coming back to the present,
And allowing yourself to hold yourself as you're being held by life too.
This gentle rocking motion from side to side,
Ever so small,
Ever so gentle,
Helps to soothe the nervous system,
Helps to restore balance,
Helps to bring comfort in times of uncertainty.
This is a powerful somatic way that we can re-parent ourselves,
Providing that gentle rocking motion to soothe the inner child within.
Continuing the connection with the breath,
Every inhale and exhale,
Flowing gently,
Slowly.
Moving your hands up,
Placing your right hand on your left shoulder,
And your left hand underneath your right shoulder.
Notice how you embrace yourself,
And gently tilting your head to one side,
Finding what feels comforting,
Holding yourself,
Embracing yourself,
Right here,
Right now.
Allowing yourself to fully receive,
And if you notice any thoughts or feelings that arise,
Wondering if you're doing it right or not,
Judging or criticizing,
Or perhaps some emotions of feeling that this is something you've forgotten to give to yourself or something else,
That's completely normal,
It's okay.
Notice what comes up,
And bring the gentle words,
And that's okay.
Allowing yourself to be held by yourself,
As you continue to be held by life.
Being held in life,
And finding support and comfort in life,
Is more about a shift of perspective,
Rather than the absence of challenges,
As you continue to breathe in and out,
Noticing what little big things are in your present moment right now.
Little big things,
The little things that really are the big things that help you to come back to this place of comfort.
The air to breathe,
The ground beneath you to hold you,
Perhaps a soft pillow,
Or chair,
Or cushion,
Or blanket.
The opportunity to have this audio,
And use this audio.
Every moment brings blessings,
Every moment there are little big things,
And when we come back to the breath,
Come back to holding ourselves,
Embracing ourselves,
And noticing the point of contact that our body has with our surroundings,
Noticing how we are held in life,
We can cultivate a greater sense of safety,
A greater sense of comfort.
So,
Finding a position that feels good for you,
Placing your hands on your body,
Wherever it feels right for you right now,
Perhaps that's over your heart,
Or on your belly,
Or down by your sides,
Noticing that breath,
The inhale and exhale,
The gentle rise of the spine upwards as you breathe in,
And the softening down the front of the body as you breathe out.
If you've had your eyes closed during this process,
Gently,
Gently open your eyes,
And just take a moment to notice what surrounds you,
What holds you,
Bringing your awareness to here and now,
Noticing what's different now,
How does just a few moments of connecting with your body,
Connecting with your breath,
Shift how you feel,
Shift how you perceive yourself and life.
Often,
The mind wants the fancy techniques,
The new theories,
The latest tools,
And when we come back to the basics,
When we truly integrate the basics through repetition,
Through practice,
Bringing it into our daily lives,
That's where transformation happens,
That's where we can bounce back quicker after setbacks and start to see the world with more positivity and optimism,
Not to be blind to the challenges that are present,
Though to feel more solid and grounded,
To be connected with our inner strength and resilience,
To move through life,
You are held,
Life wants to support you,
Lean back,
Soften,
Allow yourself to be held,
Open up to receive the comfort that is right here,
Right now.
So,
Practice this,
Bring this into your daily life,
Notice what changes,
And have fun with this,
Find ways that you can receive that support from life,
Everyday objects,
Everyday things in your home,
According to how you choose to see them,
Can influence your experience.
It's not just a chair,
It's not just a cushion,
It's not just the ground,
It's not just a pillow or a blanket,
These are points of support,
Points of contact,
It's not just the breath,
It's not just the body,
These are entry points to reconnect to the life within,
And the immortal life within you,
The life that never ends,
Is far,
Far greater than any external situation,
The life that animates you,
You have a name,
You have a body,
You have a personality,
And yet,
At your core,
You have something so much more.
