Welcome.
This is a meditation for body appreciation,
To feel some gratitude for all the wonderful things that our bodies do for us,
And to honor each of these functions.
So I invite you to take a comfortable seat or lie down,
Whatever feels most comfortable for you.
Settling into your meditation position,
Take a moment to shift until you feel completely relaxed,
And allow the eyes to close down,
Or if you prefer,
Rest them in a soft gaze,
And gently begin to notice your breath.
Allow it to flow in and out of your nose naturally.
Notice if the breath is deep or shallow,
Or somewhere in between.
Notice if it's focused more in your chest,
Maybe you feel it in your collarbones,
Maybe in your belly,
Maybe you feel it most in your nostrils or in your throat,
And allow your breath to begin deepening,
Taking slightly longer inhales and slightly longer exhales with each breath in through your nose and out through your nose.
And we'll take three deep breaths here,
Starting by releasing all the air through the nose,
And take a big slow inhale through the nose,
Hold for a moment at the top,
And with an open mouth,
Sigh it out.
Two more like that,
Inhale through the nose deeply,
Hold at the top,
And open mouth,
Sigh it out slowly.
Last one,
Allowing your breath to return to its natural rhythm,
Releasing any control,
And begin to notice how your body is feeling.
Notice if you feel any tension,
Any pain,
Or discomfort,
And breathe into those areas.
Allow that breath to soothe your muscles,
Sending your muscles love,
Healing energy,
Ease,
And permission to relax fully into the space.
Now bringing some awareness to your heart space,
See if you can feel your heartbeat,
Maybe you can feel it in your chest,
Maybe in your belly,
Maybe in your neck,
And breathe into this space,
The heart space that's full of love,
Compassion,
Care.
Imagine a vibrant,
Warm,
Beautiful,
Green light glowing and emanating from this heart space with each beat of your sacred heart,
And each inhale and exhale,
This green light representing love and compassion and healing grows more and more,
Radiating from the heart space to each cell of your body.
Visualize this green light growing down through your solar plexus,
Your belly,
Your hips,
Glutes,
Your thighs,
Your knees,
Calves,
Your ankles,
And the tops and the bottoms of your feet,
Your heels,
And all ten toes.
Feel that warm,
Green,
Loving light radiating through your lower body,
Bringing you a sense of ease and groundedness,
And melting away this comfort,
Tension,
Or softening any pain.
On your next inhale,
Feel the green,
Loving light back in your heart space,
And as you breathe,
This green light continues to grow upward from your heart space to your chest,
Your shoulders,
Down each arm,
Healing all of your cells along the way,
Down to your hands and your fingers,
Radiating out of your fingertips,
Breathing into the heart space as the green,
Loving light grows up towards your throat,
Your jaw,
Your cheeks,
Your lips,
Your nose,
Your ears,
Your temples,
Your eyes,
And eyelids,
Your forehead,
And all the way to the crown of your head.
As you breathe,
This green,
Loving,
Healing light has encompassed your whole body and is healing your cells,
Infusing them with love and gratitude.
Notice how the body is feeling in this moment.
Send your body love,
Compassion,
Forgiveness,
And healing.
Feel this loving energy travel up and down your spine with each breath.
Take a moment and bring to mind any part or parts of the body that maybe you're experiencing some discomfort or pain.
Maybe they're constant problem areas for you.
Maybe it's shoulder aches,
Back pain.
Maybe you have an injury or a part of the body that you tend to overwork.
And we're just going to focus on that area or those areas of the body for a moment.
Send your breath and send this green light,
This healing,
Loving energy to those areas of your body.
And as you inhale,
Silently say to yourself in your mind's eye,
I'm sorry.
As you exhale,
Please forgive me.
As you inhale,
Thank you.
And as you exhale,
I love you.
Inhale,
I'm sorry.
Exhale,
Please forgive me.
Inhale,
Thank you.
Exhale,
I love you.
And you can continue to repeat this mantra silently three more times at your own pace.
Last one.
Inhale,
I'm sorry.
Exhale,
Please forgive me.
Inhale,
Thank you.
Exhale,
I love you.
And you can let go of the mantra now.
Breathe normally.
And notice if this practice stirred any emotions,
Any bodily responses,
Any feelings.
Just observe.
No need to make a judgment.
Just breathe with it and let it be.
As we start to close out this meditation,
I just want to remind you that this loving energy,
This healing light,
And this mantra of I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you.
These resources and tools are always available to you.
And know that though you're human and sometimes we mistreat our bodies or don't listen to their calls,
We are always worthy of forgiveness.
We are always worthy of love,
Healing,
Light,
And a moment to slow down and just be with our bodies.
To just pause and allow these natural functions to chug along.
Without any need for our awareness or control.
Just take one final moment to send some gratitude to your body for all that it does for you.
Your circulatory system for pumping fresh blood into your veins.
Your liver for processing any toxins.
Your pulmonary system for giving you fresh air and breath when you need it.
All of your muscles for keeping you strong,
Keeping you moving.
Your bones for supporting you,
Allowing you to stand,
To walk,
To move,
To run,
To embrace your loved ones.
Your eyes for allowing you to see beautiful colors,
The faces of the people that you love.
Your ears for hearing your favorite songs,
The voices of your loved ones,
Music.
Your nose for allowing you to smell fresh flowers,
Home-cooked meals.
Your taste for allowing you to enjoy meals and your sense of touch.
Allowing you to be comforted,
To feel the comfort and the total relaxation of climbing into bed after a long day.
Maybe the feeling of your pet's fur,
Soft grass beneath your feet,
A nice warm bath or shower.
There are so many miracles that our bodies do for us daily.
And a lot of the time we live in our heads and we forget all of our senses and all of the things that we can take for granted.
But this is a moment for us to send some gratitude to our bodies for all that it does for us.
When you're ready,
You can start to bring some gentle movement back to your body.
Maybe wiggling some fingers or toes,
Deepening the breath.
And when you're ready,
You can gently flutter the eyes open.
Thank you for practicing with me today,
For giving your body some extra love that it so deserves.
Every moment is a fresh start and a new beginning.
And I hope this practice allowed you to bring some gratitude to your body,
Some appreciation for all that it does.
And I hope it brings you a sense of groundedness throughout your day.
Until next time,
Be well.
