I invite you to take a couple of deep breaths.
And just taking a moment to notice your breathing and notice your body sensations.
Maybe taking some time to feel the feet on the ground,
Or if you're lying down,
Feeling the back body on the floor or in your bed.
Noticing the weight of the body and noticing the belly rising and folding with each breath.
And perhaps feeling into areas of the body where you regularly hold tension,
And maybe even inviting those parts to soften even just a little.
Perhaps allowing the shoulders to drop down away from your ears.
Maybe just inviting a bit more softness into the chest.
And still letting the air flow in and out in its own beautiful rhythm.
And we are going to move into a compassionate touch practice.
So gently and slowly,
If you like,
You could bring your hands together and just notice your palms touching each other.
Maybe feeling into the warmth or maybe noticing if the hands are cold.
And you could even gently rub them together to warm them up.
And when you feel ready,
You may place one hand onto the chest and maybe the other hand covering this first hand or simply both hands onto the chest or belly and resting them there.
And maybe if you are doing this for the first time,
It may feel curious and that's okay too.
Just noticing that sensation as well.
And perhaps noticing the interaction between the hands and your chest or belly.
Just allowing the hands to stay and be on a body part and breathing with that.
Letting the belly and the chest rise into the hands with the inhale and then allowing the exhale to soften the whole body down.
And science has shown that such a simple practice,
Just placing the hands somewhere on the body,
Whether that's on the chest,
Belly or giving yourself a hug,
Can be very beneficial for the nervous system to sort of soothe itself.
Continuing to maybe breathe into the hands,
Noticing the rising and falling.
And maybe you can also detect a bit more warmth,
A bit more spaciousness in the body.
A little bit less tightness in certain areas or maybe not.
Maybe numbness is there,
Maybe some rigidity or coldness is there.
And just know that's perfectly fine.
It's okay.
And you may keep your hands wherever they are on the chest,
Belly or where you place them.
Or you can gently relax your hands down,
Allowing your arms to simply relax,
Soften,
Maybe next to the side body.
And just notice how you're feeling now in this moment.
I invite you to feel your body here in contact with the surface beneath you.
And let yourself remain in this open awareness,
This stillness that's here.
And at times the mind may wander off,
That's very natural.
And maybe noticing and naming it when you detect thoughts rising one after the other.
Perhaps just label it thinking or thoughts,
Planning,
Worrying,
Or daydreaming.
And gently guiding yourself back to a body sensation or to the breath.
Or to the breath.
And still maintaining this open and kind attitude or inviting it if you haven't tapped into it yet,
We'll move into a few self-compassion phrases.
And feel free to repeat them to yourself quietly or whisper them if you like.
You can just leave them aside if they don't resonate for you,
With you.
And you could also come up with your own phrases to support yourself,
To show yourself more kindness.
And of course you can do this in your own language.
Just feeling back into the breathing and noticing the spaciousness perhaps in the belly,
Or the softness in the chest,
Or any other sensation that's there.
And if it feels right,
Feel free to repeat any role of the following phrases.
May I be kind to myself in this moment.
May I be gentle and understanding with myself.
May I give myself the compassion that I need.
Soften,
Soothe,
And allow.
I love and accept myself as I am.
Or if that's difficult to phrase,
Maybe say,
In my own time,
I love and accept myself as I am.
I am worthy of love and care.
I am worthy of love and care.
May I be filled with loving kindness.
May I be loved and may I know that I'm loved.
And now just lingering in this loving space,
In this open and kind space that you've created.
And simply breathing,
Perhaps allowing the body to soften some more,
And integrate these loving and self-compassionate phrases.
And please know that it's totally an option to drift off to sleep at the end of this meditation.
So feel free to just stay,
Let yourself relax.
Otherwise,
Feel free to start lengthening your breath,
Gentle and easy.
Maybe allowing the exhale to become a little longer and deeper,
And inviting the in-breath to also become a little more full.
Noticing yourself seated or lying down in your space.
Maybe taking note of how you are in this moment.
Any more spaciousness,
Softness,
Or perhaps remnants of tension,
Or tingling,
Or coldness.
Just noting without judgment.
And then you may start to perhaps move your fingers and toes.
And if you want to call yourself back,
You could first roll onto your side if you were lying down.
Take a moment there,
And eventually you can sit up from there.
If you are seated,
Feel free to do some shoulder rolls,
Maybe a gentle twist.
And perhaps with a deep breath in,
And maybe a deep sigh,
Sealing your practice,
Maybe even thanking yourself for cultivating self-compassion.
