Before you begin,
Find a quiet and comfortable space.
You can sit in a relaxed position.
In this session,
We will explore your body sensations.
Should any body sensations or experience with this practice be overwhelming or overly uncomfortable
to you,
You can always take a break or stop the practice at any time.
This practice is intended to help you explore and connect to your body sensations in a gentle
and easeful manner.
Let's begin.
Now that you have found a comfortable position,
Take a few deep breaths,
Allowing yourself
to settle into the present moment.
As you breathe,
Letting go of any tensions in your body or distractions in your mind.
Fully arriving in the here and now.
Start by bringing your attention to your breath.
Taking a few deep breaths,
Inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your nose.
Feeling your body expand with each inhale and feeling a sense of grounding and relaxation
with each exhale.
Allowing your breath to find its natural rhythm.
Now bringing your attention to your body,
Noticing how your body feels and paying attention
to the sensations in your body.
Slowly becoming aware of the sensations in your body.
You may feel areas of tightness or tension or you may feel areas of relaxation,
Expansion
and space.
Whatever it is you're feeling,
Simply noting how your body feels without judging it or
trying to change it.
If you find your mind getting distracted,
Simply notice where your mind has been and
gently bring your attention back to your breath.
It's completely normal for your mind to wander.
The practice lies in noticing whenever the mind has left its intended place of focus
and then gently guiding it back to the sensations of your body.
Now slowly shifting your awareness to your head.
Noticing any sensations on the top of your head,
The back of your head,
Your forehead
and the muscles around the eyes.
Noticing sensations around your nose,
Your mouth,
Your jaw,
Allowing any tension in your
head to dissolve with each breath,
Creating space as you inhale,
Softening as you exhale,
Perhaps softening the jaw,
Letting the tongue rest on the bottom of the mouth,
Feeling the
eyes relax,
Sinking back into the head.
Now shifting your attention to your neck and shoulders,
Feeling your head being supported
by your neck,
Noticing any areas of tightness,
Tension or discomfort.
With each breath,
Letting go of any tension in your neck and shoulders,
Relaxing the shoulders
down and back,
Continuing to move your awareness down to your chest and your upper back,
Feeling
a gentle rise and fall of your chest with each breath,
Noticing the expansion and contraction
of your ribcage,
Allowing any tightness in this area to soften as you breathe.
Shifting your focus to your arms and hands,
Feeling the sensations in your biceps,
Your
elbow,
Your triceps and the palms of your hands,
Noticing any warmth or coolness,
Perhaps
tingling or any other sensations,
Allowing yourself to simply take note of your experience
without feeling the need to change or evaluate it.
Bringing your attention to your midsection,
Your belly and your lower back,
Feeling the
support of the earth beneath you,
Noticing any sensations in your abdomen,
Perhaps feeling
the belly expand with each inhale and soften with each exhale,
Bringing awareness to the
sensations in the center of your body,
Moving your awareness to your hips and your pelvis,
Feeling the connection between your body and the surface beneath you,
Noticing any sensations
in this area of your body around your hips and your pelvis.
Now shifting your focus to your legs,
Feeling the weight of your thighs,
Your knees,
Your calves,
Noticing any sensations in your legs such as warmth,
Coolness,
Tightness or spaciousness,
Perhaps breathing into the areas of tension and letting them soften.
Finally,
Bringing your attention to your feet and your ankles,
Feeling the sensations of your feet
making contact with the floor or the surface beneath you,
Noticing the tops of the feet,
Bottoms of your feet and each of your toes,
Sensing if there are any areas that feel tense,
Tight,
Soft,
Warm or cold,
Taking a note of any sensations you are experiencing in your feet.
Once again,
With curiosity and without the need to change any experience.
Now taking a moment to observe your entire body as a whole,
Bringing your awareness to every part of your body all at once,
Noticing the sensation of your breath in your entire body,
Noticing these sensations without judging them and without trying to change or evaluate them.
If you find your mind getting distracted,
Simply notice where your mind has been
and gently bring your attention back to the sensations of your body.
Now slowly bringing your attention back,
Expanding the attention to the space you are sitting in,
Taking note of any sounds around you,
The temperature of the room or space around you.
Then taking one more clearing breath in and a clearing breath out.
And now slowly,
When you're ready,
Opening your eyes.
An important aspect of this practice is non-judgmental awareness.
You allow yourself to notice your body sensations and let them be present
without attaching labels such as good or bad or any stories to them.
Through regular practice,
You can develop a greater sense of your body
and more ease in being with the body and its sensations.
Thank you for taking the time to practice today.
I look forward to our next session.
Until then,
Take care.
