Hi,
I'm Eve,
And I'll be leading you through a body scan.
The intention of this body scan is not necessarily to feel relaxed or calm,
Although that may very well happen.
The intention is just for you to bring awareness to sensations in each body part as I mention it,
And whenever your mind wanders,
To practice gently and compassionately returning your attention back to the sensations in the body.
To begin,
Find a comfortable position.
This could be lying down or sitting in a chair.
If you're lying down,
Please lie on your back.
This can be on a mat,
A rug,
A blanket,
Or on your bed.
Find some place where you'll be warm and where you won't be disturbed.
If you feel any lower back pain,
You might try placing some pillows or a rolled-up blanket under your knees.
If you have a blanket nearby,
Feel free to cover yourself up.
Make any little movements you need to make right now to just allow yourself to become even more comfortable.
When you're ready,
You can close your eyes or just soften your gaze.
Direct your awareness to your breath,
Moving in and out of your body,
Feeling the rise and fall of your abdomen.
And now bring awareness to the physical sensations in your body.
Take a moment to notice all the sensations where your body makes contact with the floor,
Bed,
Or chair.
On each out-breath,
Allow yourself to let go,
To sink a little deeper into the mat,
Chair,
Or bed,
Even giving just 1% more of your weight to the earth beneath you.
Begin to slowly bring awareness to the physical sensations in your lower abdomen.
Become aware of how the sensations in the abdomen shift as you breathe in and as you breathe out.
Take a few moments to just notice what you feel.
Slowly begin to bring your awareness down to your left leg,
Into the left foot,
And to the left toes.
Focus your awareness on each of the toes on your left foot,
Just observing sensations with a gentle curiosity.
Notice what you feel.
Either tingling,
Warmth,
Maybe you don't feel anything at all.
Just be curious.
Now begin to bring awareness to the ball of your foot,
To the arch and heel of your foot,
And to the top of your foot.
Notice any sensations that arise.
Now bring your awareness to the right foot,
The toes of the right foot,
Focusing your awareness on any sensations that arise.
What do you notice?
Now shift your awareness to the ball of your foot,
To the arch and heel of your foot,
To the top of your foot.
Again,
Noticing any sensations that arise,
Just observe the sensations.
Notice sensation in your whole right leg,
Upper leg,
Lower leg,
And foot.
Now bring your awareness to both the left and right ankles.
And now notice sensations in both lower legs,
Knees,
And upper legs.
Bring your awareness to your hips,
Glutes,
And pelvis,
Noticing any sensations.
Bring your awareness to your lower abdomen,
Your stomach,
Your chest.
Notice sensations in your lower back,
Mid-back,
And upper back.
Notice sensations in your shoulders.
Bring awareness to your neck,
To the front and back of your neck,
To where your neck and your shoulders meet,
And where your neck and head meet.
Simply bring awareness to your mouth,
To your lips,
The corners of your mouth.
Bring awareness to your teeth and tongue.
Now bring awareness to your jaw and notice any sensations.
Bring awareness to your cheeks and cheekbones.
Bring awareness to your ears,
Your nose,
Your nostrils,
The tip of your nose,
Your eyes,
The sides,
Eyelashes.
Notice what you feel.
Bring your awareness to your eyebrows and the space between your eyebrows and notice any sensations that arise.
Bring your awareness to your forehead,
Your temples,
The crown of your head,
And to the back of your head,
And notice any sensations.
Breathing in and out.
Simply begin to bring awareness to your body as a whole,
Continuing to breathe in and out,
Noticing any sensations that may be arising for you.
When you're ready,
Take a deep breath in and let it out.
Slowly begin to bring awareness to the room you're in,
Noticing any sounds you hear.
Slowly begin to wiggle your fingers and toes,
Gently moving your head from side to side.
Take a deep stretch and in your own time,
Come to lie on your right side.
Slowly and mindfully pressing yourself up into a seated position.
Take a final moment now to notice any sensations.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
