Hello,
Franco Hecchi here and this is your meditation for anxiety.
Sit or lie down in the most comfortable position possible.
If you are sitting up,
Sit up nice and tall by imagining the top of your head being pulled up by a piece of string,
Straightening your spine whilst tilting your head forward slightly to elongate the back of your neck.
From here we can start to simply be aware of our breath,
The very thing that keeps us alive.
Anxiety tends to come about when we are worried about the past or the future.
By being aware of something that is happening now,
Like your own breath,
We can detach ourselves from feeling things that are not actually happening in this moment and help release things like anxiety and depression.
So focus on this beautiful fresh air flowing in through the nose,
Deep into your lungs and then out in the mouth.
This is something that we do as humans all the time without thinking,
But the power of the breath lies within paying attention to it.
This keeps us present.
All that we are going to do for the next few minutes is watch the air flow in through the nose,
Into your lungs and then out the mouth.
And notice every time your mind floats away with a random thought,
Worry or judgement and when you drift away,
Come back to the practice of watching your breath.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Inhale.
It is very normal when starting this practice to only be able to focus on your breath for a few repetitions.
So do not be hard on yourself or beat yourself up if this happens.
Rather just smile because you have noticed that your mind has ventured and come back to the breath.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Keeping your eyes closed,
Bring your eye awareness to the middle of the forehead.
It can also be helpful to mentally repeat the words inhale and exhale or in and out to yourself for concentration.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Exhale.
If you feel the need to keep breathing for longer,
You're most welcome to.
If you feel calm and relaxed now,
Well done.
Well done for sticking to this powerful practice of breath awareness.
And remember that you can use this technique of watching your breath anywhere,
Anytime.
Especially when you feel rising levels of stress.
Thank you and Namaste.
