Welcome to the releasing tension breathwork meditation.
I invite you to lie down flat on your back,
Extend your legs out long,
Place your arms by your side,
Settle in,
And close your eyes.
I would like to read a quote I love by Vonda Scarvelli.
She said,
To relax is not to collapse,
But simply to undo tension.
So how do we undo tension?
With awareness.
So we're going to blend mindfulness with breathwork and invite relaxation.
Let's set an intention for our practice.
I release all tension in my body.
You can say this out loud or just silently to yourself.
I release all tension in my body.
You can come back to this mantra throughout this practice.
And the rest of the day as you need to.
Now take a few deep belly breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Inhale belly rises.
Exhale belly falls.
Relax your face.
Unclench your jaw.
Relax your neck.
Relax your shoulders.
Breathing through your nose,
Start to deepen your breath even more.
Become aware of the feeling of your breathing at your nostril.
I want you to focus on your left arm.
And as you breathe in,
Picture your left arm filling with the energy of your breath.
As you breathe out,
Imagine pushing the breath energy out through your left fingertips.
Breathe deeply here.
Keep both your physical body and the visualization in your awareness.
Keep going at your own pace.
If your mind wanders off into thought,
Gently bring it back to the breath.
Now focus on your right arm.
And as you breathe in,
Picture your right arm filling with the energy of your breath.
As you breathe out,
Imagine pushing the breath energy out through your right fingertips.
Keep breathing at your own pace.
Nice,
Nice,
Deep belly breaths.
If thoughts arise,
Just notice them and bring your awareness back to your breathing.
Now shift your awareness to your torso.
As you inhale,
Visualize filling your entire chest and abdomen with breath energy.
As you exhale,
Push the breath down out through the bottom of your spine and your tailbone.
Nice,
Deep breaths in.
Breathe through your heart.
Now let's bring your focus to your left leg.
And as you breathe in,
Picture your left leg filling with the energy of your breath.
As you breathe out,
Imagine pushing the breath energy out through your left foot and toes.
Keep going at your own pace.
Nice,
Deep.
If thoughts arise,
Just observe them.
Now focus on your right leg.
And as you breathe in,
Picture your right leg filling with the energy of your breath.
As you breathe out,
Imagine pushing the breath energy out through your right foot and toes.
Keep breathing at your own pace.
Continue with deep.
If you get distracted,
Just note it and come back to your breath.
Now let's bring it all together.
Breathe in and fill your entire body with your breath.
Imagine your body being filled with the energy of the breath from head to toe.
Exhale and let the breath out through your fingertips,
The base of your spine,
And your toes.
Keep going at your own pace with deep belly breaths.
Really listen to the sound of your breath.
Now let that go and just breathe however you want.
Let go of the visualization.
Notice how you feel.
So we're going to go into the breathwork technique now.
You're going to slowly inhale through your nose to the count of four.
Pause.
Then open your mouth and let out a big sigh to exhale and empty your lung.
Let's begin.
Inhale through your nose for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Pause.
Open your mouth and sigh it out.
Let all the air out of your lung.
Two,
Three,
Four.
Pause.
Exhale and big sigh.
Relax your body fully and empty your lung.
Inhale two,
Three,
Four.
Pause.
Sigh it out.
Relax and feel as though you're falling into a bed of feathers.
Let's do it together.
Good.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Pause.
Exhale and sigh it out.
Relax your body.
Inhale.
Pause.
Big sigh and imagine any stress in your body being let go on the exhale.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale and sigh.
Good.
Inhale.
Pause.
Open your mouth and sigh it out.
Let all the air out of your lung.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale and big sigh.
Relax your body fully.
Empty your lung.
Inhale.
Pause.
Sigh it out.
Relax and feel as though you're sinking into a hot bath.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale and sigh it out.
Relax your body.
Inhale.
Pause.
Big sigh and imagine any stress left in your body being let go on the exhale.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale and sigh.
Let it all go.
Now just let that go and return to your natural breath.
Notice how you feel.
Thanks for joining me for the releasing tension practice.
Stay here and relax for as long as you'd like.
