For this grounding practice find a comfortable position either sitting or lying down.
Whatever you prefer and place both hands palms down gently on your chest.
Just notice your chest rising.
And falling.
With each breath.
And name your worry if you're able.
What is it that you're worried about?
What is it that's taking valuable space in your mind?
You can either voice this.
Or think kits.
And now take a slow steady inhale up through your nose.
Hold and then surrender to the breath out.
And when the next breath comes,
Take a breath in up through your nose.
Hold.
And then a nice extended exhale through your mouth.
And you can just continue.
As I speak with you.
Longer exhalations are the key to calming the mind and body.
So as you continue to do this extended exhale breathing,
Remember your worry and ask yourself.
Is there anything I can do about this worry in the next 10 minutes?
Be still.
Feeling your hands close to your chest.
And contemplate this question again.
Is there anything I can do about this worry in the next 10 minutes?
Is there anything that I can action?
That may help.
If the answer is yes,
Take one small practical action sometime today.
If the answer is no,
Postpone your worry for later.
So after this practice,
Make a point of jotting it down in a notebook or on your phone with the intention of looking at it later today.
In fact create a worry period of 10 minutes at say six o'clock daily.
Or choose another convenient time.
Often you'll find that by the time that moment arrives,
The worry has faded or it's lost its importance.
And to finish,
We're going to ground ourselves with this well-known technique,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
So I'd like you to acknowledge five things that you can see around you.
Name them out loud.
Or just leave them in your thoughts.
But five things.
Notice four things you can touch.
As you touch them notice the feeling.
And the texture.
Under your fingertips.
Listen for three things that you can hear.
Name them out loud.
Or just think them.
And now identify two things that you can smell.
You might like to just raise your hand to your nose and just smell the back of your palm.
And then capture the smell in the room.
Whatever you do,
Two things that you can smell.
And finally.
.
.
Tune into one thing.
That you can taste.
Take a moment to notice how you feel now.
Perhaps a little lighter.
A little calmer.
A little more present.
When we engage in mindful practices such as this We cultivate presence and in this place we create joy by allowing life to unfold moment by moment.
No need to think about the past.
No need to think about the future.
Namaste.
