Hello and welcome to this meditation practice.
This practice today is about sitting with your feelings.
This is something that I feel like we hear it a lot.
Feel what you're feeling.
Allow your feelings.
Be with your feelings.
But I feel like we might not actually know how to do that.
So this meditation today is going to walk you through that process.
And the reason why this is so important is because if we don't experience our feelings,
If we don't allow ourselves to be present with what we're feeling,
Then the alternative to that is that we push it down within.
And not only does this cause harbored resentment,
Grief,
Anger,
Other feelings,
But these emotions being trapped within the body can also cause us illness and injury and disease or dis-ease within the body.
So it's really important that when we're in a time of stress,
Suffering,
Trauma,
And let's face it,
This whole past year has been pretty stressful and traumatic.
So this is just for you to allow those feelings,
To be with those feelings.
So let's begin.
Find a comfortable position for your meditation.
This can be seated,
Laying down.
Once you get situated,
Go ahead and close your eyes if that feels okay for you.
And as we close the eyes,
This is kind of our way of shutting out the outside world.
It makes our internal experience a little bit more accessible.
So begin to just tune in.
Make any last minute adjustments.
How can you shift or move to make yourself a little bit more comfortable?
And then let's just begin to scan the body.
So beginning with the very top,
The very crown of your head.
Just really slowly working your way down.
Take your time here.
Stop at each little section,
Your forehead,
Your eyes,
Cheeks,
Mouth,
And jaw.
Just in your own time,
Working all the way down to your toes.
And as you do this,
Just noticing any sensations that are present.
So in some areas,
Maybe nothing's there.
If there is sensation,
It can be anything from the slightest tingle,
Maybe holding or tension,
All the way up to actual pain.
As you scan through the body,
Try to release any judgments and just notice what's there.
Just taking note of what you're experiencing.
There's no right or wrong.
Okay.
Notice you have scanned your entire body from the top of your head all the way to your toes.
Maybe you've noted a few spaces that are feeling particularly sensational,
Whether that sensation is discomfort or pain or just tension or tightness.
One by one,
Go back to these spaces and ask your body or just allow yourself to become aware of what emotion is causing this sensation.
What emotion is in that tension or that pain?
Many times when you visit this location in your body,
The emotion will immediately pop out at you.
Like,
Oh,
This really feels like anger.
This really feels like grief.
And sometimes it might not be as clear.
If you're not used to communicating with your body,
It might take some practice to learn how to listen and receive those messages from your physical body.
So if it's feeling a little bit stuck today,
That's okay.
When that happens for me,
I like to say something like,
I'm open to receiving this message.
And if it's not ready to come through now,
You can receive it when it's ready to be seen.
It might not be in this meditation.
Maybe something will come to you later.
That's okay too.
Just take the time to be present with each space that you identified sensation.
And just notice if any emotions are coming through those areas.
If you are able to identify emotion within your body,
This is the time to allow yourself to sit with it,
Be present with it.
See if you can understand what caused this emotion.
Maybe it's simply allowing it to be present,
Feeling how it feels.
We tend to avoid feelings of sadness,
Grief,
Fear.
Give yourself permission to experience whatever's there.
As you sit with these feelings,
You might begin to feel the need to release.
Maybe that comes in the form of tears.
Maybe you feel like you want to scream or yell.
Maybe you feel the need for physical release,
Being active,
Shaking it out.
Many ways to kind of release.
Just depends what works for you.
So if that's happening,
Allow that.
Or maybe give yourself permission to get up and move and work out and scream and yell after this meditation,
If that's what you feel like you need to do.
And then if you're ready,
And you might not be,
That's okay too.
Maybe you need to do this practice a few times before you're ready to let go.
If you feel like you've sat with the emotion long enough,
You understand it and you're ready to release.
Notice in your mind's eye what this emotion looks like,
What color it is,
What shape it is.
And then place the emotion in a bubble and allow it to float away.
Leaving your body,
Leaving the room or the building that you're in,
Floating up into the sky,
Out into space until you can no longer see it,
Feel it.
Maybe even thanking it for its lesson or its experience that it brought to you.
And when you're ready to return back to the world,
With the eyes closed,
Start to become aware of your surroundings.
Noticing any sounds,
Notice the surface that you're sitting or laying on,
Notice the air on your skin.
And as you're ready,
Allow the eyes to softly open.
Just take your time,
Maybe sit here for a few minutes and get up when you're ready.
Thank you so much for practicing with me today.
