Welcome to this short guided interoceptive ape exploration.
Okay,
Let's begin.
Find a comfortable seat.
Ensure your lower spine is straight.
Relax your belly.
Gently close down the eyes.
Practice light,
Slow breathing through the nose and into the belly for 10 breaths.
You can place your right hand on your belly to feel it expanding on inhale and contracting on exhale.
And ideally you'll want your inhale to be about 5 seconds and your exhale the same.
This is the ideal breathing cadence,
But also don't force it.
Okay,
Now let go of any conscious control of the breath.
Take in a full inhale all the way to the top.
Tense at the top,
Tensing your muscles.
Let go with a sigh.
Same thing again,
Taking a full inhale,
Holding at the top,
Tensing your muscles,
And let go with a sigh.
Okay,
Now that we've grounded,
We're going to tune in and begin the ape interoceptive practice.
First up is A for awareness.
And just tune in.
Is there a sense of narrow focus or expansive awareness?
Are you aware of the space above you or even behind you?
Does your awareness feel distracted or calm at this moment?
Does it feel sleepy or alert?
Busy world is.
And now place all of your attention in the soles of your feet.
Just feeling what's there.
Maybe warmth,
Maybe pressure with the ground.
.
.
Just know it for yourself.
Okay,
Next turn your attention to P for posture.
How is your spine?
And begin at the tailbone at the bottom.
And gently scan your awareness up the spine moving a few vertebrae at a time noticing if there's any points of tension any areas that you struggle to connect to.
And as you make your way to the top just note how does your head feel resting on your neck.
How is your jaw?
Your face?
Your eyes?
We're now expanding to your whole body being aware of your whole body and being aware of your chest,
Is there a sense of expansiveness,
Openness or maybe contraction?
Can you notice your heartbeat in this moment?
Can you witness your breath rising and falling?
An invitation to let go of any story and just become increasingly curious about the sensations that are here.
And finally we have E for emotion.
Are there any noticeable emotions or sensations present?
Joy,
Sadness,
Gratitude.
What might be the emotional tone.
And it's totally fine if you don't connect to anything in this moment.
This isn't about trying to create or manufacture a state,
But just listening intently to what is already present.
And part of this listening is tuning into physical sensations.
You can imagine that you're a scientist objectively reporting on internal sensations or perhaps a weatherman giving an update on the weather systems of your own body Just notice and welcome anything that arises.
And now bringing your awareness to my voice and expanding to the space around you,
Above you,
Below you and taking in a full breath in all the way.
And sigh it out.
And now in your own time,
Gently open up your eyes and come back into the space.
This eight practice is now complete.
