Alright,
For this 15 minute gratitude meditation,
I want you to begin by getting comfortable.
You can either lay down or stay sitting up.
You can sit up with your back supported and your feet on the floor while in a chair.
It's all about you finding a comfortable and effortless way of being in the moment.
A feeling of being supported allows your mind to relax into the meditation easier.
We're going to begin with a quick five breath body scan to ground you.
So inhale through the nose,
Hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And then exhale through the mouth and relax your head,
Shoulders and neck.
On your next inhale,
Hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And this time exhale and relax your arms and your hands and your fingers.
Now inhale and hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One.
On the exhale,
Relax your belly,
Your back and your torso.
On the next inhale,
You're going to hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And this time on the exhale,
Relax your hips,
Your hamstrings and your knees and glutes.
Inhale one more time and hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And exhale and relax your calves,
Your shins,
Your feet and your toes.
Now I want you to settle into a breathing pace that works for you.
You can breathe however you want to today.
You can breathe in and out through the nose,
In through the nose and out through the mouth or in and out through the mouth.
Today is all about finding what works best for you.
We're going to use the words thank you as a sort of a mantra today.
On your next inhale,
Say to yourself or whisper quietly thank you.
As you exhale,
Repeat thank you.
Today's meditation is all about gratitude.
Finding your life and all that you survived to get here to this moment.
Finding gratitude in your wins and your challenges.
Finding appreciation for all of life's lessons.
For the rest of the practice today,
Just repeat your mantra,
Thank you,
As often or as little as you like.
If you catch your mind wandering,
Which is perfectly normal,
Use the phrase thank you as a way to return to gratitude in the present moment.
Can you find gratitude for this breath,
For this moment?
Can you find gratitude for your body,
For your lungs and your respiratory system and everything else that works so hard for you to take this breath right now?
Can you find gratitude for your heart and the blood it pumps throughout your body to keep you alive?
Can you say thank you to yourself for making time to give your body a break?
Gratitude for allowing yourself to just be here right now.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
You have nothing to do right now except find gratitude and say thank you.
Know that thoughts coming and going are okay.
Know that there's no wrong way to meditate.
Trust your body is releasing the stress held within regardless of if your mind is silent or not.
If your mind does feel like a distraction,
You can simply say thank you.
One can never say thank you too much.
I'm going silent for the last 10 minutes of class to give you space to practice gratitude however you need to.
Just remember,
Keep coming back to the phrase thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you.
As we're winding down today,
Slowly come back to yourself.
Wiggle your hands.
Wiggle your toes.
There's no hurry.
Make sure you thank yourself for taking the 15 minutes to practice today.
This 15 minute break will translate into wonderful benefits out in the rest of your day and carry this gratitude for yourself,
For your meditation,
For your life,
With you wherever you go.
Thank you for being here.
Thank you for showing up for yourself.
Be well.
