Awesome,
You made it.
You decided to wind down after work.
That is the most important part of this meditation,
To decide to let go.
And I got you through that journey to go from where you're at right now in your work state into a more relaxed and open state for relaxation.
So this is your time to make a conscious cut from your work and let the stresses of work fade and move into a more regenerative and more relaxing part of the day.
At first,
Just let's start with moving your shoulders,
Moving your head and even massage your shoulders if they feel super tense.
To let go of any obvious stress or tension from the day.
Take some time to massage,
To move and notice where you feel tense.
Bring the attention already inward.
Now,
Once you've done so,
Close your eyes,
Lean back,
Get a comfortable position and shift gears,
Relax.
Let's at first take two really deep unconscious breaths to arrive in this meditation and to do the first cut from work.
Breathing deeply into the belly and slowly out.
Deeply in,
Holding and slowly out.
Have you noticed how your body might shift in states and feel different?
And now let's just focus and bring our attention on the nostrils.
And we'll just use that as an anchor for now,
Whenever your thoughts drift off.
So notice how the air comes into the nose and how you press out the air through the nose.
Notice how your breathing regulates itself.
How it becomes calm.
And notice also exactly where the air touches your nose.
And now you might have noticed already that there's some thoughts,
Some very important and urgent things to do.
And let those thoughts for now pass.
If they're hard to just let them pass,
Just take them on and put it in a box with a label on top,
A label of work.
And whenever you have one of those thoughts,
Just put them into one of those boxes,
Close the box and put it somewhere that you can find it,
But know it's securely put away so you don't have to think about it now.
And with that,
You can allow yourself,
Just for this meditation,
To take the time to not think about work and relax.
So whenever one of those thoughts that's something important or urgent needs to be done,
Just put them into one of those boxes and let it pass.
Put it into one of those boxes and store them securely and safely for later.
And let's practice that now just for a couple of breaths so you know how to do it whenever that comes up during the rest of this meditation.
You can let go of any of those thoughts from work just for the time of this meditation.
Let go of those thoughts.
Maybe also notice how your body relaxes whenever you store them in one of those boxes.
And with every out breath,
Let your body sink a little bit deeper,
Relax.
All right.
And now just imagine one of those ladders that's straight attached to a wall or going deep down into the ground.
And with every out breath,
You just take one step deeper and deeper and further down.
And you know down there it's very warm,
Comforting and you're a bit secluded from all the buzziness,
Busyness and all the things around.
And you can just safely take one step at a time,
Going closer and closer to that safe space that you built yourself.
And you know down there it is comfortable,
Relaxing.
It gives you back energy.
And almost as a retreat for when things are getting too tough,
Too intense up there,
You can close the door and slowly but surely let your body fall into that relaxation,
Into that place of complete comfort,
Trust and safety.
And once you've reached down there,
Look around and see if there's anything there down there,
Look around,
See how it looks for you.
What is something that gives you comfort that you can relax?
Is it a bean bag,
A hammock or just a comfy couch?
Just go there,
Put your body down there,
Lay down.
And relax.
And still with every out breath,
Let go of one more thought,
One more stressor,
One more area of tension in your body.
And to make that process easier,
Think about one or two things that you are grateful for about this day at work.
One or two things that were awesome,
That gave you a smile,
That made you love,
A connection with somebody,
A talk or a little achievement.
Bring that into your mind.
And also let that go,
That memory of the good moments of the workday.
And let's quickly go through the body and notice wherever we still feel tension,
Tightness and let that go so we can open up for the rest of the day.
So skin up your body from top to bottom.
From your forehead,
Notice any tension and relax it,
Breathe into it and relax.
Your face,
Your cheek,
Your nose,
Your mouth,
Your ears,
Your nose,
Your jaw,
Your neck and your shoulders,
Your chest area,
Loosen up any tightness,
Breathe in deeply into your heart area.
Soften your belly,
Let your hips and your thighs relax.
Any tension in the lower back or upper back,
Can slightly move and relax to knees,
Shins and calves.
Till you reach your feet.
That might be connected to the floor,
To the ground underneath.
And any tension that you still have somewhere in the body,
Just let it flow towards the feet and almost use it as a drain to let go of anything still stuck in your body.
Take another two deep breaths and sigh out the air to fully relax.
Ah.
Ah.
Get comfortable and notice,
Bringing attention towards things that are important in your life,
Especially in your private life,
Outside of work.
What are some things that are important to you?
Spending time with family,
Friends,
Kids.
Choose something for yourself.
And think about today,
What would bring you some joy?
What would make you feel happy today?
You can choose anything.
Is it some time just for yourself?
Some time with a partner?
A good meal or just relaxing and watching your special series?
And a question that might help you with that is,
What does your body need right now?
Because in order to feel relaxed and happy,
It helps tremendously when our body feels good.
So just ask it.
What does your body need right now?
And use this,
These two questions as a guidance for what you do in your life and what you do today.
What's important to you?
What brings you joy?
Or what does your body need?
Maybe you've already an idea,
But just wait until the meditation is over and now use the rest of this meditation to still wind down further if you need to.
And bring the focus again to the nostrils.
Notice your breathing.
And now one last thing,
A quick gratitude exercise for today,
Which is what is the thing or the things that you are grateful for right now?
Can be anything,
Anything small or big.
And then let us slowly walk up the ladder and with every inhale,
You can step up and use every next inhale to step on further.
And slowly bring your body,
Your mind back into the present moment.
Start to slowly move your fingers and toes.
Move your upper body slightly.
And with one of the next inhales,
Let your eyes slide open and come back.
Let your eyes slide open and come back.
Use the time now to stretch,
To note anything down that came up during the meditation and go with your intention into the rest of the day and do that what brings you joy or do that what your body needs right now.