Hi,
Hello and welcome.
My name is Julie and I'll be taking you through a relaxation exercise in just a moment.
Today's exercise is a sensory relaxation.
It sounds exotic but it's really rather simple.
Using the relaxation we'll go through all of the five senses,
Sight,
Smell,
Taste,
Hearing and touch.
I'll suggest some sensations to you to help you focus the mind and come to a relaxed state.
I will invite you to imagine different sensations to help you focus and relax your mind.
Today's exercise will take around 20 minutes and you can do it both sitting and lying down.
As always you can cover up with a blanket so you're as comfortable as possible as we progress through the exercise.
To start the sensory relaxation process imagine that you're at the top of a staircase.
At the foot of the stairs is a state of peace,
Tranquility and relaxation.
Notice how you're feeling right now at the top of these stairs.
Breathe in deeply and as you breathe out start walking down the stairs.
Walk down towards relaxation.
Down the stairs further and further towards calmness and relaxation.
Imagine that you're slowly descending the stairs one step at a time.
It's a comfortable safe way down to relaxation.
Go one step at a time at your own pace and become more and more relaxed with each step.
You might start to feel a bit sleepy as you walk down these stairs and get closer and closer to the bottom and that's okay.
Let your mind drift gently and let your body relax.
Let your body be heavy.
You descend the stairs more and more.
You've almost reached the bottom.
When you arrive at the bottom of the stairs you'll be nice and relaxed.
Now that you experience a sense of relaxation I'll invite you to imagine the following things.
We'll start with our sense of sight.
Imagine looking at a whole field full of flowers from a distance.
See the flowers that grow all the way to the horizon as far as you can see.
Focus in closer and closer until you can see the flowers from a little distance and look just a little closer until you can see a few flowers at an arm's length away.
Now imagine that you're looking at one beautiful flower.
See the color of the flower before your very eyes.
See the petals,
The stem,
The leaves on the stem.
Imagine that you are looking at the flower from very close by.
Imagine that you are looking at this flower right in front of your face.
See the minute details of the flower,
The texture in the petals,
The dew,
The pollen.
We'll go ahead and create a new image in our minds in just a moment.
Imagine that you are holding a piece of crystal.
Imagine sunlight falling on this crystal.
When the light hits this piece of rock,
Colors appear.
See the play of light before you.
See all the different sides and surfaces of the crystal and the light that shines on it and reflects off of it.
Are those surfaces smooth or rough?
Are they round?
Are they sharp?
Imagine this beautiful piece of crystal.
Imagine that you are turning it around in your hands and that you're able to look at it from different sides.
Can you perhaps see through the crystal?
What does that look like?
Imagine that you are looking at the colors,
The textures,
And the shape of that crystal.
In a moment,
We'll move on to our sense of hearing.
Can you imagine the sound of waves?
Hear in your head the sound of waves washing up on the shore.
And the sound of the beach on a sunny day.
You might hear birds.
You can hear children playing.
People talking.
Dogs barking.
And the waves crashing on the shore.
Imagine the sound of a breeze blowing along the beach.
The sound of a ball game.
Laughter.
What other sounds could you hear on this beach?
You're going to imagine one final sound.
The sound of the rain on a roof.
Imagine the sound of the rain.
Every drop that lands on the roof.
You may hear the sound of a soft rain.
A few scattered drops here and there.
Or perhaps a harder rain.
A regular ticking of many raindrops that land on the roof.
Hear the sound of the rain.
In a moment we'll move on to our next sense.
Our sense of smell.
Imagine the scent of warm apples.
Can you imagine the scent of minty?
Can you imagine the scent of roses?
Imagine the scent of a rose so clearly as if a rose is right in front of you and you bring it close to your nose to breathe in the sweet scent of the rose.
Imagine the scent of a pine forest.
Smell the pine trees,
The earth,
The scent of the outdoors.
In a moment we'll move on to the sense of taste.
Imagine putting a piece of lemon on your tongue.
Imagine the sour taste of the lemon as if you were biting through a slice.
Now imagine a salty taste.
A piece of cheese for example.
Or a piece of ham if you want.
Think of a food that you like and imagine that you are taking a piece or a bite out of it.
Imagine that you are eating that food.
In a moment we'll move on to our sense of touch.
Imagine an animal that you like.
Perhaps a friendly dog,
A cat or a rabbit with very soft fur.
Imagine stroking this animal.
Feel the soft fur on the palm of your hand.
Imagine moving your hand along the fur.
Now imagine a bowl of warm water that is large enough to put your feet in.
Imagine putting your bare feet in a container of water.
The water is pleasantly warm.
Feel the warm water on your feet,
All the way down to the ankles.
Think then of the feeling of something rough,
Like the bark of a tree.
Imagine moving your hand along the trunk of a tree and feel the details of the rough surface.
And then lastly,
Imagine that you are wrapping yourself in a heavy blanket.
Feel the blanket that surrounds you.
Feel the soft pressure of the blanket all over your body.
Feel comfortable and heavy.
The sensory relaxation will come to an end in just a moment.
It's almost time to return to the present.
To slowly reconnect with your environment,
Imagine another staircase.
You're at the bottom of the stairs right now.
And at the top of the stairs there is alertness,
Awareness and calm.
Imagine that you're going up the stairs,
Step by step,
Higher and higher,
Up to the middle of the stairs.
You're a little more awake,
A little more alert.
Take a few more steps up.
And when you reach the top of the stairs you will be fully awake and alert.
Take a deep breath in and breathe out again.
And open your eyes.
Voila,
That was it for this week.
I hope you enjoyed the exercise and hopefully until next time.
