So just taking the first few moments to settle the body.
So if you're lying down,
Just finding a comfortable posture,
If you're sitting upright and making the slight adjustments so that you're comfortable.
But at the same time you're alert.
And deciding now if you want to bring to mind a small difficulty that you've experienced recently,
Or if you just want to work with how you're feeling right now.
Remembering to kind of respect your own limits in terms of what you can work with.
And so bringing the attention in the body and gradually becoming aware that your body's already breathing.
Just seeing if you can be in this kind of open and receptive awareness where when the body starts to breathe in,
You can just allow that to happen and you become aware of it.
When the body kind of chooses to breathe out or to sigh,
Then you're just aware of that.
Gradually widening the scope of your attention so that you're aware not only of the breath,
But also of the entire body.
Your head and your face,
Your neck and your shoulders,
Arms and hands,
The chest,
The abdomen,
The back,
The pelvis,
The legs and feet.
And just noticing what's present for you right now.
As you get in touch with that difficulty or maybe just working with how you're just feeling right now.
Noticing the feeling tone in the body.
Does it feel pleasant,
Neutral,
Unpleasant?
If there's some unpleasant sensations,
Noticing where?
Where in the body?
Tightness in the chest or in the throat?
Butterflies in the belly?
Tensions in the shoulders,
The neck?
A headache?
Backache?
Seeing if you can just let your attention gravitate really naturally towards the area where there's the most discomfort in the body right now.
Seeing if you can turn towards that discomfort with curiosity.
Observing the physical sensations,
Like maybe it's tightness,
Maybe it's pulling,
Maybe it's vibrations or pulsing,
Heat or coldness.
Seeing if you can even get up close to the sensations and seeing how they change from moment to moment.
Like a scientist might be looking under the microscope at some new phenomenon.
Like what is this?
What am I feeling specifically?
You might even be able to label the emotion that's associated with it.
Oh,
Sadness is here.
Fear is here.
I'm noticing frustration or fatigue.
The sensation is particularly challenging.
Seeing if you can direct your breath towards the sensation,
Breathing into it.
With each in-breath creating more space around that area.
Just to give it lots of room to be here.
Just breathing with it,
Allowing it to just evolve,
Fluctuate all on its own.
Perhaps even imagining bringing one of your hands and touching just ever so gently that area.
Maybe imagining someone you really care about or who really cares about you coming in and touching that area.
Not to make it go away,
But just to soften around it.
Just being with it,
Breathing with it.
And as you touch into it,
Noticing that there's a gift inside of it.
It's not often obvious there,
But maybe there's something precious in there.
Maybe this emotion is telling me that there's something really important here.
Tells me I have a big heart,
I care about something.
My own dignity.
Being an ethical person.
Respect.
Love.
See if you can expand your awareness to bring awareness to your entire body once again.
Knowing that that emotion,
Those sensations may still be here.
But it's not only those sensations,
There's other parts of you.
Noticing the hands,
The feet,
The head,
The legs.
Even starting to find a little bit of movement here,
Maybe the fingertips or the toes first.
Just notice,
Even with that emotion here,
I can move my body,
I can choose to move my body how I want to.
Maybe even noticing how the body maybe wants to move or stretch.
And forming an intention as you start moving.
How is it that I want to act?
What do I choose to do in the next few moments in the presence of how I'm feeling?
