Intuitive Movement Meditation For Healing And Stress Relief

When we're stressed, anxious, or healing from something, we know body movement can help. But how do we know what to do with our bodies? How do we navigate movement, especially if we experience chronic pain or simply hate exercising? This intuitive moving meditation practice allows you to slowly, gently tap into your body's innate intelligence without "doing" anything in particular. Check with your doctor to ensure this practice is right for you.

Transcript

Welcome to this intuitive movement meditation.

We will be connecting with the body through movement using our intuition.

Our bodies have their own intelligence.

They often know exactly what they want and how to say yes and no in many situations.

A lot of the time they also know intuitively how to heal from injuries,

Trauma,

And other experiences.

The problem is that we often get in our body's way and prevent the natural release of the stress cycle.

This meditation is a practice in listening to your body and allowing it to teach us what it needs through intuitive movement.

This is a practice of listening to the body,

But keep in mind that it may not always speak.

Listening is a practice,

And like anything,

It takes time to get good at it.

Especially if you do not already spend a lot of time listening to the body,

The signals at first may seem confusing or nonexistent.

That is okay.

Our work is to give the body a chance to talk to us.

It's not up to us if we get an answer.

This meditation is meant to be a way to feel good in your body and move gently,

But without any particular agenda.

If you like music,

You're more than welcome to play some while we explore our intuitive movements.

Some bodies respond really well to certain types of movement,

And others prefer silence.

And every day may be different,

And that's just fine.

Let's start in a comfortable position.

I'm going to suggest lying on the floor.

If you have a carpet or a large rug,

That's likely best as you'll have space to move around on a relatively soft surface.

Take a moment to settle.

Maybe rock your hips,

Rock your head.

Notice what your legs want to do.

Do they want to splay out,

Stay together?

Do the knees want to be bent or even hugged in towards your chest?

You could be in stillness,

Or you could be moving.

You can be fidgeting.

And you're allowing stillness to join you when and if it's quite ready.

You may like to take a moment for a land acknowledgement here.

Noticing the earth that you were resting on,

The land,

In this particular location in the world.

Notice your relationship with this land,

Both intimate,

Personal,

And also historical.

If you know the names of the traditional peoples of the land that you were on,

Take a moment to call them up in your mind,

Or even say them out loud.

Now,

Let's set some intentions for our intuitive movement practice.

One of our intentions could be safety.

Moving in a way that feels safe and comfortable.

Giving ourselves permission to be well within our comfort zone.

This practice is not about trying or challenging or strengthening or even stretching unless that feels really right in the moment.

Can you give yourself permission to move within a circle of safety?

Another intention is to lead with our bodies.

It's easy to get into our heads when it comes to movement.

So let's allow our awareness to drop down into the breath.

Inhale deeply and allow the exhale to leave your body gently without effort.

As you fill with breath,

Notice how deep the breath can go today.

Follow it in.

Notice what you feel.

We set the intention here to let the body call the shots,

To ask the body what it wants.

We are not here to judge,

Fix,

Analyze,

Or plan.

We are here to feel,

Breathe,

Flow,

Explore,

Rest,

And even enjoy.

We can also call in an intention to open to the possibility of pleasure.

We are calling in an experience of pleasure,

Of ease in our bodies.

We are welcoming pleasure,

Connection,

The ability to feel good,

Even if that feeling is fleeting or incomplete.

If we do not experience pleasure in this practice,

That is totally okay.

Our intention is to open to it,

To rest in its possibility.

Whether it happens or not isn't up to us.

Now,

Notice if you have any other intentions you would like to set before we begin our practice.

What do you need from our moving meditation today?

Now,

Allow your breath to deepen again.

Fill up your lungs and then allow them to empty.

Notice what happens in your body when you do that.

Likely,

Your belly and chest expand on the inhale and deflate on the exhale.

Keep noticing that movement,

Following it.

What else happens on the inhale?

Do you notice your hands wanting to stretch open?

Your arms wanting to widen or reach over your head?

How would your toes like to express your inhale?

Allow your body to expand on your inhales in any way that feels right for you.

You may take up a little more space on the ground.

You may explore the air around the periphery of your body.

Allow each inhale to guide your body somewhere,

Opening,

Reaching,

Squiggling,

Whatever the body wants to do.

Keep feeling for pleasure,

For ease.

If something feels good,

Lean into that as long as it feels right for you.

If something does not feel good in your body,

Pause,

Back off,

Try something else,

Or simply rest.

Now,

Let's focus on the exhales.

What happens as you exhale?

Does your body want to contract to draw in on itself?

Perhaps the knees want to draw in or the arms want to curl into the body.

Allow yourself the experience of contraction with your exhale after the expansion of the inhale.

Notice your body,

Perhaps,

Drawing in towards itself.

Is there also rocking,

Shifting,

Maybe an opening and closing of the hands?

There is no wrong way to do this.

Now,

Notice the rocking of your breath.

Inhale and exhale,

Shifting and tipping you like a boat on the ocean.

Each wave of breath nudges you a little bit.

Do you feel the rocking forward and back,

Or side to side?

Does your head want to roll and rock?

Do your knees want to draw in while your spine rolls on the ground?

As you continue to feel the rise and fall of your breath,

The rocking to and fro,

Where does your body want to go next?

Do you feel pinned to the earth laying on your back?

Or do you feel yourself rolling to one side or even to your belly or hands and knees?

See if your body would like to change shape.

Are there any emotions arising as you explore this practice?

Does that emotion have a shape,

A contraction,

An opening,

A stretch,

A twist?

If an emotion is arising and it has a shape,

Follow that shape.

Continue to follow your breath.

Now that,

Perhaps,

Your body is in a new shape,

What would your spine like to do?

Does it want to arch backwards,

Curl in,

Or both in a rhythm with the breath?

Notice your spine.

Explore its movements.

None of this has to be symmetrical.

None of it has to make sense.

Continue to listen to the feedback from your body.

Does this feel good?

Then keep doing that until it no longer feels good.

Does it feel bad?

Then stop right away.

Change something or rest.

Stillness can be a part of a movement practice.

We've set the intention for pleasure and ease.

We are allowing the body to teach us what it needs today.

What would your right leg like to do right now?

Does it want to stretch,

Bend,

Shake,

Relax?

Allow your right leg to do whatever would give it the most pleasure right now.

You may not know,

Of course,

What your right leg would like to do,

So we could offer it some options and listen to what happens.

If we stretch out the leg,

Does it say yes?

Does it feel pleasurable,

Useful,

Sweet?

Or does the leg say no?

If it feels sharp,

Uncomfortable,

Or resistant,

We honour that no.

We stop doing anything the body says no to.

And what about your left leg?

What would your left leg like to do?

It might want to do the same thing as the right leg,

But it might not.

What would give the left leg pleasure?

What about your right arm?

Would the right arm like to stretch,

Bend over in some direction,

Make a circle?

And your left arm.

What would be most pleasurable for your left arm right now?

Would your two arms like to move together?

That is perfect if they do.

If they do not,

That is perfect.

The breath is still rocking you,

Still moving you in different areas.

Notice if you are feeling that a shift in gravity might feel good.

You roll to your belly,

Your back,

Your hands and knees.

Maybe you're even coming to standing or seated.

How would your body like to be in relationship with gravity?

Take a little time here to roll with your breath and see how you would like to end up.

Now what is happening with your hips?

Is there a circle here or some side to side movement?

Would your legs like to move in their hip sockets in a certain direction?

Stay with the intention of pleasure and ease.

We are allowing the body to choose the directions it would like to go.

Notice if your mind is jumping in with judgments,

Trying to label the movement or add things that it thinks would be better in some way.

Say hello to that part of your mind.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you for your opinions.

This is just not a place where we're focusing on you right now.

This is a place where my body is choosing.

This is a place where I am focused on pleasure and ease.

I will return to my mind eventually.

Not right now.

Notice your neck and your head.

Where does the weight of your head wish to go right now?

You could let it drop forward,

Allowing the mind to sag,

To rest toward the earth.

You could roll it side to side,

Feeling for that pleasurable stretch somewhere along the neck.

Would your shoulders like to participate in this stretch somehow?

Allow them to move with the neck if they would like to.

Is there an emotion coming up now?

Frustration,

Impatience,

Boredom,

Confusion,

Sadness,

Joy?

That's all okay.

Does the emotion have a shape that it would like to take?

Does the emotion want to move in your body?

Allow that in any direction.

Come back to your breath again.

How is it moving or rocking your body?

What are you noticing about how it's feeling to move right now?

Perhaps you're beginning to feel a softening in the movement practice,

A desire to move back to stillness.

If you're feeling that you would like to keep going and that is what would give your body the most pleasure,

Please continue until you get that signal from your body that it's time to stop.

If you do feel that this moving meditation is coming towards a close,

Notice that draw back towards the earth.

If you are not already close to the earth,

Let your body find its way there.

Would the spine like to curl?

Would your hands like to help you come down?

Does it feel right to lay on the back or curl up on the side or fold yourself over your knees?

All are perfect.

Allow your body to snuggle up to the earth in the way that feels safest and most right for you.

Begin to follow your exhales again.

Allow each exhale to be a softening,

A release of tension,

A practice in trusting the earth to hold you.

How would your body like to rest?

Is there a blanket or pillow nearby that you would like to draw close to you?

Do you feel most comfortable drawn in towards yourself or splayed out?

Again,

Listen to the signals from your body.

There is no right or wrong.

Do your shoulders like this position?

What about your jaw?

Your neck?

Does your spine like this position?

Listen for a yes or a no.

If you hear a no,

Fidget or shift until it feels a little closer to a yes,

Keeping in mind that we can't always find a yes in rest.

And that's okay too.

If you do not hear a yes or a no,

That's also just fine.

We're giving the body an opportunity to let us know.

Whether or not we get an answer is not the point.

Does your belly like the shape you're in now?

What about your legs,

Your knees,

Your feet?

Snuggle as close to your yes as you can,

Keeping in mind that certain parts of the body may not respond or may not be able to shift towards a yes today.

That's okay.

When you're as close to a yes as you reasonably can be,

When you feel as comfortable as it's possible today,

Take another deep breath.

It's okay to keep fidgeting and moving around if you need to.

It's also fine to be in stillness.

What do you notice?

What do you feel in your body?

What is happening in your energy,

Your mood,

Your mind?

Without judging whatever it is,

Just notice how your body is receiving this intuitive movement practice.

Rest as long as you'd like.

When you feel ready to move into the rest of your day,

Consider doing so slowly.

And maybe keep this intention with you to listen to the signals of your body and honor them wherever you can throughout your day.

I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.

And thank you for listening.

Reviews

Hello beautiful 🌺🌼🌺🌼Thank you so much for the wonderful meditation with the sweetest movements 💌it gives me a lot of surprise and pleasure 🗺️have a blessed day 🙏Namaste

Lovely! Great guidance while encouraging openness to intuition and curiosity. Really helped cultivate interoception as well

So much of our time is spent without connection with our bodies- thanks for this gentle practice of fostering body awareness and ease.