Welcome.
We will be practicing some simple breath and relaxation.
So I welcome you to find a comfortable place to be,
Whether seated,
Laying down,
You could even stand if that's more comfortable for you.
And just take a moment to let yourself get settled,
Allowing for your body to be supported,
Allowing for anything that you might be wearing to be loose so that you can breathe freely.
And let's just take a breath together right now.
Inhale and exhale.
And just notice how does your breath feel in this moment?
As you notice your breath,
What are the qualities?
Is it smooth?
Does it feel steady?
Does it feel shallow?
Or is it a deeper breath?
And let's allow for the breath to begin to just slow,
Just breathing in and out without any hurry,
As though you had all the time in the world take a breath.
And allow your body to also feel like there's plenty of time that you can completely relax.
There's nothing else that you need to do except for to be right where you are and allowing yourself to pay attention to your breath for the next few minutes.
So focusing first on your exhalation,
Allow your inhalation to be wherever it is.
And now as you exhale,
Can you draw out the breath?
Can you lengthen your exhalation by slowing it down,
By letting go of the breath a little at a time?
As you let go of the breath,
Feel the lungs emptying,
Creating space for new breath.
And again,
Allowing your inhalation to be however it is,
Lengthening,
Slowing down the exhalation so you can let more of the breath out of the lungs,
Emptying,
Clearing the lungs.
And if you are emptying the lungs and it feels like you need to hurry up and take that next breath in,
Then maybe don't empty the lungs quite so far.
So just find that balance between a full complete exhalation where the lungs are emptied as much as possible and being able to take your time to come into the next part of the breath,
The inhalation.
And now can you allow for your inhalation to be similar or to match your exhalation?
So your inhalation can be slow and steady,
Very gently,
Just breathing in,
Letting the breath come in to fill the lungs slowly,
Gently,
Without any rush,
Without any hurry,
And then moving into the exhalation to completely let go of the breath.
So,
Noticing your breath,
Feeling this full complete inhalation,
Exhalation without any hurry.
And now imagine rather than filling the front of your body,
The chest,
The belly with breath,
Imagine taking the breath back toward the spinal column and breathing down and upwards so that you are inhaling more vertically,
Downward and upward,
Feeling the breath drop down to the belly,
Maybe even all the way to the pelvis,
Feeling the breath possibly lifting up as well,
Up into the throat,
Maybe into the head,
So that the breath lengthens along the central channel,
The internal aspect of your spinal column.
And as you exhale,
The breath moves back down or up toward the center and then back out of the body,
So that you could potentially lengthen the breath even more.
You might be able to breathe in a little bit deeper and you may be able to let go of a little bit more of the breath.
If at any point the breath feels strained or there is restriction or tension,
Just relax and move on to the next part of the breath.
So if the inhalation starts to feel tight,
Just relax here and exhale.
Just allow the breath to be as expansive as able right now.
It doesn't matter what you've done in the past or what you wish you were doing,
Where is the breath right now and allow it to be in its own space,
In your space right now,
Letting the breath move as it does without any hurry.
Let's take three more full breaths together.
Taking one more breath in and out.
Thank you for joining me.
I wish you a great rest of your day or evening.
Now would be perfect either for just resetting your day or moving into a meditation practice.
Be well.
