This is a meditation on working with difficulty.
You can use this practice to work with difficult emotions or physical sensations like pain.
Start by finding a posture that feels comfortable to you.
Tune your attention inward to your body and see if you can find a part of the body that feels good or pleasant to you right now.
This might be your hands,
In your feet.
It could be your earlobe or the tip of your nose.
If nothing feels particularly good,
See if you can find something neutral.
And spend a few moments there,
Practicing focusing your attention in this place,
Enjoying the pleasant or the neutral sensations.
And now if there's something difficult that's happening for you,
A painful sensation or a difficult emotion,
Let your attention go to that.
It could be a headache or soreness in a muscle.
Or it could be sadness,
Anger,
Frustration,
Regret.
Where do you feel that sensation in your body?
Where do you feel that emotion in your body?
Find a moment there and for now just let it be.
You don't have to change it.
You don't have to hurry it away.
You can simply allow it to be there for now.
And now bring your attention back to the pleasant or neutral place.
Let it rest there,
Relaxing a bit,
Finding retreat in the body,
Acknowledging that our difficulties may feel consuming.
And sometimes what we need is perspective.
When you're ready,
Bring your attention back to the difficulty.
And what do you sense?
Weight,
Pressure,
Aching,
Tightness,
Tension.
See if you can get curious about what you find there.
And see if you can avoid getting wrapped up in the story about the difficulty.
What can you notice simply about your present moment experience of it?
What can you notice simply in the physical nature of it in the body?
It may help to adopt a mindset of curiosity as if you were a scientist in a lab researching this feeling or this sensation.
What are its qualities?
What can be learned or known about it?
Any time it feels like too much,
Bring your attention back to the pleasant or neutral place.
Connect with a sense of peace and support in your body that you can offer yourself.
And now,
Staying connected to that place of ease.
Can you also become aware of the difficulty?
Can you give it just a little bit of your attention?
Can you hold both the pleasant and the painful at the same time in your awareness?
In these last minutes of our meditation,
Let's extend ourselves some kindness.
Working with difficulty,
Whether physical or emotional,
Is challenging work.
I invite you to appreciate yourself for doing it,
For taking it on.
Presently inwardly to yourself,
I invite you to repeat the following,
May I be safe,
May I be happy and peaceful,
May I be healthy and strong,
May I live with an open heart,
May I accept myself as I am,
May we all be safe,
May we all be happy,
Peaceful,
Healthy and strong,
May we live with ease.
Stay tracks with the idea of confidence and learners only.
I invite you to replace the word with both L NBN,
A deep breath in through the speakers
