Body Scan - Observe & Conserve

Body scans are a useful practice to have in your toolbox. They are a great way to guide you out of your head and into your body. This particular body scan focuses on present moment awareness, using your body as a vehicle to achieve this.

Observe and cultivate a deeper connection with your body through this deeply relaxing body scan designed to conserve energy and drop you into that all important rest and digest state. Your nervous system will thank you.

Transcript

This meditation focuses on present moment awareness, Using your body as a vehicle to achieve this. So come to lie down on your back, Take a moment to get comfortable, You could place a small blanket under your head or under your knees or over your body, Whatever you need to do to be warm and find comfort. Once you're settled, Bring your arms alongside your body, If it's comfortable, Palms facing up and feet a little bit wider than the hips, If it's more comfortable for your back to bend your knees, Maybe place your feet wide and your knees touching, Having your eyes closed or downcast, Begin to observe your breathing, Maybe bringing your attention to the tip of your nostrils and noticing the air as it draws in, Is there a coolness to it, And noticing the air as you breathe out, Is there a warmness to it, And as you breathe feel the belly rise and fall, Rising on the inhale, Falling on the exhale, If you need to make any adjustments, Do so now, Mindfully, Slowly, And return to stillness, And for now just feel the ground underneath and supporting your body, The ground rising up to meet you and your body being held by the firmness, The solidity of the earth, Bring attention now to your head, Is it leaning to one side, Can you bring it back to centre, Noticing the curve at the back of your neck and the firmness of your head against the ground or if you've got something soft underneath, And have a gentle roll of it side to side, Noticing the smoothness of the movement or maybe it feels stiff, Maybe one side feels easier than the other, And can you simply observe the sensation in your neck, And levels of comfort, But without judgement, Some more objective, So if it feels stiff maybe not getting into narrative around why your neck might feel stiff, Or maybe your neck always feels stiff and a bit stuck and uncomfortable, And instead can you observe it as sensation, Just observing that that is how your neck feels today, And then bring your head to stillness, Now bring your attention to your right arm and hand, Can you trace the length of your arm from your shoulder to your elbow to your wrist all the way to your fingertips, The whole right arm and hand, Now bring attention to your left arm and hand, Can you trace the length from your shoulder to your elbow all the way down to your fingertips, The whole left arm and hand, Now can you soften the fingers of both your hands, Bring attention now to your upper body, The placement of your shoulder blades, The support of the ground beneath you, Move your attention down to the space at your lower back, If your legs are straight maybe you can feel the curve in the space, If your legs are bent maybe the lower back is flat to the floor, And then bring your attention to the front of your body, The rise and fall of your belly, The gentle expansion of your ribcage as you breathe, Noticing the space between your ribs, Expanding and contracting really gently, And as you breathe out can you feel a softening of your body against the ground, Then bring your attention to your hips, The support of the ground underneath them, Maybe that sense of pressure of your hips against the ground, And bring your attention to your whole right leg and foot, Can you trace the length of it from your hip to your knee all the way to your toes, Bring your attention to your whole left leg and foot, And trace the length of it from your hip to your knee to your toes, Bring your attention to the back of your thighs, If your legs are straight maybe they're resting on the ground, If your legs are bent, Noticing the space behind your thighs, Maybe the slight compression at the back of your knee, The same with your calves, Are they pressing against the ground or is there space there, Are they moving your attention to your feet, Maybe it's just the heels on the ground, Your feet gently falling out to the sides, Or maybe the soles of the feet touching the ground, And bring your attention to your whole head resting on the ground, Your whole upper body, Your whole lower body, Your whole body, Your whole body, Your whole body, Bring your attention back to your breathing, And the space above your navel, The upper abdomen, Your lower lungs, Your ribcage surrounding your lower lungs, Observe the breath as it moves in this space, Gently creating space as you breathe in, Gently contracting the space as you breathe out, Bring your attention to the diaphragm located between your chest and your abdomen, Behind your solar plexus, This muscle is shaped like a dome, And as you breathe in, The dome flattens and gently contracts, As your lungs fill up, And as your lungs empty as you breathe out, The dome relaxes and rises back into its shape, So breathing here for a moment with awareness of your diaphragm, Your main respiratory muscle, This resting here, Supported by the ground, Your breath naturally moving in and out, Rising and falling, Rising and falling, Pause here for a moment, Present in your body with your breath, You can choose to stay here for a while longer, If you have time, Or keeping your eyes closed for a moment, Prepare to come back, Maybe picturing in your mind's eye the space you're in, Any doors, Windows, Anything on the walls, Furniture, Just visualising your space, And coming back to your immediate surroundings, Any sounds coming into your environment, The firmness of the ground beneath you, And then start to rub your thumbs gently across your fingertips, Coming back to that sense of touch, And when we pay attention to our senses, So sounds, Touch, So a taste in your mouth, We can only do that in the present moment, Our senses can't reside in the past or the future, So maybe gently flicker your eyes open now, Start taking in your surroundings, And when you feel ready, Reach the arms alongside your ears and have a big slow stretch, And then gently walk your feet in towards you and your knees into your chest, And roll to your side and press into your hands to gently come up, And once you're in a seated position, Bring your palms together at your heart centre, And namaste, Thank you.