When we feel overwhelmed,
Scattered,
Or busy,
The best thing we can do is slow down.
By slowing down,
We can in turn actually speed up.
We reset our bodies to a baseline to clear our minds and clear the path in order to move forward with purpose.
In today's meditation,
That is exactly what we're going to do.
So let's begin.
Take a nice long,
Slow inhale in through the nose,
And then just open your mouth and let it sigh out.
Let's do that again.
A nice long,
Slow inhale in through the nose,
Filling up your chest,
Filling up your belly,
And then open your mouth and let that go.
Now continue to breathe in naturally,
In through the nose and out through the nose.
And just notice where your breath goes.
As it enters your nostrils,
Is it going into your chest,
Into your belly?
Just notice it,
Don't try to manipulate it.
Perhaps this is the first time in a while you've been able to slow down enough to even notice your breath.
Now intentionally bring your air into your belly,
Filling it up fully,
And then follow the air back up and out.
Continue to do that,
Filling up your belly,
Slowly in and out.
Notice the air as it enters your nostrils and goes out,
And just really follow that breath,
In through the nose,
Filling up your belly.
You may even want to put your hand on your belly and notice the rise and fall.
Now letting the awareness and focus on the breath go,
Continue to breathe in and out slowly,
But move your awareness to the sounds around you.
Choose one and really tune into it,
Drowning out all the other sounds.
Let that sound go and move to another sound.
Find another sound and focus on that,
It could be your breath even,
The music,
Ambient noise outside.
Now allow the sounds to come back together and move your awareness to your breath once again.
Breathing in and out.
Now let's feel the sensations in our body.
Start by noticing the ground beneath you.
How does it feel when it connects to your body?
Notice the temperature in the room.
Notice how the air hits your skin.
Notice how your hands feel touching your legs,
The fabric.
Get really curious about your body in the room that you're in right now,
And all of the sensations that arise for you.
What's coming up?
Are there any tweaks or pain?
If you notice any,
Breathe into that,
And on the exhale,
Just dispel that pain and that tension.
Now notice your heart beating,
The pace,
The strength,
That rhythm that is always going on inside of you.
We rush around so much,
It's hard to notice,
But it's there and it's strong.
Take a moment to notice it now and connect your breath with that heart space.
And just for a moment right now,
Just notice how connected you feel to your body,
Noticing exactly the sensations that are coming up for you,
The breath,
Your heartbeat.
Now take a nice long,
Slow inhale in.
Open mouth,
Sigh that out.
And continue to breathe in and out naturally.
And now bring your awareness to the smells around you.
What do you smell in the room?
You may even wanna bring your hands up to your nose,
And what do you smell like?
Perhaps some memories come up for you as you inhale that scent,
Or some feelings,
Just let them come.
And now come back to your breath with an even greater awareness of your entire body.
Now I would like for you to silently repeat,
Slow down.
As you inhale,
Breathe in the word slow.
And as you exhale,
Release the word down.
Slow down.
Continue that on your own for just a moment,
Concentrating on the inhale and the exhale,
Gently repeating slow down.
It's when we slow down,
Allow our minds to focus on the present moment,
That's when the clarity comes.
Inhaling slow,
And exhaling down.
Slow down.
And as you continue repeating this,
Just notice your body,
The tension that you may have felt earlier dissolving,
The clarity in your mind as it allows itself to just be in this moment.
Repeat that one more time.
Inhaling in slow,
And exhaling out down.
Now take a nice long slow inhale in,
And then open mouth,
Sigh that out.
And just take a moment right now to notice your body,
And how that overwhelm that you may have felt earlier has now drifted away.
You were able to reset your body by noticing exactly where you are,
Your surroundings,
And addressing how you feel in this moment.
Bring your awareness one more time to your heartbeat.
Silently repeating,
I am here.
I am here.
I am here.
Now take another nice long slow inhale in through the nose.
Sigh it out.
And gently start to bring yourself back to the room.
Bringing some movement into your hands and your feet.
You might even wanna stretch your arms up.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
And just stay in this moment of awareness of your body,
Of your breath.
And remember that you are in control of every step of the day.
And you can always come back to this feeling and to your breath,
And to your present moment awareness to reduce anything,
Any stress,
Any tension that comes up for you.
Take one more nice long slow inhale in.
Let that go.
And have a great day.
