Welcome to this short practice,
Progressive Muscle Relaxation.
Sometimes when we try and connect in with our body,
It can be difficult to feel the sensations.
So this practice is great preparation for a body scan meditation.
So whether you're sitting or lying down,
Moving your attention to different parts of the body,
And we're going to contract and release the muscles.
Helping with that interoception,
That means sensing and feeling inside of the body.
So moving your attention down to the feet.
And this practice can be done sitting,
Standing or lying down,
However you feel most comfortable.
So as you move your attention down to the feet,
Gently curling the toes,
Pressing the heels down,
And release.
Moving your attention from the feet,
Up through the ankles to the calf muscles.
So pressing the balls of the feet down,
You might lift the heels,
Feel that contraction through the lower legs,
And letting go.
Being aware now of the upper legs,
The thighs,
The buttock area.
So contracting through the buttock area,
The thighs,
And letting go.
Notice how it feels to release through the body.
Moving your attention now to the belly,
To the abdomen and the lower back.
Drawing the navel back,
Feel how the belly becomes contracted and firm,
And letting go,
Releasing,
Allowing.
Moving your attention up to the ribcage,
The heart space,
The upper back.
Taking a deep breath in,
Expanding,
And letting go,
Releasing,
Allowing.
Noticing now both shoulders,
Drawing the shoulders up to the ears,
And release,
Allowing them to soften.
Slowly sweeping your awareness down from the shoulders,
Down both arms to both hands,
Squeezing fingers around the thumbs,
Both hands at the same time,
And release,
Allowing,
Letting be.
Bending at the elbows now,
Both arms together,
Contracting through the upper arms,
And softening through the arms,
The hands.
Moving your attention up through the throat area to the face,
You can press the tongue up to the roof of the mouth,
Feel the tension there,
And letting go,
Allowing the tongue to soften and release into the base of the mouth.
Opening the jaws,
Feel that contraction,
That opening,
And letting go,
Allowing the face to soften.
Squeezing the eyes around the eyebrow center,
The forehead,
And releasing,
Creating some space between the eyebrow center.
Gently looking up with the eyes,
Feel that contraction through the back of the neck,
And then bring the chin down,
And releasing,
Allowing,
Softening.
So just now having a sense of your whole body,
From the head and the face,
Down the neck,
Through your torso,
Front,
Sides,
And back,
Down into the hips,
The thighs,
All the way down to the feet,
To the tips of your toes,
And then noticing from your shoulders,
Down the length of your arms,
All the way down to soft fingers.
Just noticing if you can sense and feel your body now,
And we will just take a deep breath in,
Expanding the body,
And a slow gentle breath out,
Letting go,
Letting go.
And now bringing your attention to where it felt like it was easiest for you to feel your body,
Might have been the face,
The torso,
The arms,
Hands,
Legs,
Or feet.
So if you need to connect with your body during the day,
You might come back and contract and release those muscles,
Just as a lovely way to help you reconnect to the present moment,
And this interoception feeling and sensing inside your body.
So thank you for your practice,
I hope that can support you today,
And often when we release the muscles after that contraction,
There might be a little bit more ease for you.
Thank you for your time and connecting with your body today.
