Welcome.
For this meditation,
I invite you to find a comfortable seated position.
You can sit on a chair or cushion with your feet on the floor or cross-legged or whatever feels most comfortable for you.
If you're needing extra comfort and rest,
You can lay down for this as long as you stay aware and awake through the meditation.
Go ahead and find that most comfortable position for you right now,
Tuning in with your body's needs,
Making sure you're comfortable and able to find stillness for the next couple of minutes.
And you can close your eyes for this or lower your gaze with a soft focus,
Beginning the journey inward now,
The journey back to your body,
Back to yourself through this meditation.
Notice how you've landed here with your eyes fully closed or your soft gaze.
Feel the palms of your hands wherever they are.
Notice your feet connecting with another surface,
Maybe grounding down to the earth.
Feel your tailbone,
Your hips holding you up,
Connecting you again with another surface.
And maybe it feels right to let the pull of gravity hold you and invite you to relax a little bit more in your seat,
Surrendering to this gentle,
Natural pull of gravity,
Softening your body,
Letting your shoulders drop down,
Letting your jaw unclench,
Maybe bringing a smile to your face,
Noticing your eyebrows.
And if you're holding any tension there,
Just tuning in to your body.
And now bring your attention to your breath that's been here this whole time.
Maybe this is the first time today that you're bringing intention and attention into your breath.
Feel the natural rhythm of your breath,
The ease with which you breathe.
Maybe there's constriction,
Just letting your breath flow through you,
Witnessing the miracle of life with awareness,
With kindness,
Maybe even gratitude for this breath.
If it feels right,
You can deepen your breath now,
Take longer inhales and exhales,
Or you can just continue to breathe at your natural,
Regular rhythm.
Your breath is your anchor.
This is where you can always return,
Bring your awareness to during the meditation.
If you notice you're getting lost in thought,
You need a safe anchor to return to.
You can always open your eyes at any time as well,
Taking care of yourself,
Whatever feels best for you.
This is sacred time for you that you're carving out of your day to take care of yourself,
To reconnect.
Feel yourself present here in your body,
In your breath,
And that will turn to your emotional body,
Your heart center.
If it helps you,
You can place a hand on your heart.
Just imagine where your heart lies in the center of your chest and feel into the emotional landscape,
The feelings that might be there.
This is a soft,
Inward practice,
Not meant to stir anything or make you uncomfortable at any point.
This is a mindfulness practice where you attune to your heart center and any feelings that might be there with kindness and non-judgment,
Maybe self-compassion if it's available to you.
With your hand on your heart or just an awareness,
You can imagine perhaps even a golden light around your heart now,
Feeling the warmth,
This light surrounding your heart.
With non-judgment and self-compassion,
Whatever you have available to you in this moment,
Maybe it's just neutral awareness as much as you can,
I invite you to recognize any feelings or emotion that are present in your heart today.
We often go through our days pushing things out,
Ignoring what our heart is telling us,
So this is your moment to tune in and see whatever's coming up,
If anything is there for you,
See if you can allow it to be here in this moment,
In this safe,
Sacred space that you have created for yourself,
Just gently welcoming the emotion or feelings that are here.
It might be helpful to name it,
And if there's a lot,
Pick whatever one is most resonant for you,
If you're having a lot of feelings or emotion,
Pick one.
Remember to breathe through this,
Maybe you want to say out loud and name the emotion or feeling or sensation,
And just gently extend a warm welcome to whatever is arising for you,
Remembering that this is a space of safety,
Of non-judgment,
Maybe of self-compassion.
Now that you've recognized what it is and allowed it,
Welcomed it,
Invited it to be here,
I invite you to notice what it's like to feel this in your body,
Notice how you feel it in your body,
In yourself,
Any physical sensations,
Is there a color for you,
Do you feel warm or cold,
Do you only feel this in your heart or is it showing up in another part of your body?
This is you inquiring about this emotion,
This part of you,
This emotional landscape,
Notice where it starts in your body,
Be open to whatever arises,
It doesn't have to just lay in your heart,
Sometimes we bring things right up to our mind and there might be a lot of mental activity,
Notice that with non-judgment and self-compassion,
Or you might feel it somewhere else,
Be curious,
Be gentle with yourself,
Maybe you're feeling tingling somewhere or warmth or cool,
Notice if perhaps the emotion has changed as you turn gentle awareness towards it,
Maybe you're just kind of neutral,
Maybe this is a little difficult for you and that's okay,
We're not taught to recognize and allow our emotions to be here,
Remember to breathe through this,
Feel your breath anchoring you,
As you gently notice what it's like to feel this emotion in your body,
In your whole self right now,
And to complete this heart-centered practice,
I invite you to place a hand on your heart if you haven't already done so and ask yourself,
What do I need right now?
And ask yourself,
What do I need right now?
What would help me feel nourished,
Feel full,
Feel seen by myself,
What do I need to hear?
Maybe there are words,
Maybe it's an affirmation,
Like I am whole as I am,
I am safe as I am,
And I am welcome as I am,
Extending self-compassion,
Maybe self-love if it's available,
As you be with yourself in this mindful heart-centered way,
Remembering that feelings and emotions are part of our human life,
Of our human reality,
And that we always have the power to slow down and tune in to listen to what our heart needs from us,
How we can help and soothe ourselves,
Simply by becoming aware,
And take one more deep breath,
In and out,
Sealing this practice,
Checking in one more time if there's anything else that would feel good for you right now,
Could even be an action that you're going to do after this meditation or later on in your day,
Be very intentional about this,
This is your moment to self-care,
This is your moment to nourish,
This is your moment to self-care,
This is your moment to nourish,
As you've listened to your heart,
You are whole as you are,
You are safe as you are,
And when you're ready,
Bring your awareness back and lower your hand,
If it's been on your heart,
Feel your fingertips and your toes,
You may want to invite some movement,
If a sigh feels good as you open your eyes and come back to your room,
Please do that,
Let your eyes butterfly open,
And before you transition back into your life,
Take a few moments to scan the space with your eyes open,
Or turning back to your physical reality,
And be gentle with yourself,
