Scanning the Body (Mindful Body Scan)
This guided meditation, derived from acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), is designed to evoke a mindful and accepting way of relating to our bodies, using our attention and our breath to facilitate a process of expanding, allowing, and letting go.
Transcript
The following meditation by Lou L'Aspergado is designed to evoke a mindful and accepting way of relating to our bodies,
Using our attention and our breath to facilitate a process of expanding and allowing.
Now,
As we allow sensations to come and go without a struggle,
This can sometimes produce a welcomed side effect of relaxation.
However,
Our aim here is to cultivate skills in our mind-body relationship,
So anything else that occurs might be viewed as secondary.
Find a comfortable position in a space where you can be undisturbed for the next 20 minutes.
You can be either seated on a chair or cushion,
Although lying down on your back ideally with the underside of your knees supported might be preferable for this particular meditation.
You're welcome to close your eyes or keep them open with a soft gaze.
Now,
Your mind will undoubtedly get hooked by thoughts on more than one occasion during this exercise.
That is entirely normal and natural.
Expect that to occur.
Whenever you notice that this has occurred,
Gently bring your attention back to your body and the meditation instructions.
First just notice your body as a whole,
How it's positioned right now,
And any contact it's making with your surroundings.
In other words,
Whatever might be supporting your body at this time.
And then bring your attention to your breath going in and out just as it is.
No need to alter your breathing in any significant way.
See if you can detect the expansion and contraction of your ribcage as you inhale and exhale.
You may even take one or both of your hands and gently rest them on your belly,
Noticing the rise and fall of each breath.
If you're lying down,
You might find it easier to notice this subtle movement.
As we move forward with the meditation,
See if you can bring an attitude of openness or receptivity,
Simply acknowledging and welcoming whatever might be present along the way.
We're going to give attention to each part of your body,
Starting with your left foot.
Begin by noticing the contact that your left foot is making with whatever surface it's facing.
Notice what part of your foot is making contact.
Then notice your toes,
And even the space between your toes,
And anything there is to be felt right here and now.
If your mind chimes in with judgments like good or bad,
Thank your mind for its input and come back to just being present with the sensations as they are.
Now notice the bottom or sole of your foot.
Imagine that your breath can travel down to your left foot,
And as you breathe in and out,
It's as if the bottom of your foot is expanding and letting go with each inhale and exhale,
Noting any sensations as that occurs.
Then do the same for the top part of your foot,
Breathing in and out as you openly notice what there is to be felt.
You might imagine a subtle rising and falling with each breath.
Moving your attention upward to your left ankle,
Notice any sensations that are present there and then breathe in and out of your ankle,
Expanding,
Allowing,
And a gentle letting go with each exhale.
We're not forcing anything to happen,
But rather just riding the wave of sensations and breathing.
Moving your attention upward again to your left shin and calf muscle,
Once again breathing in and out,
Expanding and allowing,
Rising and falling.
Breathing upward to your left knee,
Including the front of your knee,
The sides of your knee,
And even the back of your knee,
The underside,
Breathing in and out of your left knee,
Expanding and letting go.
Noticing any sensations there without judgment,
And then moving upward to your left thigh and hamstring,
Those large muscles in the top portion of your leg,
Breathing in and out of those muscles,
Expanding,
Allowing,
And perhaps feeling the top portion of your leg kind of settle with every exhale.
And then upward onto your left pelvis and hip,
Noticing any sensations there in that area,
Whether pleasant or unpleasant,
We're simply breathing into what we're feeling,
Allowing sensations to be there as they are.
Then take a brief moment to notice any differences in the sensations or perceived heaviness of your left leg compared to your right leg.
And you might note that any differences are likely due to what you've just been doing,
Simply making use of your attention,
Breath,
And a mindful accepting stance.
Now let's shift attention to your right foot,
Noticing any contact that it's making with surfaces,
And then any sensations in your toes,
Perhaps noticing their temperature and their positioning.
Now notice the bottom of your right foot and imagine that your breath is once again traveling down to your right foot so that when you breathe in and out,
It's as if the sole of your foot is expanding and letting go with each inhale and exhale.
And then do the same for the top part of your foot,
Breathing in and out as you openly notice what there is to be felt.
Expanding,
Allowing sensations to come and go,
And a gentle letting go with each exhale.
Moving your attention upward to your right ankle,
Notice any sensations that are present there,
And then breathe in and out of your right ankle,
Expanding,
Allowing,
Settling.
Forward to your right shin and calf muscle,
Once again,
Imagine expanding with every breath you take in,
And a gentle letting go with every breath you breathe out.
And then moving upward to your right knee,
Once again,
Noticing any sensations,
Including aches or pains in your right knee,
Not trying to force anything or make anything go away,
But rather just breathing in,
Allowing whatever's there to be there.
The front of your knee,
The sides of your knee,
The back of your knee.
And then upward to your right thigh and hamstring muscles,
Once again,
Very large muscles here that do a lot of work for us in our lives,
Breathing in,
Expanding,
Breathing out,
Letting go.
Once again,
We're not letting go of anything in particular,
But rather letting go with every exhale,
Just riding that wave.
And then upward to your right pelvis and hip area,
Once again,
Noticing any sensations,
Breathing in to your right pelvis and hip area,
Breathing out,
Being aware of whatever you might be feeling there.
And now notice both of your legs together,
Notice what you're feeling,
Experiencing in both of your legs together after having just done this portion of the meditation.
And then moving upward to your lower back,
Both your lower spine and the muscles that sit on either side of your spine,
Where both acute and accumulated physical and emotional tension can often reside.
So you're breathing in and out of your lower back,
Expanding,
And you might even feel your lower back making increased contact with the surface as you breathe in and out.
Expanding,
Allowing,
And a gentle letting go as you feel your lower back kind of settle into the here and now.
And then upward to the middle part of your back,
Including your spine and your muscles that sit on either side,
Remembering not to force anything,
But just riding the wave of your inhale and exhale as you are aware of the sensations in the middle part of your back.
So there's a tension on your breathing and a tension on the sensations in your body.
Once again,
Moving upward to the upper portion of our back and shoulders,
Another area where we tend to hold a lot of tension related to ergonomics or stressors.
So breathing in and out,
Feeling whatever there is to be felt in your upper back and shoulders.
And if your mind chimes in again with a judgment or if you notice any resistance or a struggle,
See if you can breathe into that too and come back to just noticing and allowing whatever there is to be felt to be there as you breathe in and out.
And then upward to your neck,
Once again,
You might notice some tension or tightness,
And that's okay.
We're just breathing in and out,
Allowing those sensations to be there without a struggle,
Expanding as we breathe in and a gentle letting go as we breathe out,
Just riding that wave.
And then onward to the back of your head,
Once again,
Noticing the contact that the back of your head might be making right now,
If at all,
Noticing any sensations there,
Breathing in and out,
Imagining the breath traveling to the back of your head,
Expanding,
Allowing and letting go.
Then onward to the top of your head,
Once again,
Noticing any sensations there,
Whether pleasant or unpleasant,
We're making room for it all,
Breathing in and out.
And then downward to your forehead,
Your eyes and right above your eyes,
Noticing any tension,
Tightness in the way you're holding that part of your body,
Breathing in,
Expanding,
Sort of a loosening up might occur as you breathe in and breathing out,
Settling back down.
And then downward to your jaw muscles,
And once again,
Another area where we tend to hold a lot of tension,
Breathing in and out of your jaw,
You might even slightly open your lips as you breathe in and out,
Expanding,
Allowing,
And just opening up in that part of your body.
And then we're going to bring our attention to our left arm and hand,
So noticing our entire left arm and hand,
Where it's positioned right now,
Breathing in,
Imagine a subtle rising and breathing out,
A subtle falling.
And then over to your right arm and hand,
Once again,
Noticing any sensations there,
Noticing the positioning of your right arm and hand,
Breathing in,
Expanding,
Allowing,
Breathing out,
Letting go,
And settling.
And then we'll bring our attention to our chest or upper torso,
Noticing once again any sensations in your chest where emotional tension tends to reside,
Breathing into your chest,
Expanding as you breathe in,
Breathing out,
Allowing,
Letting go,
Settling back down,
Expanding that wave.
And then downward to our abdomen,
Solar plexus,
Our belly,
That whole lower part of our torso,
Breathing in,
As we have all along,
Just noticing the breath going in and out,
Noticing the expansion of our ribcage and the contraction as we breathe out,
The rise and fall of the belly.
And then finally,
Zooming out to your whole body once again,
As if your whole body is breathing in and out,
Expanding and letting go.
And as this meditation comes to a close,
You may want to open your eyes if you haven't seen it yet.
Thank you.
