Begin with some slow intentional breaths to help you arrive into this moment in this practice.
Take a somewhat deep but gentle inhale with a long,
Slow,
Thin exhale.
Breathe in again and this time pause at the top and relax into that pause.
Feel your entire body relax into the space between your inhale and your exhale.
As you begin your exhale,
Do so with the intention to drag it out as long as you comfortably can.
At the end of your natural exhale,
Is there a tiny bit more capacity to breathe out?
Breathe in again,
Pause at the top.
Relax your brain into the space of this pause.
As you exhale,
Control your breath as if there is a candle in front of you that you're choosing not to flicker.
Take two more breaths just like this.
A complete normal inhale,
A relaxed pause,
Then a super gentle controlled and extended exhale.
As you complete the second of these breaths,
Allow your breath to revert to a natural rhythm.
Observe your ability to relax your body and notice the sensations of being in your body right now.
Notice the possibility of relaxing with the movement of your natural easy breath.
Relax a bit more as you breathe in and a bit more as your breath releases back into the space around you.
Name for yourself where in your body you feel the sensations of anxiety.
Is it your belly,
Your chest,
Or somewhere else entirely?
Create a bubble of space around the physical sensations of anxiety and fill that space with something soft and nurturing.
It could be clouds or a blanket,
Something else that you visualize,
Or even nothing specific but an intention for comfort.
Dive your attention into that now protected space to the heart of the feelings and examine exactly what it looks like and feels like to be anxious in your body right now.
Anxiety thrives on being general and non-specific and the more we run from it,
The more it holds us.
Notice that the more closely you examine the sensations of anxiety,
The more subtle they become.
Describe for yourself whatever you're able to put into words as specifically as possible.
With your senses alert,
Continue exploring the center of the feelings of anxiety.
See if you can notice more details,
Another angle,
Another clue.
Continue relaxing your body,
Your physical body as you do this,
And keep your mind sharp and present.
Perhaps the feelings are already starting to fade.
Perhaps they are moving,
Changing,
Elusive and slippery.
Notice everything that you can,
Notice every detail.
See if you can get deeper in there,
Closer,
More specific.
Your anxiety is not an enemy.
It is a part of you that wants to protect you.
It is a wonderfully loving but misguided friend.
Imagine yourself hugging your anxiety in a firm and steady embrace.
Silently speak to your anxiety.
Dear faithful friend,
Thank you so much for your vigilance.
Thank you for caring.
Thank you for attempting to protect me.
You are welcome here.
I can make space for you.
I can hold you as a part of myself,
But I do not choose to let you run my life.
Continue to mentally embrace the part of you where you feel the sensations of anxiety.
Notice who is in charge of this embrace.
Let your forebrain,
Your higher self,
Be the leader here.
It is possible that anxiety will try to take over.
When this happens,
Consciously switch identification to your higher self,
To the part of you that can notice the anxiety instead of be it.
Hold whatever feelings you identify as anxiety in your firm embrace,
Soft but steady.
Body relaxed,
Mind sharp and intention clear.
I am that which observes these sensations.
I am in charge.
I can handle these sensations.
I can make space for them.
I can love them.
Continue to hold the sensations of anxiety in a space of compassion and love and understanding.
As you also widen the scope of your attention beyond these sensations to include all of the sensations of being in your body right now.
Notice the temperature of the room and if any part of your body feels warm or cold.
Do you hear any sounds?
Notice if they are close by or far away.
What does your breath feel like right now?
Does it feel deep to you or shallow?
Does it feel regular or varied?
Does it feel easy or is there effort involved?
Bring your attention to your feet.
Are they touching the floor?
Are they touching the earth or your bed?
Notice the parts of your feet that are in contact with something solid.
Begin to feel your feet from the inside.
Notice the sensations of life in your feet.
Again,
Widen your attention to feel your entire body.
The feeling of being alive through your entire body.
Every part of your body,
Equal recipients of your loving attention.
Any remaining sensations of anxiety are included and encompassed in this loving attention.
They're welcome,
But they're not invited to take over.
They're not in charge.
Begin to feel the edges of your body.
Where do you end?
Where does space begin?
Get the sense of dissolving the edges of you into the space around you.
Find the center of you,
The center of this moment.
Settle your attention in that center space,
The center of right now.
From there,
Take a few slow,
Deliberate breaths,
Relaxing into awareness as you inhale.
Soften the edges as you exhale.
Grow a bit taller with your inhale.
Feel yourself heavy,
Grounded and secure as you exhale.
Settle your mind into the center space,
The center of right now.
Settle your mind into the center space,
The center of right now.
Settle your mind into the center space,
The center of right now.
