Breathing Meditation

This is a 27 minute guided breathing meditation appropriate for mindfulness and insight meditation practices.

Mark Bertin is a developmental pediatrician and author of Mindful Parenting for ADHD and How Children Thrive.

Transcript

This next practice is a breathing meditation.

In this style of meditation,

We focus on breathing not because there's anything special about it,

But because that physical sensation of breathing is always there.

Throughout the practice,

You may find yourself caught up in thoughts,

Emotions,

Sounds.

Wherever your mind goes,

Simply come back again to the next breath.

If you're distracted the entire time and come back just once,

That's perfect.

Sit comfortably.

Find yourself a stable position you can maintain for a while,

Either lying on the floor or a bed or sitting in a chair.

Close your eyes if you like,

Or you can choose to leave them open and gaze downward towards the floor.

And then draw your attention now to the physical sensation of breathing,

Perhaps noticing the always present rising and falling of your abdomen or your chest.

Perhaps instead noticing the air moving in and out through your nose or mouth.

With each breath,

Bring attention to these sensations.

There's nothing you need to do or make happen.

And if you like,

Mentally note,

Breathing in and breathing out.

Many times over,

You'll get distracted by thoughts or feelings.

You may feel distracted more often than not.

That's normal.

There's no need to block or eliminate thinking or anything else.

Without giving yourself a hard time or expecting anything different to happen,

When you discover that your attention has wandered,

Notice whatever's distracted you and then come back again to the breath.

Breathing in and breathing out.

There's not even a goal of relaxation.

Something may happen,

But you can't force yourself into feeling anything at all.

Simply noticing each time you find your attention somewhere else and returning it gently back again to your breath.

Practice as well pausing before making any physical adjustments,

Such as moving your body or even scratching an itch.

It's always okay to take care of yourself and with intention shift at a moment you choose,

Allowing a space between whatever it is you're experiencing and what you choose to do next.

It's okay to take care of yourself and with intention shift at a moment you choose,

Allowing And wherever your mind is right now,

Returning again to the next breath.

And wherever your mind is right now,

Returning again to the next breath.

You may find your mind wandering constantly,

Caught up in a whirlwind.

That's normal too.

Instead of wrestling with or engaging with those thoughts as much,

Practice observing,

Noting wherever your attention has been,

And then returning again to the physical sensation of breathing.

And wherever your mind is right now,

Returning again to the physical sensation of breathing.

Don't try to hold on too tightly to the sensation of breathing either.

If you feel yourself straining or tight,

Let go.

Ease up a little.

The mind will remain busy whatever you do.

And wherever your mind is right now,

Returning again to the physical sensation of breathing.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

For these few minutes,

Create an opportunity to not plan or not fix or whatever else is your habit.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Breathing in and breathing out,

Returning your attention to the breath each time it wanders elsewhere.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

If you find yourself distracted through most of the practice and come back to just one breath,

That's perfect.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Continue to practice observing without needing to react.

Just sit and pay attention as best as you're able.

As hard as it is to maintain,

That's all there is.

Come back over and over again without judgment for yourself or expectation.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

So continuing to practice,

Note wherever your mind is right now and come back again to breathing.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

Let go of any sense of trying to make something happen.

And when you're ready,

Gently opening your eyes.

Take a moment and notice any sounds in the environment.

Notice how your body feels right now.

Notice your thoughts and emotions.

And then pausing for a moment,

Decide how it is you'd like to continue on with your day.

And then pausing for a moment,

Decide how it is you'd like to continue on with your day.

Reviews

Great pacing, with a good balance between silence and talking. You can sense that he is embodying what he is saying.

Love the pace and spaces of quiet that allow for connecting and focus on the breath.

This is a very helpful meditation for me.
Excellent instruction with plenty of silence between. I truly appreciated that silence. 🙏

Great longer version of the 15 mins breathing meditation. Very nice spacing. Calm voice. Great redirects and instructions

Very nice! For me, the perfect type of guided meditation with gentle reminders and plenty of quiet moments to practice. Breath and more breath. Thank you!

This is one of the best instructive breathing meditation ever. The guide leaves long pauses and seems to know instinctively when ones mind has wandered—and then he brings you back to the breath. I use this when I am pretty sure my mind will wander. So many guides talk way to much and you never seem to have time to be in the silence.

💜 A true guided meditation - long periods of silence interspersed with short intervals of gentle guidance.

Excellent, straightforward breathing meditation with good pacing and nice, long gaps of silence for practicing awareness. I will use this one a lot!

For a simple meditation went very deep

Less is most definitely more. Well timed, constructive comments.

Calm, clear guidance, with ample periods of silence for the mind to wander and to practise returning to the breath. Excellent for anyone with some experience of mindfulness. Grateful thanks.

Great reminders to return home.

Thank you so much that was very helpful have a blessed day

Very nice . Loved the opportunity to be still.
Thanks

Great minimal instruction meditation. Don't let the piano at the beginning sway you away from this; there is no music. Just a few gentle instructions with lots of long silences and reminders to return to the breath.

The gentle guidance was unobtrusive. Beautiful focusing and so reassuring and encouraging to keep with the breath. It’s ok that the mind wanders, ‘the mind is always busy’, just keep coming back to the breath. Thank you.

A beautifully lead mindfulness meditation. Thank you.🙏

Excellent guidance!

this and only this