Hi,
I'm Mary from Mary Middleton Counseling.
Today I am going to lead you in a brief meditation practice.
We're going to work on some breath work and just do what's called a body scan.
So what we're going to do is just going to go from top to bottom and then bottom back up to top.
Just kind of acknowledging what's going on with our body and what we may be feeling.
Meditation is a great way to start incorporating some relaxation into your life.
It helps reduce your stress.
It helps take all the monkey mind stuff that goes on in there and learn how to deal with that and kind of put it aside so you can remain focused.
So we're going to start with taking some breaths in and you can sit upright and feet flat on the floor or you can lay down,
Whatever works best for you with this practice.
So we're going to start with taking some breaths and when we do that,
I invite you to close your eyes.
If you don't feel comfortable closing your eyes,
Just kind of look down with a soft gaze.
All right,
So let's get started.
Let's take a deep breath in and deep breath out.
Deep breath in and as you're doing your breathing,
Pay attention to your belly.
Your belly expands as you go in and it goes back down.
Deep breath in and let's start by taking notice of your crown,
The top of your head.
You may be feeling a slight dull headache or you might be able to feel the hair on your head.
Just take notice of it.
No judgment.
It's just there.
Move down to your forehead,
Relax your forehead,
Relax your cheeks and your jaw.
If you want,
You can give your jaw a little bit of a wiggle and help relax it a little bit.
Take a deep breath in.
You may find that thoughts are entering into your head and that's okay.
Acknowledge it and let that thought know that you will deal with it when you're done with this practice.
Take a deep breath in.
Now pay attention to your neck.
You can give your neck a little bit of a wiggle to help relax.
You may feel some tension there and your shoulders.
Shoulders a wiggle and let's take a deep breath in and when you exhale this time,
Let your shoulders down and let them relax even more.
Let's start with your right arm.
Pay attention to your bicep,
Any sensations that may be there,
Your elbow,
Your forearm,
Your fingers.
Wiggle your fingers a little bit and let that stress just kind of ease out and wiggle out.
And your left arm,
Your left arm and your elbow and wiggle those fingers on your left hand and let that stress just fall out of your fingers.
Now let's acknowledge your chest.
If you're feeling any stress in your chest,
Any tightness,
Acknowledge it.
Let it know that you know it's there.
It's okay.
And your stomach.
Acknowledge any sensations you may be having.
It's okay.
There's no judgment.
It's neither good nor bad.
Whatever sensations are there,
They're just there.
And pay attention to your upper back.
Acknowledge anything that's there.
As you breathe in and exhale,
Let go of any tensions.
Pay attention to your lower back.
You can tell I feel you.
You may find that you're having that chatter in your head again.
You can acknowledge that too.
And put it aside for later.
Now pay attention how it feels as you're sitting in your chair or how the ground feels if you're laying down.
Feel the support.
And pay attention to your right leg,
Your thigh.
Into your knee.
Your shin and your calf.
Your ankle.
You can give your ankle a little wiggle if you need to.
And your feet and toes.
Wiggle your toes and let the stress and anxiety just go through you.
Go out through your toes and into the ground.
And pay attention to your left leg,
Your left thigh.
Your left knee.
Give your left ankle a little wiggle.
Wiggle your left toes and let all the stress and anxiety go down into the ground.
Now let's take a deep breath in.
And a deep breath out as your body relaxes even more.
Deep breath in.
Now pay attention to both feet.
And how are your feet feeling?
Your shins and calves on both legs.
And feel the support of the chair.
Feeling the support of the ground.
Now let's pay attention to your arms,
Your hands,
And your wrists.
And right back where we started at the crown.
And take a deep breath in.
Let's give your neck a little bit of a wiggle.
And your shoulders a wiggle and your arms.
And when you're ready,
You may open your eyes.
And come back into the room.
Thank you for joining me in my practice today.
If you have any questions,
Please feel free to ask in the comment section.
Or you can even send me a private message if you would like.
I bid you a relaxing,
Peaceful rest of your day.
Thank you.
Namaste.
