And thank you so much for joining me for this mind the pain mindfulness meditation aimed at reducing the stress pain and anxiety caused by endometriosis Today we'll be doing a loving-kindness practice or what is also referred to as a meta meditation along with a visualization practice When you're ready I Invite you to close your eyes Or keep an unfocused gaze in front of you Sitting up straight or lying down Shoulders and body Slowly starting to relax before we start If you're new to loving-kindness meditations It can be really reassuring to know that frequent practice of them Has been scientifically shown to be incredibly effective for pain relief Studies of brain scans even show that when meditation for self-compassion Or loving-kindness is practiced The pain part of the brain dims down significantly These meditations are also beneficial for increasing our empathy for others but most importantly Increasing compassion for ourselves Which is so important when we're feeling vulnerable Or in the middle of an endo pain flare-up Whatever form your pain presents as today Whether that be through fatigue stress or physical sensations Just remember that you're safe here to explore it further And if you struggle at all with the practice or things that can come up That's okay Just take it at your own pace Remember to gently witness any thoughts or sensations with love and compassion Always turning towards ourselves despite the pain And returning to the present moment Whenever we get lost in thought We'll begin by taking three deep breaths in And out Relaxing your body With every exhale Do this now at your own pace Feeling the breath flowing in and out of your body Allowing yourself to relax Let's start by bringing attention to the wholeness of your body And just gently acknowledging Any emotional Or physical discomfort We may be feeling today As you breathe in And out Gently try to focus your breath on any pain sensations within your body Doing so with compassion And non-judgment We'll slowly begin to visualize a warm Gentle light surrounding you This light represents love and healing energy Feel the soothing light spreading throughout your body Comforting the areas affected by pain or tension As you continue breathing Gently place your hand on your heart And a soft smile on your face And repeat these phrases silently in your mind Allowing their meaning to resonate within you May I be happy May I be free from pain May I be at peace Feel these words surrounding you with comfort love and a sense of relief with each repetition Let the kindness within these phrases Touch the areas in your body Experiencing discomfort May I be happy May I be free from pain May I be at peace Placing your hand back down We'll now just focus on extending these feelings of loving-kindness beyond ourselves So just bring to mind someone you care deeply about a dear friend loved one family member or even a pet Picture them in your mind's eye And sincerely offer these phrases to them May you be happy May you be free from pain May you be at peace Visualize the warm light Expanding from your heart to theirs Surrounding them with love and healing energy Just take a few moments to connect with this feeling of compassion Towards your loved one Just change your focus to someone you don't know personally or have any feelings towards But you recognize in your day-to-day Could be a barista someone you often pass on the streets and neighbor you sometimes greet Anyone you don't know personally or have any feelings towards And while envisioning this person in your mind Repeat these phrases of loving-kindness to them May you be happy May you be free from pain May you be at peace Imagine this compassionate energy spreading outwards Reaching and Comforting this person and their struggles Take a few moments to allow this sense of compassion and connection to expand We'll now move on to visualizing someone in your life that you're currently having struggles or difficulties with I know this can be a hard one so be gentle with yourself and Try to witness the feelings that come up with Curiosity Just take a moment to picture this person in your mind's eye while repeating May you be happy May you be free from pain May you be at peace We'll just bring our awareness back to our own body Witnessing and observing the gentle smile Feeling within us the loving-kindness and compassion We've generated within ourselves And as an extension of this loving-kindness meditation We'll just do a short visualization on expanding our consciousness Allowing us to slowly embrace The whole universe within us So just remaining with our body We'll picture it in our mind's eye from the outside Observing the body's wholeness from all directions outside of you The front back Left Right and above you Now just gently expand your awareness To the room that you're in Feeling your consciousness Permeating the whole space around you Remembering if thoughts come Then we'll just let them go Returning to the visualization Whenever we get lost We'll now expand our awareness to your neighborhood It is your new body every person Building And living being in your neighborhood Is now inside of you Take a moment to feel it within you As your consciousness expands We'll take this beautiful consciousness to another level And expand our awareness to our whole country Feeling our problems slowly getting smaller as we increase our consciousness Well beyond our being Broadening our sense of self even further Let's extend this consciousness to the whole planet Feeling it within us all the countries people living beings Together inside of us Including all those fellow endo warriors Who are experiencing similar pain and challenges?
Inviting them in Feeling and Connecting to our shared strength and finally We'll take a moment to expand our awareness to include the entire universe The planets stars Galaxies beings In space It's all you now Just stay here for a moment Allowing your sense of self to embrace The whole universe within you Just reminding ourselves in the space We are now infinite Feeling how large and spacious we are Beyond all limitation Beyond any individual form You are the witness of the whole cosmos The observer of it all be still and Relax in this recognition And before we come out of this beautiful Limitless space We'll slowly bring ourselves back to the room By taking one deep breath in and a nice slow Exhale When you're ready We'll wiggle the fingers and toes Give ourselves a nice soft shoulder roll and gently open our eyes Remember to take this deeper level of consciousness and compassion With you throughout your day It can be a saving grace if we experience any pain You're doing amazing warrior Know that you are loved Go on now You've got this
