Hello,
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.
Congratulations,
You've showed up,
And that's the hardest part.
It only gets more relaxing from here.
This meditation is on the power of our thoughts in influencing our endometriosis pain,
And how we can rise above them.
It'll be a nice one to fall asleep to as well,
If you like.
Whenever you're ready,
I invite you to close your eyes,
Or keep an unfocused gaze in front of you,
Whichever you prefer.
Sitting up straight,
Or lying down.
Shoulders,
Belly,
And full body,
Slowly relaxing.
We'll begin by taking three deep breaths.
In through the nose,
And out through the mouth.
Relaxing your body with every out breath.
Do this now at your own pace,
And let the rest of the world melt away,
While you arrive here in the stillness.
Our thoughts can often become our greatest enemy in battling endometriosis pain.
We know that chronic pain rewires our brain to be hyper-alert and hyper-vigilant to pain,
Often fostering negative and sometimes dark thoughts that follow.
Why is this happening?
Why do I deserve this?
Will it ever get better?
Just to name a few.
These thoughts,
While completely natural given the absolute agony we can endure,
Inadvertently worsen our pain by releasing chemicals in the body,
As well as reinforcing the neural pathways responsible for chronic pain.
This isn't our fault.
It's just our brain thinking it's helping us,
But failing quite miserably.
The good news is that our brains possess remarkable powers like neuroplasticity,
Allowing us to rewire these thought patterns and actually reduce our brain's pain responsiveness,
Giving us the good feels instead of the bad.
This takes practice,
But we can feel safe knowing even a little bit goes a long way.
So let's start rewiring our brain,
Shall we?
As you sit or lie here,
I first want you to just notice the natural rhythm of your inhale and exhale.
Feel the gentle rise and fall of your chest and abdomen.
And as we take each breath,
We'll invite a sense of calmness and relaxation into our being.
A beautiful bright white light circling our belly,
Absorbing any sensations,
Releasing all tension.
As we breathe deeply into our pain and gently try to let it go.
Hopefully feeling more at ease,
We'll begin by imagining ourselves in a peaceful place.
Sitting on a solid rock wall behind a beautiful waterfall.
Just watching the water rushing in front of us.
Feeling the cool mist gently kissing your skin.
The sound of water cascading down,
Creating a soothing symphony of nature.
You are safe and secure on this rock,
Fully present in this moment.
As you sit behind the waterfall,
Notice the thoughts in your mind.
Imagine these thoughts as the water flowing in front of you.
A constant stream of your mind's activity.
Observe the thoughts without judgment,
Just as you observe the water flowing effortlessly.
You are not the waterfall,
You are the observer on the rock.
We'll just begin to label these thoughts,
So as a thought arises,
Give it a simple label.
So if you notice yourself worrying,
Silently say to yourself,
Worry.
Or if you're planning,
Label it as planning.
And if you're caught up in thoughts,
Just acknowledge them by saying,
Thinking.
Allow the labels to come and go,
Like the flow of water.
With each label,
Recognize that you are not your thoughts.
You are the awareness behind them,
Sitting firmly on the rock.
As you observe your thoughts,
See them losing power over you.
You are the calm presence amidst the constant flow.
If you're lost in thought,
That's okay.
Just return back to your place on the rock,
Witnessing the thoughts.
Labeling them as thinking,
Planning,
Or worrying.
And before we finish,
Let's just take a few moments to simply be in the space of awareness.
Witnessing sunlight peeking through the water,
While allowing the waterfall of thoughts to continue flowing,
But detaching yourself from them.
Embracing the stillness and light within you.
Feeling the peace that comes from being the silent observer.
And we'll just slowly come down from the rock,
Careful not to slip,
And come back to the room by taking in two deep belly breaths.
When you're ready,
Just a deep belly breath in through the nose,
An extra quick inhale,
And exhale.
Last time,
Deep belly breath in through the nose,
An extra quick inhale,
And exhale.
We'll wiggle the fingers and toes,
Give ourselves a nice shoulder roll,
And slowly open your eyes.
Remember that it's easy and very natural for endo-warriors to feel like we're drowning from the constant flow of our thoughts and worries.
But when you do,
Just pull yourself back onto the rock and watch them flow without fear.
Seeing the light peek through.
Because all is well,
And there's nothing you can't handle.
Go on,
Warrior.
You've got this.
