Awareness Of Breath—Trauma-Informed Practice

The practice of breath awareness, while useful, is not always accessible to individuals living with trauma. This meditation is guided from a trauma-informed perspective and is sensitive to the importance of choice in practicing and choosing anchors that are helpful and not triggering. This 40-minute practice, intended for all levels of practice, is rooted in the Vipassana tradition and in the style of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.

Transcript

Welcome to this 40-minute awareness of breath practice.

As you prepare for this practice,

Settling into a comfortable posture,

Sitting on a chair or cushion,

Lying down on a bed or mat,

Becoming comfortable,

Perhaps loosening any tight clothing and moving your glasses,

Settling in with a relaxed yet dignified posture,

Straight but not stiff,

Arms and shoulders soft at the sides of the body,

Hands resting comfortably in the lap or on the legs,

Centered and balanced,

Settling in,

Perhaps moving the body slightly forward or slightly back,

Finding a balanced,

Centered,

Natural posture,

Allowing the head to rest gently atop the neck with the chin slightly tucked,

Finding a position that supports remaining alert and awake.

Now allowing your eyes to close or if you prefer,

Keeping them open with a softened gaze,

Focusing a few feet in front of you,

Not really looking at anything,

Neutral,

Soft.

Allowing your body to continue to move into stillness as you begin to bring your attention inward.

Perhaps setting an intention to simply be,

To let go of what came before and what may follow this practice period.

Bringing attention now onto the sensation of breath,

Doing so by taking a few intentional deep breaths,

Breathing in fully through the nose if possible and exhaling fully through the nose or through the mouth,

Even sighing if you choose.

Breathing in and breathing out,

Breathing in and breathing out.

Again,

Breathing in and breathing out.

Releasing these deep breaths and allowing your breath to settle into its own normal and natural rhythm.

Continuing to invite your full attention to focus on these sensations,

The sensations of breathing wherever you sense it most in the body.

This could be at the nostrils,

The throat,

The chest,

The belly,

The rising and falling of the shoulders or a sensation of breath in the body as a whole.

So allowing your attention to rest on this path of the breath that is most vivid for you just now.

You may experience the air as cool as it enters the nostrils,

Warm as it leaves the nostrils.

Perhaps in the throat area,

Letting the breath pass through the back of the throat,

Down the bronchioles into the lungs,

Supporting the entire body.

You may sense the breath in the chest or the belly,

Feeling the rise and expansion on the in breath,

The receding or falling on the out breath.

For some it can be helpful to rest a hand on your belly,

Allowing,

Focusing or anchoring this attention on the breath as it's sensed in the body.

And simply breathe as you breathe.

If you find yourself becoming focused on thinking about the breath or wanting to control the breath,

Letting the quality of attention be light and easy,

Simply observing and noticing,

Releasing,

Striving to change anything about the breath.

There's no need to visualize,

Count,

Or figure out the breath in any way.

Simply observing this natural process,

Sensations of your body breathing,

Breathing itself without judgment,

Following the ebb and flow.

No place to go,

Nothing else to do.

Just being here in this moment,

Breathing.

Lightly resting your full attention on each in breath as it enters the body,

As it travels into the lungs,

Belly expanding.

And then to noticing the out breath as it begins,

Diaphragm contracting,

Air moving up through the lungs,

The throat,

And out of the nostrils or mouth.

Inviting your full attention to flow with each unique,

Special breath,

As no two breaths are the same.

While in name,

This is a breath practice.

Using breath to anchor a ground attention in the present moment is not intended for all practitioners.

As an offer of self-compassion and choice,

If you find attending to the breath challenging or not your preference,

Inviting compassion,

Curiosity,

And preference to your chosen anchor.

This might be sound,

Keeping the eyes open,

Gazing or anting on a particular visual,

Or sensing the body in contact with the surface,

Or offering yourself a grounding or soothing touch.

And so when you are directed to return to the breath,

Gently returning to your chosen anchor,

Anytime you notice the mind becoming preoccupied,

Distracted,

Or reactive.

Simply practicing,

Attending to this cycle of breath.

Breathing in,

Knowing that you are breathing in,

And breathing out,

Knowing that you are breathing out.

Being with the breath as it's happening,

Moment by moment.

Nothing more.

Breathing in,

Knowing that you are breathing out.

You may have noticed that your mind has wandered.

Thoughts,

Plans,

Problems,

Fantasies,

Memories,

Worries,

The to-do list.

Simply notice mind wandering.

This is natural.

The mind is built to wander.

Each and every time you notice the mind wandering off,

Whether you've been wandering for a second or for 10 minutes,

Simply acknowledging what it was that took you away.

Thought,

A memory,

An emotion,

Sensation,

Sound,

And then gently and kindly bringing your attention back to your present moment anchor.

Breath,

Body,

Sound.

As wandering mind arises,

Noticing what has arisen.

As neutrally as possible,

Without giving yourself a hard time when you notice that it's happened.

Practicing,

Kindly letting go,

And observing these mental,

Physical,

Emotional,

Or environmental events as if they were a leaf floating down a stream or a cloud floating across a clear blue sky.

In your mind,

Place each event that arises on a leaf or a cloud and watch as it floats out of sight.

Anchoring your attention over and over again when the mind wanders.

Breath,

Body,

Sound.

.

Noticing,

Acknowledging mind wandering,

And kindly and gently coming home.

Anchoring your attention each time it wanders.

And if your mind wanders away from the breath a thousand times,

Returning with compassion to the intention that every time,

No matter what,

The mind becomes preoccupied,

We keep coming back.

.

Just breathing.

Coming back again and again.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Where is the mind?

Noticing,

Acknowledging,

Coming back.

Acknowledging whatever comes up.

Including reactions and stories about your practice.

Noticing where the mind went without judging it.

Pushing it away,

Clinging to it,

Wishing it were different.

Simply refocusing your mind,

Guiding your attention back onto your anchor.

Noticing where the mind went without judging it.

As you sit,

You may notice the tension shifting to body sensations.

Eggs or discomfort,

Tension,

An itch or tickle,

Numbness,

Tingling,

Twitching,

Breathlessness,

Or even intense discomfort or pain.

Gently resting your attention on these sensations,

Opening to their presence.

Noticing how they may change from moment to moment,

Coming and going,

Appearing and disappearing,

As they are observed in this way.

Noticing reactivity to these sensations.

And bringing curiosity.

Does the sensation have a shape?

How big is it?

What qualities does it have?

Is it sharp,

Dull,

Pulsing,

Stabbing?

Is it changing over time?

And although not all sensations experienced in the practice may be difficult or painful,

Practice cultivating compassion and patience with the body and with ourselves,

Attending to these difficult sensations.

Bringing attention to discomfort,

Physical or emotional,

It can be helpful to hold it gently,

To offer it space in the body.

Noting the sensation,

Noticing it in its fullness,

Bringing curiosity.

Noting your experience of it as it is in this moment,

The actual physical sensations in and around the discomfort,

Tension,

Ease,

Tightness,

Throbbing,

Pulling,

Tingling,

Staying momentarily with each sensation,

Experiencing them as pure sensation,

Free of perceptions and stories about what these sensations mean to the body.

Bringing full attention to these sensations,

It can be helpful to offer several intentional and directed breaths to this area of discomfort,

Allowing spaciousness to arise around the discomfort or pain,

Softening and offering compassion directly,

Withholding judgment and reactivity.

And as you're ready,

Returning to your anchor again and again.

And as discomfort arises,

Calling for attention,

Continuing to notice,

Offering kind,

Gentle and spacious attention.

If these sensations become too intense or the pain or discomfort is severe enough to cause undue concern in the mind,

Bring intentionality,

Choosing to adjust your posture or stop the practice altogether,

Allowing yourself to shift and in doing so,

Becoming aware of the desire to shift,

Shifting mindfully and finally noticing what is present in the body once the shift has been made.

You may also notice emotions arising,

Happiness,

Peace,

Contentment,

Or a sense of frustration,

Boredom,

Confusion,

Impatience,

Anxiety,

Sadness.

Exploring the possibility of allowing your emotional experience to be what it is,

Simply observing with curiosity,

Stepping back,

Observing the moment-to-moment experience,

The feeling arising in the body,

How it may shift,

Change or travel.

And when you're ready,

Once again anchoring your attention and coming back to this present moment.

This is a time to shift from our normal mode of doing and moving,

Reacting and fixing,

To one of simply being with,

Being attentive to what is happening with our own minds and bodies right here,

Right now.

From time to time you may notice sounds,

The direct sound of this recording,

Sounds of traffic or outdoors,

Sounds of movement,

Even sounds from within your own body.

Noticing when your attention is drawn to sound,

Staying with it long enough to notice the quality of the sound,

Sound as vibration,

Tone,

Volume or intensity.

Aware of the mind's reactivity to judge or label sound,

Traffic,

Voices,

Music,

As pleasant or unpleasant,

Constant or quick.

Coming closer to the sound as it hits your eardrum,

Noting the quality,

Pitch or rhythm,

And separating it out from the actual label we may find the mind reserving for this sound.

Noticing if the mind has jumped to perceiving and once again returning your attention back,

Anchoring to this present moment.

You may also notice this tendency to have an opinion about things,

Judgment of liking the way things are going right now,

Or not liking,

Finding them uncomfortable.

Noticing if an opinion has risen,

Liking this,

Not liking this,

Noticing wanting things to be different than they are,

And yet not having to do anything about it,

Resting in stillness,

Present moment.

Wherever the mind goes,

Thoughts of liking or disliking,

Sensations,

Perceptions,

Sound,

Emotions of joy or sadness,

Frustration or anticipation,

Just noticing these raw experiences and bringing awareness back onto the sensation of breath,

Anchoring.

Resting in this moment,

Fully awake and aware.

You come to the end of this meditation practice,

Reminding yourself that you spent this time intentionally aware of your moment-to-moment experience,

Nourishing and strengthening your ability to be with whatever comes your way,

Building this capacity for opening to the senses,

Opening to the present moment,

Bringing curiosity about whatever presents itself without judgment.

And so perhaps offering yourself gratitude for making and taking the time to practice,

Knowing that doing so is an act of self-compassion and love.

Slowly allowing your attention now to expand,

Opening to an awareness,

The sense of your entire body,

Beyond your body to the room,

The space that you are in.

And as you're ready,

Opening your eyes and coming back with the knowledge that the breath,

Your anchor,

Is always available to you to bring you back to the present moment.

And you may use this practice throughout your day to further cultivate and strengthen attention to this present moment.

Reviews

Thank you! I really enjoyed your clear and gentle guidance.

a survivor my self, thank you

Thank you for a wonderful meditation. Lots of silence and enough guidance. I'd never thought to choose a different anchor. Something I will try again as it really helped me.

really good for people with trauma (also small ones ;))