Welcome,
Friends.
This is Padma Gordhan,
And I want to offer you a guided meditation to support you in reconnecting with your body when your nervous system feels overwhelmed,
Stuck,
Or unpredictable.
This practice is designed to gently signal safety to a system that may have forgotten what safety feels like.
We'll be using grounding breath and sensory awareness to help restore balance in your whole body,
Mind,
And being.
So let's begin.
By taking some breaths.
Take some breaths.
And just notice.
However you got here.
Whether you feel wired,
Restless,
Maybe you're numb or frozen,
Or maybe you're swinging back and forth between the two,
You can trust you're in the right place.
This practice is not about forcing yourself to feel any particular way.
It's about meeting yourself,
Meeting your nervous system,
Where it is,
And gently reminding it that regulation is possible.
So just breathing and letting that in.
And let your body rest in whatever way is comfortable,
Sitting,
Lying down,
Just resting,
Listening to your body.
So if you can,
I invite you to let your feet touch the ground.
If you're lying down,
Feel the whole length of your body being supported by the surface beneath you.
I like to start with something very simple.
We're going to orient to the room.
So if your eyes are open.
Let them move slowly,
Very slowly.
Not scanning for danger,
Just let them move slowly and look at one object near you.
Notice its color or shape.
And texture.
Now.
Look at another object.
Take it in.
And then slowly,
A third.
And this kind of slow,
Deliberate noticing tells your nervous system something important.
I'm here.
I can see my environment.
There is no immediate threat.
And if you have your eyes closed.
You can do this with touch instead.
Feel the fabric of your clothing.
Run your fingers over the texture.
Notice how the material feels smooth,
Rough,
Warm,
Cool.
Now touch the surface that you're sitting or lying on.
Feel its firmness or softness.
And this is orienting through touch,
Through body awareness.
And now.
Let's come to the breath.
I'm going to ask you to breathe in a specific way.
Not a big deep breath,
Just a small one,
Just a little sip of air in through the nose.
And then a soft,
Extended exhale through the mouth.
Let the exhale be about twice as long as the inhale.
This ratio activates your vagus nerve.
Which is the main highway,
The main connection.
Between brain and body,
And it tells your system.
To shift toward rest.
So take a sip of air in and then a long,
Soft exhale out.
Again,
Small inhale.
Extended exhale.
Please don't force your breath to be deeper than it wants to be.
If your system is activated or triggered,
Deep breaths can actually feel threatening.
And small,
Soft breaths are safer.
So now,
Place one hand on your chest.
And the other on your belly.
Feel the subtle movement of your breath under your palms.
You're touching yourself with gentleness.
You're telling your body through this contact.
That you are here,
You are present,
You are kind.
Just notice your hands resting gently on your body,
The kindness,
The care.
The present.
Nervous system dysregulation often comes from a body that's been in survival mode for too long.
Your system was designed to spike into action for short emergencies and then return to baseline.
But when the emergencies don't stop,
Or when your system learned early in life that the world wasn't safe.
The return to baseline gets disrupted and you get stuck in high alert or you collapse into shutdown.
Or you alternate between the two.
This meditation is a practice of return.
It doesn't fix everything,
It is a practice.
And each time you do it,
You're creating a pathway back to baseline,
Making that path a little easier to travel down next time.
So let's do a gentle body scan.
Start at your feet.
Just observing,
No judgment,
Just noticing.
Are your feet warm or cold,
Tingly or numb?
Can you feel each toe?
And now,
Move to your lower legs,
Simply noticing calves and shins.
Any tension,
Tingling,
Pressure.
And then move to your knees and thighs.
And then the hips.
Pause at your hips for a moment.
The pelvis often holds a great deal of tension and survival energy.
See if you can allow the muscles there to soften even slightly.
Just take a breath and allow that gentle softening.
And then continue upward.
To the belly.
The ribs and chest.
And notice the breath still moving.
Upper back,
Lower back.
Arms,
Hands,
Neck,
Face,
All the way to the top of the head.
Breathing and noticing.
You have just traveled through your entire body with awareness.
Simply noticing,
Not fixing or diagnosing,
Just simply being present.
To the home you live in.
Now.
Imagine the outline of your body glowing softly.
With a calm,
Steady,
Warm light.
The edges of you are defined and clear.
And inside that outline,
Your organs,
Blood,
Bones,
All naturally doing their work.
This body is your territory and you are reclaiming it.
You are reclaiming it,
Not through control.
You are reclaiming it through presence.
Not fight you.
To repeat to yourself,
My nervous system is learning to feel safe.
I can support it by being gentle with myself.
Regulation is the practice.
I am practicing.
Just breathing.
And feeling And now I invite you to take five more breaths at your own pace and your own time.
And with each one.
Feel yourself arriving more fully into the present moment.
Feeling how your nervous system is learning to feel safe,
You're being gentle with yourself,
You're practicing self-regulation in this moment.
Not in the past where the dysregulation may have begun.
And you're not moving into the future where you worry it will never end,
You're simply here,
Just here,
Just now.
Just this breath.
Just this once.
And then as you're ready very very gently very slowly invite you to come back.
Opening your eyes,
Fluttering your lids.
Wiggling the fingers and toes,
Maybe rolling your neck gently,
Slowly.
You are re-entering the world as someone who has shown up for themselves.
Someone who is present in a new way.
And this,
My friends,
Is the most important step in healing.
I invite you to do this practice again and again.
The subconscious mind learns through repetition.
And learning new things,
Learning self-regulation,
Takes practice.
Learning to feel safe in the world takes practice.
Thank you so much for being here today.
Many blessings on your healing journey.
Many blessings.
