Hello,
This is Paige with a meditation to help us when we feel overwhelmed by difficult emotions.
So go ahead and take a comfortable seat.
You can sit in a chair or on the floor,
It doesn't matter,
Just see if you can settle and relax.
Take a few deep breaths,
How about three.
Inhale into your chest,
All the way down into your belly.
And then exhale gently but completely.
And as you do,
See if there's a part of your body that you can relax.
Breathe in again,
Nice full inhale.
And exhale,
Release your shoulders,
Let them soften,
Maybe untense your brow or your jaw.
Take another deep breath in.
And exhale,
Release,
Relax,
Let go.
Just let everything soften.
We'll do a quick scan of the body to make sure that we're feeling connected to the earth.
I'm trying to bring some relaxation consciously into the body,
So start by checking in with your feet.
Notice where they're connecting with the ground beneath you.
As you breathe in and out,
Sense your connection with the earth,
A sense of belonging and support,
And relaxation.
See if you can settle in and even let yourself feel held.
Relax your hips,
Let your spine be tall.
Relax your shoulders,
Your arms,
All the way down to your fingertips.
Just let your arms relax.
Relax the muscles in your face,
Your jaw.
Settling.
If you haven't already,
You can go ahead and close your eyes or you can keep your eyes open and let your gaze be soft.
And as much as you can,
Just check in with your body and your breath,
Relaxing,
Releasing as much as you can.
And when we start to get a little quieter,
Our bodies become more still.
Sometimes our minds get a little more active and if you're experiencing a difficult emotion,
Either right now or in general,
Just notice what that feels like.
Notice where you feel it in your body.
And not trying to force or push it away,
But not getting carried away with it either.
See if there's something in the present moment that can bring you a sense of joy or comfort.
Something that's happening right now.
It could be something outside your window,
Something in nature.
Sounds of birds singing or the green of the leaves,
The blue in the sky or the sound of a gentle rain,
Whatever it is.
It could be something comforting like a cup of coffee.
It could be just the knowing that you have someone in your life who loves you and cares about you.
Could be a roof over your head.
Whatever it is,
Just finding something that brings you some sense of comfort.
And know that both the difficult emotion and that sense of comfort are existing together.
And see if you can breathe in,
Feeling that joy or comfort.
And exhale,
Letting go.
Feeling any tension or feelings of being overwhelmed or anxious.
And you can even think of the comfort as an and.
And what I mean is,
You can say to yourself,
Right now I'm feeling overwhelmed and I have a nice cup of coffee with me.
Or I feel anxious and there's a blue sky.
Not trying to deny whatever it is you're feeling.
Not trying to escape from it.
But keeping ourselves from being overcome by the difficult emotion.
And knowing that there's something else,
Something in the present moment,
Bringing us comfort and joy and that the two exist together.
Breathing in,
Feeling that sense of comfort.
And exhaling,
Just relaxing into it.
When you start to feel overwhelmed again,
You can just kind of notice the two happening together.
Relaxing on the and,
Without denying what's really happening.
Let's take a few more breaths,
Just like this.
Breathing in and out.
There are so many ways to be in the present moment.
Realizing if you can connect to a sense of joy,
A sense of connection with something that brings you comfort.
Even though things might be difficult.
Just kind of sharing both experiences.
Knowing that we can shift back and forth freely as both things are in our present experience.
Just gently start to release your focus.
Taking some time to let everything settle.
Just noticing any thoughts or feelings that come up,
Any emotions or sensations.
Remember that this is a practice that you can call upon at any time,
It doesn't have to be in a formal meditation.
When you start to feel something,
Some discomfort in your mind,
You can add an and,
Something that helps bring you joy.
And do that any time.
Even when you're ready,
You can slowly start to open your eyes and return to your day.
Thank you for spending this time together.
