Welcome to the body scan.
Please find a comfortable place where you will be undisturbed for the duration of the practice.
The body scan is best performed lying flat on your back,
On the floor,
On a bed or on a couch.
But the body scan can also be performed sitting in a chair,
As long as you are comfortable and able to relax.
You may like to cover yourself with a light blanket and place a slim support beneath your head.
The more comfortable you are,
The better you will be able to relax.
It is best to breathe through your nose during the practice,
Unless instructed otherwise.
Again,
This will increase your ability to relax.
So,
Taking your body scan position,
Please make any final adjustments to make sure you will be comfortable for the duration of the practice.
Please know that you can stop or shift position at any time,
But it's best to attempt to remain still and stay with the whole practice if you can.
Let's begin.
Please close your eyes.
You can use an eye pillow if you wish.
Now you are comfortable,
Become very still and bring your awareness to the body lying on the support beneath you.
The body's contact with the support.
Briefly scan your back body,
Bringing your attention to all of the points that come into contact with the support beneath you.
Notice the stillness in your body.
Now become aware of the breath moving in and out of the body.
Notice its flow,
The constant movement of the breath in the body.
The breath is moving and yet the body is very still.
Bring your awareness to the quality of your breath.
Is it smooth or ragged?
Deep or shallow?
Fast or slow?
And where do you feel at most in your body?
In the nose?
The throat?
The chest or the belly?
There is no need to make judgements about the quality of your breath.
Simply feel the sensations.
Take a long,
Slow in breath through the nose.
Hold it for a moment and release through the mouth,
Allowing the whole body to sink deeper into the support beneath you.
Returning now to the natural rhythm of your breath.
Release the focus on your breath altogether.
Now we will take a journey around the body.
Please bring your attention to each body part in turn as I name it,
Noticing the sensations there.
Again,
There is no need to label,
Analyse or make any judgements about the sensations.
Just be present with whatever is there.
Beginning with the toes.
Bring your awareness to all ten of your toes.
What can you feel there?
Maybe heat,
Coolness,
Itching,
Tingling or even complete numbness.
There are no right or wrong sensations.
Simply be with whatever you encounter there,
Meeting all bodily parts and sensations with equanimity.
We will continue this exploration as we move up and through the body.
Now bringing the light of your awareness to the soles of your feet.
The tops of your feet.
The ankles.
The lower legs.
Both the shins and the calves of the lower legs.
The knees.
The kneecaps,
Joints and the backs of the knees.
Bringing your awareness now to the thighs.
The fronts,
Backs and sides of the thighs.
Deep into the centre of the thighs.
The hips and pelvis.
All around this area from front to back.
The hips and pelvis.
Now feel the buttocks pressing into the support beneath you.
Feel the weight of your body through the buttocks pressing into the support beneath you.
Moving up to the lower back and the waist.
All the way around the waist,
Front to back.
And the belly.
What can you feel there?
Internally?
Externally?
Moving up to the upper back and chest.
Feel the movement and sensations of the upper back and chest.
Now shifting the awareness completely to the very tips of the fingers.
The tips of the fingers.
Now moving on up to the hands and wrists.
Both the backs and the palms of the hands and all around the wrists and deep into the joints.
The lower arms and the elbows.
Again the surface of the elbows and deep into the joints.
And on up to the upper arms.
Feel the sensations in the upper arms.
Now the shoulders.
The joints of the shoulders.
Around the back to the shoulder blades.
And the front and the collarbones.
Now moving up to the neck.
The surface of the neck,
The muscles and deep into the centre of the throat.
All the sensations of the neck and throat.
Continuing to the jaw.
Including the teeth,
The tongue and whole inside of the mouth as well as the outside line of the jaw.
Now just be with the sensations of the face.
From the chin to the cheekbones,
Eye sockets and forehead.
Feel all of the resting sensations of the face.
And moving to the temples now and the sides of the head and ears.
And finally the very top of the head.
Can you feel the sensations at the very top of your head?
Feel the whole head and face together now.
The whole head and face.
Feel the whole body together.
Become aware of all of the sensations in the body all together now.
Become aware of all of the sensations in the body all together.
Cast your awareness like a net across the whole surface of the body.
Back,
Front,
Sides,
In between the toes and the fingers.
The whole surface of the body.
What messages is your skin sending you?
You may notice temperature,
Fabric lying against your body,
The sensation of the air surrounding you.
There is no need to name the sensations,
Just experience them.
See what you find there.
You have been lying still for some time now,
Yet here you are bathing in the whole universe of sensations that are present at every moment of our lives in these bodies.
Now please bring your attention back to the breath alone.
Moving in and out of the body at the nostrils,
Throat,
Chest and belly.
The constant massage of the breath.
Steady like the eternal rolling of the sea.
Take a long slow in breath through the nose.
Hold it for a moment and release through the mouth,
Allowing the whole body to sink deeper into the support beneath you.
Finally,
Spread your awareness once again to the contact of your body on the support beneath you.
Feel the body's weight against the support.
The force of gravity coming up to meet you.
Here and now,
Solid and present.
Now begin breathing a little more deeply and deliberately to begin gently waking up the body.
You may like to wiggle your toes and fingers,
Roll your head from side to side,
Stretch and yawn.
Ask your body what it needs now.
When you are quite ready,
Gently flutter your eyes open and sit for a moment,
Feeling the effects of your practice.
If you've found the body scan helpful,
You can revisit the practice at any time you need to rest or reconnect,
And as often as you wish.
The body scan is a wonderful way to calm down from the busyness of our minds and reconnect with our bodies.
It is simple,
Free and accessible to us at any time we wish.
Know that visiting with your body and the sensations there in this way helps to calm the mind and the nervous system,
Bringing us back to ourselves in the most natural and fundamental way,
In a world full of demands and distractions.
A regular body scan practice has been proven to have a beneficial cumulative effect on the body,
Mind and emotions.
If you have enjoyed this practice,
Please consider leaving a review or comment.
All feedback is welcomed and appreciated.
Now,
Please go well and enjoy the rest of your day.
