Hello and welcome.
And if you found your way here.
.
.
Your nervous system is probably running ahead of you right now.
The mind racing.
Maybe your chest feels tight.
On your throat.
Or a knot in your stomach.
Maybe a sense that something is about to happen.
Even if you can't name what it is.
You don't have to name it yet.
You don't have to fix it.
You only have to take a few minutes.
And be present.
Find a place where you can sit or stand or even keep walking if walking is what you need right now.
And you are safe enough in this moment.
To take a breath.
Take a deep breath in.
And breathe out.
And let's slow the breath first.
The body listens to the breath before it listens to anything else.
Breathe in slowly through your nose.
Just do a count that feels possible.
And breathe out through your mouth.
Extending it longer than your inhale.
And again breathe in slowly.
And breathe out longer.
And one more time,
Breathe in.
Hold it for a moment.
And breathe out all the way.
If the breath feels short or shallow right now,
That's fine.
The body is just doing what it does when it senses a threat.
You're not trying to fight the body.
We are showing it slowly that we are not in danger.
And now.
.
.
While the breath continues.
Try and establish where in the body does this anxiety live right now.
Don't analyze,
Don't overthink.
Just notice.
Whatever comes to mind.
Anxiety is rarely just in the head.
It lands somewhere physical.
The chest,
The shoulders,
The stomach.
Your hands or your jaw.
And wherever it is,
Just send your attention there.
Not trying to make it leave.
Just to acknowledge that you see it.
And that part of you has been holding something.
It deserves to be noticed.
Take a deep breath in and breathe into that place.
And exhale.
The second question.
Is this fear about something happening right now?
Or is it about something that might happen?
Again,
Just try and notice whatever comes to mind.
Most anxiety lives in the future.
It is rehearsing for a moment that might never arrive.
Sometimes that rehearsal can be useful.
But most of the time it is the body running fire drills for fires that may never come.
If the thing that you're afraid of is happening right now,
This moment.
Then it is real and we will meet it.
But if it is something that might happen later.
Just take notice of that as well.
Notice that you are spending real energy.
On a future moment.
And breathe in.
And breathe out.
Now one more question before we move forward.
What story are you telling yourself about this?
Anxiety is really just the situation.
It is the situation plus a story about the situation.
The story might be,
This is going badly.
They will be disappointed in me.
I won't be able to handle it.
Something terrible is coming.
And whatever the story is.
See if you can hear it.
As a story.
Not as a fact.
Not as a prediction,
Just a story that your mind is telling because it is trying,
In its own way,
To keep you safe.
And breathe in.
And breathe out.
Now with the body a little calmer.
And the mind a little clearer.
The action question.
What is one small thing today?
That is actually within your control.
Not the whole problem.
Not the long-term outcome.
One small thing.
A glass of water.
A short walk around the block.
A message that you can send.
A simple task that you can finish in 5 minutes.
Just one small thing.
Anxiety often shrinks when the body does something concrete.
However small that action may be.
Action is the antidote.
That thinking cannot provide.
Pick that one small thing.
And that is what you're going to do when this meditation ends.
Breathe in.
And breathe out.
And breathe in.
And breathe out.
And take one more deep breath in all the way to the top.
Filling your lungs.
And hold it.
And exhale,
Slowly and fully releasing all of the air in your lungs.
And when anxiety comes again.
And it will,
It is a natural thing.
And come back to this practice.
Breath.
Body.
Time,
Story and action.
That is the practice.
That is what brings you back to yourself in moments like these.
And you're not broken for feeling this way.
You're not behind for feeling this way.
You are a body with a nervous system doing what bodies and nervous systems do.
And take one more deep breath in.
And breathe out.
Whenever you're ready.
Just become aware of your surroundings.
And gently open your eyes.
Thank you so much for being here.
I hope you have an amazing day.
Take care.
