For Days When You Can Barely Deal

Just like the title says, this practice is done lying down and gives you full permission to have a messy mind and even resistance to the practice. Begins with breathwork to soothe the nervous system, takes you into progressive relaxation and embodiment, ends with a contemplation designed to get you back on track.

Transcript

Please begin by lying down in our formal supine meditation posture.

Lying flat on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor,

Perhaps the knees falling in toward one another,

The feet spread out a little bit to accommodate that,

Or the legs can be parallel,

Feet just in front of the sits bones in front of the glutes.

Let the elbows bend and the hands can come to rest at the low belly beneath the navel,

Perhaps just on the sides of the belly.

And just begin taking deep breaths and send those deep breaths all the way down to where your hands are placed at the low belly,

Breathing in through the nose and breathing out through the nose or the mouth.

And whatever else is going on right now,

It doesn't matter,

Just let it be that way.

So just breathing in deep and letting the belly expand,

Let it stick out,

Big third trimester belly breaths,

And then let the belly relax as you exhale naturally.

Okay,

So for the next five minutes this is all you've got to do,

And just give yourself permission to be scattered,

To be anxious,

To be worried,

To be exhausted,

Whatever is going on for you.

It doesn't matter as long as you keep these belly breaths up,

This is going to stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system and shift your awareness.

And then I'll try and back in in about four minutes here,

So please keep breathing.

It takes about three minutes for this breathing pattern to work,

So please keep going,

Don't be lazy.

Begin to notice how your inhales are a bit energizing,

They bring the body to life,

And the energy of the exhale is one of relaxation and letting go and slowing down.

So we're going to use that exhale,

The energy of that exhale,

By bringing your attention to your feet,

And as you exhale just imagine they're relaxing,

Releasing any tension down into the ground below.

And then the lower legs,

The calves,

The shins,

The knees,

This next exhale is washing over the legs,

Releasing tension and softening.

And then the thighs and the pelvis and the glutes,

These are all responding to your exhale,

And you can imagine just this enormous release of pent-up energy down into the flow of gravity,

Into the ground below.

Whether it happens or not doesn't matter,

Just imagine it's happening.

The brain will eventually get it.

Okay and do this for the belly as well,

And the organs and the low back and the tailbone.

The pelvis releases further as the belly relaxes,

Notice that.

And then feeling the chest and the heart and the back of the heart and the shoulder blades and the ribs.

And with every exhale,

Imagining release and softening,

Like a wave of relaxation just coming over the upper torso.

Okay and whatever the mind is doing is just fine,

You cannot get this wrong,

You literally cannot get this wrong,

Just keep feeling into the exhale.

And then the arms and the elbows and the forearms and the bright tingly palms,

All relaxing on the exhale.

And then come to the back of the head and the interior of the head and the brain and the eyes and the jaw and the cheeks and the brow.

This is where you'll feel the biggest shift as you exhale,

The face just losing its shape entirely.

Relax,

Relax,

Let go,

Let go.

Okay.

You can let go of the deep breaths now,

Letting the breath return to a semi-natural pace,

Just breathing through the nose and simply be in your body as you breathe in,

You feel the body as you breathe out,

A little more relaxation,

A little more ease.

But feel what's shifted.

Maybe it's even possible to enjoy what has shifted.

And we'll close with a brief contemplation here.

It's a contemplation about some things that are directly observable in your experience right now.

The first of which is that you are completely safe,

That there are no threats in your immediate environment whatsoever,

That everything is basically okay.

In this moment things are basically okay and you are safe.

So can you just take in at least that thought,

If not a feeling of safety,

A feeling of okayness?

Second of all,

In practicing today you have invested your resources in something that is moving your life in a positive direction.

I'm yet to hear anyone regret time and energy they've put into their meditation practice.

That even when things are hard we are always moving in a direction of feeling better,

Of opening up,

Of becoming more authentically present in our lives with this practice.

And you've taken time to do that today,

So let yourself feel really good about that.

And last,

No matter what this is always a practice of coming home to ourselves.

Of connecting and finding a sense of belonging within ourselves.

So often in life we feel divided against ourselves and this is a place where we resolve that sense of disconnection.

We are here to come home to our hearts and to make a home of our lives.

Many people have a house for a life but not a home.

But you've chosen differently today.

You've moved in the direction of belonging to yourself and making a home of your life.

So celebrate that and may you carry this intention of making a home of your life with you into your day today.

Feel that,

Breathe it in.

Thank you so much for joining me.

I'm so glad you practiced today and I'll see you next time.

Reviews

I'm grateful for having time spent with Ralph through meditation and his online workshops. He will be missed. 💜💫

Lovely short and powerful meditation. Coming home to yourself, wow. Just want I needed to reset and get ready for my day.

I have used this track twice now. The first time I was feeling very distressed, and this track helped me let go of my emotional wall and start to feel at peace. The second time, just there, I was feeling anxious and quite inward. I now again am feeling like I can start to relax and make the rest of the day my own and feel at peace with myself.
I'm quite new to guided meditation, my 9th day today, and most of this kind of stuff, I really enjoyed the style, language used and the breath work.

Ralph is a gifted meditation teacher and healer. I always find his guidance beneficial.

Wonderful, very calming. Just what I needed this morning, thank you 🙏

This was suggested in our group and I’m glad they did. I especially loved the contemplation at the end. 🙏🏼❤️

I am amazed how effective this practice was! I feel energized and grateful!

Spot on. Blessings. I need this EVERY DAY. 🙏 Thank you soooi much!

This really helped shift my emotions out of a state of near panic to manageable anxiety. I’ll take manageable any day. Thank you.

Thank you. I needed that. Feel the release and much calmer.

Thank you for your calm skill and caring.
I needed this.

I like that I can come home within. That it's a safe place. Thank you 😊

Really really does what it says, i.e. had a deeply calming effect even in a crisis when you feel overwhelmed. What a relief, thank you so, so much!

One of the very few male voices that I find soothing. Thank you Ralph.

Exactly right for how I was feeling. Ralph’s gentle kind and understanding presence gave me a moment of peace. I’m so grateful.

Felt much better after this meditation- Ralph is an excellent teacher!

Thank you, this was very helpful. I didn't realize before the meditation how exhausted I was from a trigger that had begun to snowball. Its interesting how the body uses all resources to stay safe. Grateful for your teachings.

Familiar with parts work but I’m dealing with a triple whammy of traumas out of my control. I SO needed a new voice for meditation. My BP dropped after two meditations. Thank you!

Just a few simple reminders were enough to get me back into my body so that jI could sleep the whole night through! First time in a long time! Thank you so much!

Thank you so much for this comforting and grounding breathing practice. A wonderful calm start to the day 🙏💛