Body Scan For Relief Of Tension

The Body Scan Meditation is an invitation to visualize areas and layers in the body that may be holding tension or areas of the brain holding onto particular emotions. This guided meditation connects the mind and body and may lead to the discovery and release of unknown bodily tension, and awareness of emotions or sensations that are present. The Body Scan is used across different schools of Mindfulness and yoga, across cultures that engage in Spiritual and Religious thought, and in some schools of Psychology ( Dialectical behavior therapy).

Transcript

Welcome to Yoga with Rashida.

Today we will be doing a body scan.

The body scan is a simple meditation to combine awareness of the sensations in the body and breath.

This body scan will be for five minutes but you can do the body scan for however long you like.

We begin in this body scan by lying down on our back,

Comfortable and in a place where we will not be disturbed.

Take a few moments to become aware of the physical sensations in your body as you lie down.

Move your attention towards your breath and feel the stomach expanding on every inhalation and releasing on every exhalation.

Guide your attention to the top of your head and explore sensations in this part of the body.

Expand the attention to the back of the head,

The sides of the head,

The scalp,

The forehead,

The temples,

The eyes and the face.

Let all the muscles of the face relax and fall into rest.

Move down to the neck,

The shoulders,

The arms into the wrists,

The hands and the tips of the fingers.

Lift your shoulders up and down in your back all the way down to the buttocks and the pelvis.

Take a moment to notice any tension in the neck,

The shoulders,

The arms and the wrists.

Release any tension in the hands and the tips of the fingers and feel the shoulders melt down into the tops of your ribs and your back.

Take your focus and attention now to the front of the torso,

The abdomen and notice the movements of the torso and the abdomen as you inhale.

As you exhale,

Let the body sink into whatever you're lying on.

Move your attention and breath down into the thighs,

Down the legs to the ankles,

The feet and each of the toes.

Spread your attention back to the body as a whole,

Restful and relaxed.

Notice if you have any areas of tension throughout the body and on your inhalation and exhalation,

Soften the muscles and release any tension you may be holding on to.

Visualize the body as a whole,

Feeling restful and relaxed.

Slowly invite movement into the fingers and toes.

Stretch the arms above the head and give the body a good stretch.

Gently roll over onto your side and come back up into a seated position.

And when you're ready,

You can return to your daily activities with a sense of awareness and energy.

Just for your own information,

The body scan has been known to boost the immune system.

And studies have shown that the mindfulness practice of the body scan can help to relieve symptoms of chronic fatigue,

Speech stuttering and rheumatoid arthritis.

In addition,

It can also help in lowering blood pressure and improve memory and creativity.

So I hope you found the body scan practice beneficial and thank you for joining me.