If today has left you disappointed,
Frustrated or hard on yourself,
This is a moment to relax,
Quieten your mind and find peace.
Let yourself sit or lie down comfortably.
Feel the contact of your chair or bed all along your body.
Let it carry your full weight.
Relax your hands.
Soften your jaw.
Let your shoulders drop.
Take a slow breath in through the nose and a longer breath out through the mouth.
Breathing in and breathing out.
One more time.
Breathing in and letting the breath go.
Now let your breath return to its natural rhythm.
Notice that for this moment there is nowhere else you need to be.
Nothing you need to solve right now.
Nothing you need to fix before you're allowed to rest and recover from what the day brought.
If the day is still circling in your mind,
That is alright.
A disappointing day can linger in your mind like a dark thundercloud.
Scan your body for where the painful emotions are sitting and observe their shape and sensation.
Where in the body are the painful emotions manifesting?
Is it your throat,
Behind your eyes,
Your temples?
Is there a tension in your forehead,
Perhaps your belly?
A disappointing day can stay in the body for some time.
It can stay in the mind.
It can make it hard to let the day end.
So begin simply by noticing what is happening in your body.
Perhaps there is numbness or tension or self-doubt.
Perhaps there is just a tired,
Heavy feeling.
You don't need to push any of it away.
You don't need to pretend that the day didn't affect you.
Just notice what is here and breathe.
Take another slow breath in and a longer breath out.
Now let your out-breath become slightly longer than your in-breath.
Breathing in and breathing out slowly.
Breathing in and let the longer exhale help your body calm down.
Let the muscles around your eyes soften.
Unclench your jaw.
Soften your throat.
Let your chest ease.
Let your belly release.
Let your hands rest.
If you notice that your body still feels braced against the impact of the day that you had,
Let that be noticed too.
A difficult day can leave your whole system on alert.
Now let's bring a little kindness towards yourself.
The day wasn't ideal,
Not how you planned or hoped for.
This is a painful human moment and we all experience it.
You might quietly say to yourself,
This was a tough day.
I'm disappointed and I can still be kind to myself.
Take a slow breath in and a slow breath out.
If it helps,
Place a hand on your chest or over your belly,
Which is a small gesture of kindness towards yourself.
A small reminder that you are suffering right now.
Now see if you can recognize this too.
Many people know this feeling.
Many people have ended a work day feeling like they were not at their best.
Many people have replayed conversations,
Missed opportunities,
Awkward moments or things left undone.
You are not alone in this.
There are hundreds if not thousands of people sharing this moment with you.
Let that thought soften the loneliness of disappointment.
Take another breath in and breathe out slowly.
Now notice where the day is still sitting in your body.
Bring your attention there very gently.
Make contact with it.
Breathe into that place.
And breathe out from that place.
Again,
Breathing in and sighing your breath out.
One more time.
See if there's even just a little more softness,
Relaxation and calm in that part of your body.
Now say this to yourself.
Today is over.
I don't need to carry it anymore.
I can learn from this day without punishing myself for it.
I can let my evening begin with a clear heart.
Take a slow breath in and sigh your breath out.
You don't need to decide tonight what everything meant.
You don't need to solve your whole working life before bed.
You don't need to make a case against yourself.
The day may not have gone as you had hoped,
But this is but one day in a whole lifetime.
Let yourself loosen your grip a little on the replay,
On your inner criticism and on the demand to have handled everything perfectly just for now.
Let the day be finished.
Feel the support underneath your body once again.
Feel the weight of your body fully relaxed and released into what is holding it.
Feel the rhythm of your breathing.
And before we end,
Say quietly to yourself,
I can choose to let this day end right here.
Take one final breath in and a sigh out.
And when you are ready,
Slowly open your eyes and let the rest of the evening begin right here,
Right now.
