Hello,
My name is Sam and welcome to this guided meditation for depression.
You've taken an enormous first step by pressing play on this recording and I'm thankful you're here.
There's nothing to be fearful of with this meditation.
It's really easy to do and requires no work or judgement on your part.
All you need to focus on is relaxing.
Let's start by finding the best position for you to be in right now.
It's not important whether you're sitting or lying down.
It's completely up to you,
Whatever feels right.
Allow yourself to settle down.
Let your shoulders relax back and down away from the ears so that you feel a little bit more ease around your neck.
Relax your jaw so that your teeth fall slightly apart.
If you feel comfortable doing so,
Close your eyes.
Let go of any hold you have in your legs and find softness in your feet.
Just take a mental scan of your body and if you encounter any particularly tense areas,
See if you can soften them a little bit more.
As the body relaxes,
Bring a gentle awareness to your breathing and start to tune into the rhythm of your breath.
Our breath is a steady constant in our lives and sometimes we barely even notice it happening.
Take a few moments to feel the air moving in and out of the body very softly.
You might even hear the soothing whisper of its movement.
As you rest in your comfortable position,
Can you identify one thing that feels pleasant right now?
Maybe you have a soft pillow under your head or maybe you can feel a cool breeze on your skin.
Maybe you can hear the birds singing in the distance.
Whatever it is,
No matter how big or small,
Try and find just one thing that is pleasing to your senses and focus on that.
And ask yourself,
What makes it pleasing?
Is it the texture?
The feel?
The sound?
The smell?
The comfort?
What about it makes you feel good specifically?
Hold on to that pleasing sensation for a few moments.
Now,
If you'd like to,
Place one hand over your belly button and one hand over your heart.
If that's not relaxing or comfortable for you,
Simply place your hands back where they were.
Now,
If you're feeling a little bit more relaxed,
You can feel the air coming in and out of your hands.
With your next in breath,
Send the breath to the hand that is on the belly and count to three.
You might feel the belly rise as you do this.
When you breathe out,
Send the breath into the hand above the heart and count to three.
So,
If you're feeling a little bit more relaxed,
Then count to three.
So,
Each breath in lasts for three counts and each breath out takes three counts to complete.
If that feels too fast or too slow,
Simply increase or decrease the speed at which you count or use more counts.
The important thing is to use the same number of counts for the inhale as the exhale.
Breathing in for one,
Two,
Three.
Breathing out for one,
Two,
Three.
Continue to breathe in this way for a couple of minutes.
If your hands or arms get tired,
Then just relax them,
But continue the breathing pattern if you can.
Breathing in for one,
Two,
Three.
Breathing out for one,
Two,
Three.
Very good.
Now you can allow your breathing to return to its natural rhythm.
No need to count anymore.
You might notice you're feeling a little calmer than before and possibly a little cooler.
If you haven't already,
Relax your hands and think once again of something that's pleasant to you in this moment.
It could be the same thing as before or it could be something else you've noticed.
Focus on this thing and find as many different aspects you can think of that makes it pleasing to you.
It could be something that's in the room that you're in that you like,
An object of some sort.
Just think about what makes it beautiful to you,
Whether it's the colours,
The material or maybe what it signifies.
Feel appreciation for this thing and the pleasure it brings you or the ways in which it makes your life better.
Hold on to this feeling of appreciation for as long as you can.
Little by little,
Start to move the body gently.
Deepen your breathing so that you feel a little more awake.
And when the time feels right,
You can gently open your eyes.
Well done for completing this meditation.
I hope you enjoyed it and I wish you all the best.
