Hello and welcome to this body awareness meditation.
Body scans are a foundational mindfulness practice.
By scanning the body we get to know the feelings that we experience more clearly.
The mind also learns to rest in the present moment and focus on what is in front of us.
So let's begin by sitting in a comfortable upright position if that serves you.
If you're able allow the spine to lengthen and the shoulders to release.
Begin to allow the eyes to close and make any minor adjustments in your body that you might need to be comfortable.
And in your own time take a few deep centering breaths perhaps in through the nose and out through the mouth arriving in the present moment.
And now bring gentle awareness to the crown of your head.
What do you feel at the top of your head?
You might not feel anything or maybe you feel a little warm or tingling.
Just be aware.
Just notice.
And as you continue to breathe mindfully continue down to the forehead and the brow.
Notice if there might be any tension or maybe just a neutral feeling.
Just noticing whatever you feel.
Just tend to it with a sense of mindfulness and curiosity.
And as you continue to breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth move your awareness to your cheeks and your jaw.
And just ask yourself could there be any tension any sensation?
What do you notice?
And maybe if there is a little tension will it release even just a little bit?
Moving through the body to the neck resting your awareness at the point of connection between the neck and the shoulders.
Gently observing what you feel.
What might be there?
Just noticing.
And if it feels a little tight could it release even just a little bit?
As you continue to breathe moving through the upper body and slowly into the shoulders bringing the awareness into the upper arm.
And just notice what you feel traveling into the elbows,
The forearms.
And with curiosity what do you notice?
Continuing down into the wrists and the hands.
Feeling your breath travel into your fingers.
Noticing the breath.
Noticing how the breath and the hands and the fingers are connected.
Traveling back up to the shoulder blades and moving down the back and the center of the body.
What do you notice?
Perhaps breathing into a sense of tension and with curiosity notice if that tension changes in any way.
The posture,
The muscles that support your back and your belly.
And notice the expansion and contraction as you breathe.
Traveling down into the hips and the pelvis.
Notice if there might be any tightness and with curiosity ask if there might be a way to release even a little bit of that tension.
Becoming aware of the points of contact with the seat and the backs of the thighs.
Breathing into any tension that you notice and with gentle curiosity just notice what happens when you do.
Traveling down into the knees and the calves.
What do you feel?
And bringing the sense of the breath into the muscles and the bones.
Traveling down into the ankles,
The feet.
Bringing the breath into the toes.
Noticing is there a difference from one side to the other.
Just being aware of what you're feeling.
And now as you breathe become aware of the body from the head to the toe.
Sitting with the experience of having a body.
Maybe feeling the outlines of your body,
Your posture,
And the simple subtle changes as you breathe.
And slowly begin to come back to your space.
Perhaps wiggling the fingers and toes.
Rolling the head from one side to the other.
Shrugging the shoulders and slowly lifting the gaze and coming back to your room and back to your day.
Thank you so much for joining me today.
