Let's begin by finding a comfortable seat,
Stretching or moving the body to find what feels comfortable,
And then closing the eyes or letting the eyelids fall heavy,
And then taking three deep breaths in through the nose and sighing out the mouth,
And then bringing the breath back to a natural flow,
A comfortable rhythm without trying to make it longer or slower,
Deeper or shallower,
And then bringing the attention to the touch points of the body against the surface beneath you,
And feeling the support of the earth,
The ground,
Allowing the body to get heavy and sink into that space,
And from this place of grounded support and safety,
You'll bring to mind a challenging situation in your life right now,
And trying not to choose the most challenging,
But something where there's some difficulty,
And bringing that situation to your mind's eye,
And also to your heart.
Begin to see what that situation looks like,
Who are the other people,
Or is there another person who's involved,
What do they look like,
Where are you in this situation,
Creating a scene,
What does it look like,
Are there any sounds or smells,
And holding the image of this challenging situation in your heart and mind,
And likely you've noticed that some feelings or sensations have come up as you bring this challenging situation into the present moment,
And first maybe naming the emotions,
Emotion that arises when you bring the situation to mind,
And naming the emotion,
Emotions,
Without judgment,
Without labeling them as good or bad,
Just noticing,
Is there sadness,
Grief,
Anger,
Frustration,
Confusion,
What's present here right now,
And also noticing if there's a tendency to start to judge what's here,
And as you name these emotions that are presenting,
Maybe you ask yourself,
Can I be with this right now,
Can I allow this emotion to be here with love and kindness,
Can I invite it,
Can I make it welcome,
And sometimes when the emotion is too strong,
The answer might be no,
I can't be with it right now,
I'll try again another time,
And that's okay,
But if it feels like the emotion can be allowed to stay,
Noticing what that feels like to allow it here,
And by now,
There have likely been other thoughts around the situation or the emotions that have come up,
And noticing if there are any stories that come up with these particular feelings or challenges,
And as you hold these emotions and allow them to be here,
Beginning to focus the attention on the body,
Maybe briefly scanning the body to notice where do I feel this emotion most strongly,
Is there a certain place where it's presenting in this moment,
In the throat,
The shoulders or chest,
The belly,
Pelvic bowl,
The arms or the legs,
And when you've identified where you're feeling this emotion,
Spending some time there with love and curiosity,
Noticing what are the sensations,
Is there tightness or openness,
Does it feel constricted or relaxed,
Changes in temperature,
Pain,
Tingling,
And also noticing are there any thoughts or judgments that are coming up as you pay attention to the sensations in the body,
Noticing if there's any labeling as good or bad,
And bringing the attention back to the sensation,
You might even start to focus the attention of the breath on that part of the body,
And noticing after some time of breath and paying attention,
Has anything shifted in the sensations,
Has anything shifted in the emotion or emotions,
And again noticing as you shift the attention from the sensations to the emotion to the breath,
What are the thoughts that tend to arise,
And then shifting the attention to the space around the heart,
The chest,
The shoulders,
Maybe even the arms and hands,
The fingertips as an extension of the heart,
Breathing into the space around the heart,
And noticing if there is any softening or opening of the heart with each breath,
And from this place of a soft and open heart,
Offering yourself gratitude,
Or exploring an opening to what might feel challenging or uncomfortable,
And maybe there are some other nurturing words that would be helpful to hear right now,
Like I love you,
I'm with you,
It's okay dear,
Whatever feels real and authentic to you in this moment,
