Dear friends,
This is a meditation for those that are going through pain,
Whether it's temporary pain or chronic pain.
And the research really around mindfulness is that by practicing meditation or every day just checking in with yourself can actually reduce pain by 50 to sometimes 70% according to Dr.
John Kabat-Zinn from the University of Massachusetts.
I also come across a quote by Stephen Covey that says,
10% is what happens to us,
Life happens to us,
And 90% is our attitude towards that.
So,
Joseph Goldstein also reminds us that pain is inevitable,
But suffering is optional.
Now,
I know that for those that are going through chronic pain that this might not sound that compassionate,
But maybe just explore these ideas and release the suffering around it and perhaps we can view pain perhaps in a reframed way.
So let us begin.
Let's take in a nice,
Slow,
Deep breath in through the nostrils.
And then out the nose,
Exhale.
Extend that breath.
And another slow,
Deep breath in through the nose.
And gently out the nostrils,
Extend that breath out.
And then one more slow,
Deep breath in through the nose.
Opening your mouth and gently sigh the breath out.
And now,
Come to rest on your natural breath at the nostrils,
Just breathing normally.
We're going to begin by focusing on the area or areas of your body that are experiencing pain,
Perhaps it's mental pain,
Emotional pain.
Try to give it a place where it sits.
And getting back in touch with our breath,
With every inhalation through the nose,
Breathe into that place of pain and it may be more than one.
Gently approach that area with mindful attitudes of non-judgment,
Non-reactivity and open-heartedness.
Mindful awareness can liberate so much that is stuck in our body without even trying,
Just through awareness,
Breathing in and through those places.
And you can imagine with every breath a sense of liberation and with every out-breath a feeling of letting go.
We have a tendency to push away the unpleasant and to grasp after the pleasant.
Let us develop a mind of equanimity where everything is equal,
One taste.
Again,
This pain could be emotional or mental and everything in life is impermanent.
Everything is always changing and this pain is too.
An important part of working with pain is just acceptance,
Here it is,
This is what it is now.
Now,
Turning our attention to the areas around the pain,
Areas that are not so painful,
Let's breathe into those areas.
Our mind tends to fixate and focus on pain points.
Let's gradually expand that awareness into the outer lying regions of our pain.
The edges of our pain,
Breathe into that space.
Opening the windows with every in-breath and letting go on every out-breath.
Gently expand beyond those borders of pain into the rest of your body,
Into the rest of your emotions,
Into your awareness.
Places where the pain doesn't exist and let's breathe into those spaces.
And perhaps those spaces are more than just the localized areas of pain.
By doing this,
We encourage more equanimity.
Pain is inevitable,
Suffering is optional.
George Lucas reminds us that our focus determines our reality.
Have you let your pain define you?
Be aware of the entire body.
Breathe into the shape of your body.
And as we suffer with pain,
We may feel abandoned by our body.
We may feel there is a tough relationship going on between us and our bodies.
Let us for a moment contemplate all the wonderful things that are happening in the body.
All the organs that are working for you.
For the breath that you can take and for the senses that are available to you.
And if you are able to listen to this,
You have a brain,
A functioning brain,
Which is the most remarkable thing in the universe.
You have that.
Let go.
With every out-breath,
Let go.
Just focus now on letting go.
So wherever you are,
Give yourself a hug.
Amazingly,
According to research,
This releases oxytocin and can reduce pain.
Give yourself a big hug.
Feel a sense of self-love and self-compassion for what you are going through.
Remind yourself that everything is going to be okay.
Everything is going to be okay.
Know that you are not alone.
So many of us all over the world have some sort of pain.
You are not alone.
You are not the one singled out.
Imagine how wonderful it would be if we could destroy the world's pain,
Destroy our pain.
But yet,
There it is.
So,
In the spirit of acceptance,
Perhaps we learn.
Perhaps it gives us some purpose and some meaning in our life.
And we can open up to that.
There may be seeds of being of benefit,
Not only to ourselves through this experience,
But perhaps to others too.
You can release your arms.
Let us take in a slow,
Deep breath in through the nose.
Opening the mouth and sigh the breath out.
And coming to a normal breath.
Gently blinking the eyes open if you had them closed.
And wishing you well,
Dear friends.
May you be free from pain.
May you be happy.
May you be healthy.
May you be safe.
