This is Terry Pease with a meditation for caregivers.
Take this moment for yourself.
For the next few minutes,
Take time for you.
The person in your care may be resting or in someone else's care,
Asleep or just being occupied on their own.
The next few minutes are yours.
To start,
I want you to choose a comfortable position.
You could be sitting,
Standing,
Lying down,
Walking,
Any position where you can allow your body a moment of peace.
If you can,
Lower your eyes and focus on a single point or even close your eyes.
Now turn your attention to your breathing.
Notice how your breath comes into your body.
Through your nose,
Bring in the welcome air,
The oxygen,
The sustenance that comes into your body with each breath.
Pause and release the breath through your mouth.
Again,
Breathe in smoothly through your nose.
Pause and release the breath through your mouth.
Now let your breathing return to its natural pattern and pay attention to all of your body.
First,
Focus your attention on your head and neck.
Gently soften your neck muscles.
Let your head move a little more freely to the left,
To the right,
And back to the center.
Gently shrug your shoulders,
Slowly up,
Slowly down,
And feel your shoulders and arms release and grow heavy.
Let this relaxed feeling spread from your shoulders all the way down your arms toward your wrists and hands.
Now let the relaxation spread into your hands.
Let your hands lie gently,
Peacefully where they are,
In your lap,
On the arms of your chair,
Wherever they are.
Loosen your fingers one by one,
Thumbs,
Index fingers,
Your middle finger,
Ring finger,
And your smallest finger.
Gently move your hands and fingers and then let them return to a resting position.
And now I want you to thank your head,
Your shoulders,
Your arms,
And your hands.
You use them,
Head,
Shoulders,
Arms,
And hands,
To give attentive and loving care to the person who's in your care.
For this moment,
Recall all of the generosity,
Care,
And attention that you use with the person in your care and offer them now to yourself.
Offer this care to your head,
Your mind,
Your thoughts,
Your attention,
Which watch and think and plan.
And say to yourself,
I cherish my mind,
My thoughts,
My sight,
My hearing,
My speech.
I thank my mind,
My thoughts,
My sight,
My hearing,
My speech.
Now offer this love,
Generosity,
Care,
And attention to your neck and shoulders,
Your back and chest,
And say to yourself,
I cherish my shoulders,
Neck,
Back,
And chest for their strength and their effort.
I thank my shoulders,
Neck,
Back,
And chest for their strength and their effort.
Offer the same generosity,
Love,
Care,
And attention to your upper arms,
Your forearms,
Your wrists.
Say to yourself,
I cherish my shoulders,
Wrists for their strength and their effort.
I thank my arms and my wrists for their strength and their effort.
Now give your hands and fingers this generosity,
Love,
Care,
And attention.
Say to yourself,
I cherish my hands,
My fingers for their strength and their effort.
I thank my hands,
My fingers for their strength and their effort.
Let the feeling of love,
Care,
And attention spread now through the rest of your body,
Your lower back,
Your hips and thighs,
Your legs and feet.
And now I want you to picture a warm soft light surrounding you.
This light may be very faint and hard to imagine at first,
But as you breathe quietly the image becomes more distinct,
Clearer,
And brighter.
This light is probably a golden yellow,
But it may be a different color.
See that color and feel how you are surrounded by this light.
This light is love,
Respect for you,
Honor for your care and generosity as a caregiver,
Your patience and support given out to the person in your care.
But notice that this light is also love and respect and honor for you.
This light fills you with honor and love and respect coming to you.
Now bring your hands together,
Cup them,
And let the light fill your hands.
Let your hands feel the warmth of love,
Care,
And attention and spread the love,
Care,
And attention over your hands and arms.
Gently rub your hands together and allow the warmth of love and gratitude to bring softness,
Ease,
And peace to rest in your hands.
The person in your care may not be able to show you or say directly to you how important your care is.
Still that person's best spirit,
Their gratitude,
And the soul and spirit of people receiving care,
People all over the world,
All is coming to you.
Feel how that love,
That respect,
That honor comes to you from all of creation,
From the forces of love and care that exist in all the world.
And now you can extend love,
Respect,
And honor out to other caregivers as well.
You are part of a worldwide tradition of human love given to others and this love extends to you as well.
Feel honored,
Feel respected,
Feel loved,
And know that the goodness,
The generosity,
The connection that are part of your daily caregiving life also spread out into the world and come back to you tenfold.
Feel honored,
Feel respected,
Feel loved.
And now as this moment of rest draws to a close,
Begin to notice the room around you.
Let your focus return to your day-to-day life.
But before you leave this meditation,
Remember that you have covered your entire body and especially your hands,
Your caregiving hands with the warmth of love and gratitude,
Peace and rest.
Now open your eyes,
Bring your attention back to your body,
Back to your daily life,
Knowing that throughout your day you can renew this sensation just by bringing your hands together for a moment.
And any time that you can,
You can listen to this meditation and feel loved.
You you
