A warm welcome to you.
There's an expression I love if you know one autistic person.
You know one autistic person.
Which means we're all different.
In sensory profile,
Executive function,
Our habitual responses to stress.
Our communication styles and our special interests.
Over the years,
Both personally and professionally,
I've paid attention to the things autistic people often find difficult about meditation.
And I've tried to take these out of this practice.
Things like visualization.
A focus on the breath.
Pressure to sit still.
An expectation that you can stop thinking.
A voice pitched to sound calm and soothing,
When for a lot of us,
That's the very thing that grates or feels inauthentic.
So the practice we're going to explore here is science-backed and designed to work with your nervous system.
Whether you're feeling wired,
Tired,
Or both.
If you need to move,
Move.
If your thoughts are continuing in the background,
That's okay too.
There's no right way to do this practice.
Just trust that you being here,
Pressing play and trying your best is enough.
Awesome.
So we'll start this practice with our eyes open and by taking a moment to establish our posture.
This practice is best done sitting,
Not lying down.
If you need some support,
Like a comfy chair,
An extra pillow or blanket,
Go ahead.
Seeing if you can arrive at a sitting posture where you feel both alert and at ease.
Great.
Now let your feet rest flat on the floor.
Gently lengthen your spine.
Roll your shoulders back ever so slightly and soften your face.
Start by slowly moving your head and neck to the left.
Noticing the objects you see.
Even if you've seen what's in front of you hundreds of times,
Imagine you're seeing it for the first time.
Mentally whisper to yourself what you see.
Coming back to the center.
Now moving to the right side.
Slowly allowing the eyes to take in what's in the room and mentally whisper what you see.
Do this action two more times on both sides.
Sharpening your awareness.
Noticing.
Naming.
Once your head returns to the centre.
Begin to notice what parts of your body are connecting to your chair.
Perhaps your shoulders.
Spine Bottom.
Thighs.
And as best you can,
Letting go into this support a little more.
Now bringing your awareness to your feet as they rest on the floor.
Notice how gravity is supporting you.
Bringing these two practices together.
Moving your head from side to side.
Whilst holding your awareness on your body,
Supported by the chair.
Now as best you can,
Seeing if you can layer in sound to this regulating experience.
Head continues to move slowly from side to side.
And awareness of your body sitting.
And also a curiosity about the sounds in your environment.
Letting that practice go and just returning to a still position.
Seeing if you can notice any changes that might signal a return to a more regulated inner state.
Deeper or steadier breathing.
Shifts in bodily sensation.
Yawning or a sigh.
A desire to take a stretch.
A steadier emotional terrain.
And now from this place,
Let's get to know what regulation feels like a bit more.
Let's befriend this state.
You can close down your eyes if you like,
Or have your gaze gently on the floor.
And as best you can casting your mind back to a time when you felt a deep sense of safety,
Trust or connection.
This moment doesn't need to be grand or extraordinary.
Often it's the small everyday moments of peace and safety that mean the most.
It could be getting time with your special interests.
Having time to yourself after a busy day,
Having all your sensory needs met with things like comfort food,
Blankets,
Headphones,
Or cuddles with your pet.
Having a moment where nothing was expected of you.
And now in your own time,
Just thinking or feeling about this memory a little bit more.
Where exactly were you?
Were you at home or out?
Alone or with company.
What else do you notice as you think about this memory?
Maybe you can feel a sense of relaxation in your body as you remember this time.
Can you encourage your shoulders to drop a bit?
Or your forehead or your eyes to soften.
Maybe you can take a deep breath into your belly.
And resting here.
In this memory.
In any other memories that are coming up.
Being aware of the impact on your body now.
There's no right or wrong way to do this.
Just trusting that with each breath you take,
You're sending a two-way message from your body to your brain.
And from your brain to your body.
That you're safe and open to more of these moments of ease,
Safety and belonging.
Here in this moment you are creating neuroplastic change.
You're offering your mind-body system a moment of deep rest and stress relief.
This will create positive ripples in your everyday life.
Awareness moving to you sitting.
Feet on the floor,
Hips and pelvis supported.
Opening your eyes when you're ready.
Scanning your eye around the space you're in.
And just seeing if you can notice one thing in your environment that you appreciate.
Nothing over the top,
Just something that's here for you in this moment.
Something you feel grateful for.
Awesome.
Thanks for sharing your practice with me.
You might like to save this nervous system reset and use it after a busy day.
When you're feeling overwhelmed or like you've had too much stimulation.
