Practicing Presence

It's so easy for us to get caught up in our thoughts and emotions and not see a way out. Come join me in practicing detachment from thoughts and emotions. This is a practice that can be done anytime anywhere with your eyes open or closed.

Transcript

Hello, My name is Rachel and today we are going to be practicing presence together. So you can find the seat in a place that you won't be disturbed for the next little bit. Getting comfortable, Preferably in a seated position. And you can start noticing your surroundings. Any sounds you can hear. Any objects or colors that stick out to you. And whenever you feel ready, You could gently close your eyes. Starting to become aware of your breath. The rise and the fall. Inhale and exhale. Noticing how your shoulders move up and down. Your chest. As your awareness stays with the breath, Start to become aware of your entire body. Notice where your hands are placed. Any areas of contact. See how the clothing feels against your skin. Become aware of any points of tension throughout the body. Gently sending a loving breath there. Not judging, Just noticing. So we'll start at the top of the head, Doing a body scan. You can either do one slow one, Just noticing each part of the body. Or you can do it multiple times, Just quickly scanning the body. So starting at the top of the head and ending at the toes. Noticing any areas of contact, Any sensations, Whatever comes up for you. Not trying to change anything, Just letting it all be. As your awareness stays with the body, Start to notice if there's any thoughts or feelings or emotions present at this time. The idea is not to note every thought and every emotion. Any time a thought or emotion gets caught up in a story, Gently note and return to the breath. So anytime you find that your mind has taken you away, Gently note thinking mind or feeling mind and return to the breath. That breath is our constant anchor and we can always return back to it whenever we need it. Remembering the idea is not to note every thought that passes, Just when we notice we got caught up and our mind has taken us away, Simply note and return to the breath. It doesn't matter what the thought was that took us away or what the emotion was. Just noting. And if you feel like you have to do this multiple times, That is completely okay. Anytime your mind has taken you away, Gently noting and returning to the breath. As we begin to end this practice, I want to remind you that you can return here anytime, Anywhere. The breath is always available and it can be our constant anchor. So taking a deep breath in, Filling your lungs up and slowly letting it all out on the exhale. Starting to notice any areas of contact, Maybe how your feet are placed on the floor and gravity giving you a slight pull downward, Helping you feel grounded. Noticing where your hands are placed. Noticing any sounds that you can hear. Starting to make any small movements that feel comfortable, Maybe a shoulder roll or a stretch. Notice any smells that you can detect. With your eyes closed, Notice if there's any shapes or colors you can see. And whenever you feel ready, You can gently open your eyes. Thank you for joining me here today.