Okay so this is a five minute practice exploring the topic of developing a taste for problems of being with our problems from the perspective of our bodies.
So it's not about changing what's going on for us,
It's about being with ourselves as things are and hopefully getting a sense of our competence and our body's competence in supporting us through things when maybe we're not feeling quite so grounded or able as we'd like to be feeling that that the body can take some of the load.
So the invitation would be to do this once a day or maybe if something is coming up for you that's preoccupying you,
You can just take a pause and a break and step into your into your body.
You can be done anywhere so it doesn't need to be in a specific posture or position or place.
You can just take a moment to notice the points of contact that your body's making with the earth.
Perhaps the contact that your body is making with itself so your arms by your side,
Maybe your hands are touching your body.
Taking a moment to notice your skin and the contact that it makes with your clothes and the air around you.
And then narrowing your awareness to your breath,
Following the flow of your breath as you breathe in and you breathe out.
Your breath is always there as an anchor for the present moment.
And three breaths with an extended out breath can be enough to activate your parasympathetic nervous system to allow your body to shift into rest and restoration process of the parasympathetic nervous system.
So just taking a few deep in breaths,
Holding and then extending the out breath so it's longer than your in breath was.
And returning your breath to its natural rhythm.
Just taking a moment to briefly bring to your mind's eye what maybe is bothering you in this moment.
Maybe feeling a bit overwhelming or something you're concerned about.
And once you've found something,
Expanding your awareness to include your whole body.
Letting go of any tension that may have arrived in the forehead,
Dropping your shoulders.
Breathing as we fall awake to our experiences just as they are.
That your breath and your body are always there to anchor you in the present moment.
And an invitation to place a hand on your heart and one on your belly.
And have a sense of holding yourself with some compassion and kindness.
You don't need to fix.
You can simply be with yourself as you are and pause in this way.
Take a moment to notice if there's anything that your body's asking of you.
You can do to take care of it.
Meeting yourself with awareness and acceptance and kindness.
And then taking one deep in breath,
A long exhalation.
As best you can,
Taking the sense of connection and awareness into whatever you have left to do with your day.
