Welcome to this mindfulness of finding your feet.
What we're going to be doing during this mindfulness is actually paying attention to your feet.
So in that way it differs from a meditation in that it actually involves an activity.
So we'll just take a few moments to do something physically that we also talk about metaphorically.
So as we are landing in a new situation,
Whether that's a new town or a new job or even just a global situation like a pandemic,
We often have this metaphor of finding our feet.
Interestingly,
This can also be really helpful to do in actuality.
With your mind and your awareness,
Find your actual physical feet.
In the mindfulness practice today,
We will do exactly that.
So my invitation to you is to get yourself comfortable whether you are sitting or lying down.
Making sure that the posture you're in gives you access to your actual feet,
So the toes,
The soles of your feet,
Your heels,
Your ankles.
And if you find that stretching that far down is uncomfortable because of pain or any other limitations,
It might be helpful to ask for somebody to do this with you.
The reason why it can be helpful to regularly practice finding our feet is that when we get stressed or anxious,
Our focus tends to gather in and around our head.
And we may forget that there's this whole body that we have access to as well.
There is also the fact that our longest nerves go from our brain all the way down to our toes.
And so by sending a signal from our brain all the way down to our toes as we become aware of our feet and toes,
We are almost like sending a ping signal from one computer to another or flushing out the system.
We're just checking the wiring.
And in that way,
It can also be helpful to shift some of that biochemical response that often comes up with stress and anxiety or any other feelings of discomfort.
So what does it mean finding your feet?
Let's start with removing any footwear,
Removing the socks,
And just getting a sense of what it feels like to touch the heels,
The back of your feet.
And you may notice that your skin needs a bit of attention there,
That's absolutely okay.
You can tend to that a bit later.
Just actually touching and connecting with that other end of your body.
And as you stroke and touch the back of your feet,
The heels,
Notice what it feels like when you feel that sensation coming back up to your brain,
That signal.
And then stroking up through the soles of your feet,
Really paying attention to both the edges as well as the center.
You may find there's a little bit of a dell in there,
Just at the middle of the sole of your foot.
And that can be helpful just to give a bit of a touch and a bit of a nudge.
In Chinese medicine,
That point is often referred to as bubbling spring,
Which I always think is a very interesting name and can be a bit of a source of energy.
Then moving across to that edge,
Just where the soles of your foot meet your toes,
Noticing what that ridge feels like.
Again,
If you've got any craggy skin or anything like that,
Just notice that it's something to pay attention to at another time.
But for now,
Just taking in that information.
Then moving on to your big toe,
Just giving your big toe a bit of a twiggle and a tweak.
Maybe just squeezing either side of that toe now,
Noticing what it feels like to read those sensations back into your mind,
Back into your brain.
Then moving on to the next toe and doing the same,
Giving that toe a bit of a twiggle and a tweak,
And then a bit of a squeeze on either side of the toe now.
It would be good to tie that in with a breath.
Each toe almost gets synchronized with the breath.
Moving on to the next toe,
Doing the same,
A twiggle and a tweak,
And then squeezing either side of the toe now.
And then the fourth toe,
Twiggle and a tweak,
With the breath,
Just squeezing either side of that toe now.
Then finally the little toe,
The inky dinky binky little toe,
Just giving that a bit of a twiggle and a tweak,
And then squeezing either side of that toe now.
And just noticing what it feels like to give your feet that level of attention,
Really finding them with your hands and with your mind.
Breathing that in,
Notice what else changes in your body,
Any posture,
Any sensations that change as you have found one of your feet.
We then want to make sure that we keep a balance.
So shifting your body so that you can access your other foot.
Again starting at the back of your foot around your heel,
Just noticing what it feels like to just stroke and touch the back of your foot.
What you notice about the state of your skin,
Just take that information and if it needs tending to another time you can make a commitment to do that,
But for now,
Just staying here with what it actually feels like at this point.
And moving your fingers across the sole of your foot,
Paying attention to the edges on either side,
And then coming in to the centre of the foot to that little dell I was talking about earlier,
The one that's often referred to as bubbling spring.
Then coming across that ridge that connects the sole of your foot to the toes,
Giving that a bit of a stroke and a connection,
And then moving up to your big toe.
Giving your big toe a bit of a twiggle and a tweak,
And then with a good breath,
Squeeze either side of that toe now.
Moving on to the next toe,
Giving that toe a bit of a twiggle and a tweak,
And with a breath just squeezing that toe now.
Seeing the sensations that happen,
Noticing what it feels like to be doing this.
Moving across to the next toe,
That middle toe,
Giving that a bit of a twiggle and a tweak,
With a breath just squeezing either side of that toe now.
And then coming across to that next toe,
Again with a twiggle and a tweak,
Just giving yourself a breath as you squeeze either side of that toe now.
And then finally,
That little inky bitty dinky pinky toe,
Just giving that a bit of a twiggle and a tweak.
And with a good breath,
Just squeezing either side of that toe now.
Noticing what it feels like to have found your feet,
Toes,
Soles and heels,
And what happens to your posture,
Your sensations and to your mind when you really connect with that other end of your body.
Now as we bring this mindfulness to a close,
My invitation to you is just to stroke from your toes over the top of both your feet,
Just coming to rest at your ankles,
Giving your ankles a bit of a cuddle.
We often dismiss or don't realise what a powerful job our ankles do,
And they are remarkably small joints,
Helping us walk and move and stand.
It's a pretty impressive job that they're doing,
So giving them a bit of a cuddle and a thank you.
So as we bring this mindfulness practice to a close,
My invitation to you is just to give yourself a breath and a moment to observe and to absorb everything that you have learned during this practice,
Bearing in mind that it's more helpful to be curious than critical.
If you've noticed anything that needs adjusting,
Even if it's just cutting your toenails,
Think about when you can actually make that happen,
So you can give your feet and your toes the care and attention that they need and deserve.
With the information and the experience you now have,
My invitation to you is to go forward and as always,
Go gently with yourself.
