This meditation is designed to help you regulate the way that your nervous system interprets body signals,
Pain and uncomfortable sensations.
It can be used as a preventative practice as well as for times when you are experiencing pain or discomfort in your body.
So to begin,
Get comfortable.
Perhaps lying down on the floor you might have a blanket over you to keep warm,
Possibly a cushion or blanket behind your head.
And also any cushions or support behind the knees so your lower back is comfortable.
The intention here is to provide a space for you to fully relax and one in which you won't need to move through the duration of this practice.
Take a few moments just to make any final adjustments you need to do,
Any final movements,
Fidgets.
So that you can begin to really drop into the support of the floor beneath you.
If comfortable,
Allow your eyes to close.
And set an intention here to be with your experience with curiosity and kindness.
See if you can cultivate an observer's mindset without labelling or judging your experiences,
Good or bad.
And as you settle into your body,
Just notice is there any tension anywhere?
And if there is,
Can you invite your body to begin to relax,
To soften?
And become aware of any sensation in the hands,
Any sensations in the feet.
And what about in the face?
Softening any tension in the face,
Letting the eyes relax,
The jaw,
The tongue.
And also become aware of any really loud sensations in the body,
Areas where there is a lot going on,
A lot of feeling.
And also become aware of places in the body where it feels very quiet,
There are no sensations.
And as you settle into this landscape of shifting sensations throughout the body,
Can you get a sense of their quality?
Perhaps sensations feel heavy or light.
Maybe there's throbbing or pulsing,
Warmth or coolness.
Maybe sensations feel like they're moving.
Maybe they feel quite still and localized.
And notice if there's any particular emotional tone to these sensations,
Perhaps they're evoking a certain mood or perhaps certain thought patterns.
Without judgment,
Without going into the stories,
Perhaps behind the sensations themselves,
Just really being with your body,
With whatever's happening right now.
And then I invite you to notice an area in your body that is perhaps uncomfortable.
Maybe there's a feeling of tension or unease or perhaps pain.
And is it possible to drift to the center point of that feeling?
Can you go right to the origin or the source of that pain?
Maybe you can pinpoint it to the size of a pea.
And notice,
Does the pain shift?
Is it hard to pin down?
And what are the qualities of sensation like?
Do they change?
Is there an emotional quality to this area?
Is it possible to just sense without getting entangled again in the stories or the labels of good or bad?
Again,
Just seeing if you can be fully present,
Fully awake for whatever is arising here.
And then I invite you to shift your awareness now to an area of the body that feels pleasant.
Maybe there's a quality of freedom or a positive feeling and expansiveness or even a lightness.
See if you can choose one,
One area.
And again,
Just notice the raw sensations and experience of being in this more comfortable place in your body.
Can you go right to the origin or the source?
Or again,
Does it shift and move or expand as you notice it?
Again,
Is there an emotional quality to this more neutral or pleasant area?
And again,
Is it possible to just be present with the experience without adding anything on?
Now shift your awareness back to the original area of discomfort.
And again,
Just take a moment just with the more awareness,
Noticing beyond language and labels.
Notice how this uncomfortable area feels.
And again,
Shift your awareness back to the more pleasant area in your body.
And again,
Take a few moments to just become immersed in that quality and experience.
And again,
Shifting your awareness back to the more uncomfortable or maybe painful area.
And again,
Shifting your awareness back to the more pleasant,
Comfortable place.
And again,
Back to the more painful or uncomfortable area.
And landing your awareness back in the more pleasant or neutral place.
Is it possible to bring both areas into your full awareness,
The more uncomfortable part of your body and the more comfortable?
And seeing if it's possible for these two areas to coexist.
Is it an important place for both?
Perhaps each serve an important purpose or can mutually support each other?
And is there a sense in this capacity to be with both experiences simultaneously?
Pain and the non-pain,
The uncomfortable and the pleasant?
And is there a sense of just being able to relax into the experience without needing to change in any way?
Without trying to make the painful area go away?
Is it even possible to bring a quality of acceptance or welcoming?
You might think of sensation in the body as a kind of information.
Our nervous system's way of just telling us how we're doing in the moment.
And then just gradually now just start to broaden your attention to encompass your whole body.
Sensing your whole body just resting open,
Supported and safe.
Acknowledging that in this moment you are safe.
You are held.
You are supported.
Gradually start to tune back into the movements of your breath.
Perhaps sensing a gentle rise and fall of the lower ribs and belly.
Begin to broaden your attention to include the space that you're in,
The environment and any sounds.
And gradually when you feel ready to release your practice,
You can slowly begin to move.
Open your eyes and come back to your day.
