Connect To Relax: Breath, Body, And Mind

This soothing and grounding practice can be done in whatever position is most comfortable for you. In this session, we will connect more deeply to the breath, body, and mind. The more deeply and authentically we are able to connect to ourselves, we are then able to connect more deeply with others.

Transcript

In this session,

We will focus on connection,

Connection to the breath,

Connection to the body,

Connection to the mind,

And connection to the self,

Knowing that the more deeply and authentically we are able to connect to ourselves,

We are then able to connect more deeply with others.

You can do this practice seated or laying down,

Whatever feels the most comfortable.

And I want to remind you that this is your practice.

Do only what feels right for you in your body and always move at your own pace.

Let's begin by shutting down the eyes and bringing your awareness to the eyebrows and the forehead,

Inviting that area to relax,

Letting go of any tension you might be holding onto there.

And then inviting that same sense of relaxation to the space around the eyes and then the face,

The cheeks,

The area around the mouth,

And finally the jaw,

Letting the jaw hang heavy even when the mouth is closed.

The jaw is a place we tend to carry a lot of tension,

Sometimes without even realizing it.

So let's show the jaw some love.

These are practices you can do every day or every morning if you notice yourself waking up with tension in the jaw area,

Encouraging relaxation and a release of tension that might be stored there.

First,

Open the mouth wide and move the jaw from side to side,

Stretching into the jaw muscles.

And then making big circles,

Opening the mouth wide and making circles with the jaw in one direction a few times and the other direction.

Next we are going to stretch out the jaw and the entire face by squishing the face in as though you've just taken a bite into a lemon.

And then stretching everything out,

Feeling into the cheeks and lips,

Trying to feel into each muscle in the face.

And then relaxing everything,

Aiming to keep the jaw as relaxed as possible.

Return to your most comfortable position,

Maybe taking a moment to settle in once more.

I now invite you to bring your awareness to the breath,

Just observing and noticing,

Not trying to change or force anything.

Simply becoming familiar with the waves of breath,

The characteristics of the breath,

Noticing if the breath is feeling deep and controlled or maybe feeling a bit rushed or shallow.

Let's place the hands over the belly and begin to deepen the inhales,

Feeling the belly expand and then slow down and extend the exhales,

Making the exhales longer than the inhales.

Continuing like that at your own pace,

Breathing into the belly,

Feeling it expand and exhaling slow and controlled.

Releasing the hands down,

Coming back to your natural breath.

Once again,

Just observing,

Hopefully feeling a little more connected to the breath.

I invite you to shift your awareness to the body.

First,

Becoming aware of what is supporting your body in this moment.

Whether you are seated or laying down,

Noticing that you are connected to the earth beneath you.

Whether you are seated directly on the earth or in a building that is connected to the earth by its foundation,

You are supported in this moment.

You can let go and relax fully and you are being held,

Rooted down into grounding earth energy.

Taking some deep breaths,

Pull that grounding earth energy up through your root into the body.

And on the exhales,

Connect back down into the earth.

Continuing like that,

Pulling up grounding earth energy from beneath you.

And on the exhales,

Connecting even more deeply back down into the earth.

A few more breaths,

Just like that.

Next,

Bringing the awareness to aim and sense the body in its entirety.

The visceral body,

The bones,

The skin,

The energetic field around the body.

Everything all at once.

And then beginning to tune in and notice any sensations.

Sensations of temperature or gentle tingling.

Let's do a gentle body scan,

Moving from the top of the head down to the tips of the toes.

Noticing any areas of tension or discomfort.

If you do notice an area of tension,

Take a couple deep breaths,

Breathing light directly into that space.

And on the exhale,

Inviting the tension to melt away.

And then continuing to scan through the body,

Noticing if there are other areas calling out for some love.

Breathing light in and releasing tension on the exhales.

And now,

Hopefully feeling a little more connected to the body,

Connected to the earth.

I invite you to bring your awareness all the way up into the mind.

Checking in without judgment and noticing what is going on in the mind today.

How is the mind feeling?

Is the mind feeling clear and peaceful?

Is it maybe feeling a bit cloudy or busy?

Are you noticing yourself caught up in a certain narrative or patterns of thought?

If you are finding yourself struggling to quiet the mind or clear a particular narrative,

The breath can be a simple but powerful tool to help keep the mind grounded in the present moment.

And that is what we will do here today.

Placing one or both hands over the heart space.

On each inhale,

Think to yourself,

I breathe love into my heart.

And each exhale,

Thinking,

I send love out to all beings.

I breathe love into my heart.

I send love out to all beings.

Continuing like that at your own pace.

If any other thoughts show up,

Gently release them without judgment and return.

I breathe love into my heart.

It doesn't matter how many times other thoughts show up during this practice.

Each time you recognize that it is happening,

Release those thoughts and return to the mantra.

You are helping to strengthen and connect more deeply to your own mind.

More aware,

More in control.

On the next exhale,

Release the hands down,

Returning back to your comfortable position and natural breath.

Perhaps remaining tuned in to the heart space.

Continuing to breathe with the focus on your beautiful,

Tender heart.

Breathing love in.

And releasing anything no longer serving you on the exhales.

And as you sit here,

Perhaps feeling even slightly more connected to and aware of your thoughts,

I invite you to think to yourself of something you are feeling grateful for in this moment.

Whatever shows up for you.

And finally,

I invite you to close down this practice in whichever way feels right for you and your body.

Perhaps placing the palms together in front of the heart space.

Perhaps returning the hands over the heart space.

Or maybe it feels right to wrap your arms around yourself and give yourself a hug.

Reminding yourself you are always being held and supported by this earth.

Thank you for sitting with me.

Reviews

Just recently found you on IT, happy I did. Love your voice. Mil Gracias 🙏🏽🦋🪷

An excellent meditation- I played it at bedtime and fell asleep- I’ll listen again.

Beautiful and calming meditation with such a gentle voice to start my day 💚 thank you 🙏🏼

That is a lovely relaxing meditation, thank you. I’d love a version without music, just birdsong 💕🌟

Thank you for a peaceful practice. 🙏🏼 The guidance you provide is calming and relaxing. I love the options for individuals to do what feels right for their body at that moment. Beautifully done, Vili. Namaste 💜💜💜

Beautiful and restorative practice- thank you so much,Vili ✨️🏵💚