Welcome to this Hangover Cure meditation which is designed to help ease your hangover.
Over the next 10 minutes or so I'm hopefully going to help you feel less anxious and kinder towards yourself.
To begin take a minute to say thanks to yourself for taking time to meditate today even though you're not feeling a hundred percent.
Get as comfortable as you can in the space you're in.
I personally like lying down on the floor or a bed so your body is fully supported but you can sit up on a cushion in a chair or whatever is available to you.
Wherever you are see if you can just make yourself that little bit more at ease.
Take any movement that would make you feel that comfort in this moment and then I invite you just to take stock of how you feel in your physical body.
Where does it hurt?
Try to be a bit more specific than just everywhere if you can.
Can you feel your head thumping?
Your stomach churning?
Maybe your legs are aching and your feet hurt?
Sit with these sensations for a minute and then I'd like you to think about whether there's anywhere in the body that feels good.
What about the support that's underneath you?
Holding you up,
Coming up to meet you in whatever state you're in.
Take a few breaths here and just see if you can settle in that little bit more.
You know,
Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth.
In through the nose and out through the mouth.
And get curious about your breathing.
You might like to ask yourself,
Is it shallow?
Is it deep?
Is it fast or slow?
And you don't have to change anything.
Just observe.
Notice the air coming in and coming out of the body.
You have nowhere to be right now except here in this moment.
Nothing to do but take up space in the spot you're in.
Your mind will naturally wander from the breath and you can let it.
You're welcome to follow it and see where it goes,
Where it takes you.
But when you're ready,
Just gently bring yourself back to the breath.
That inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth.
Anything you have to do later today can wait.
With each exhalation out of the mouth,
See if you can give in to any sensations like tiredness or fatigue or nausea.
And you might like to try audibly sighing on that out breath,
That extra release.
So in through the nose and out through the mouth.
In through the nose and out through the mouth.
Just imagine sinking further into the surface beneath you.
And that focus on the breath is one of the easiest ways we have to tell our brain to relax.
And the physical body will respond to that breath and the signals that the breath is giving the brain.
We might change up our breathing pattern a little bit now.
And they're going to use the count of four.
And so we're going to breathe in for four,
Hold for four,
And out for four.
You might be familiar with the term box breathing.
And this is a very common breathing technique just to calm the body and the mind.
And I just like you to breathe with my guidance and just observe what this the effect that this has on the body.
So let's start with a big inhale for four counts,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Then want you to hold that breath for four counts,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And repeat.
Inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And out.
Two,
Three,
Four,
And inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Inhale through the nose.
Hold that breath.
And out for four.
Inhale,
Hold,
And exhale.
And just continue that breathing pattern for a couple of rounds in your own time.
Just notice how that feels.
Now,
Wherever you are in the cycle,
Just come back to breathing as normal without counting.
And let the breath settle back into whatever rhythm is natural for you.
It should be a bit deeper and a bit slower now.
But if it's not,
Don't worry.
Just breathe however feels good for you.
You might want to imagine on the in breath that all the air around you has healing capabilities.
So every breath in is like this powerful healing potion.
It's working its way slowly throughout your body,
Circulating through it,
Easing any pains or niggles you might have.
And on the out breath,
On that exhale,
You're expelling and releasing anything that doesn't serve you,
That's making you unwell.
So inhale through the nose,
Picturing that healing air flowing through the body,
And exhale out of the mouth.
Getting rid of all that stale air,
All of those aches and pains.
And now we're coming to the end of this short practice.
But before you do,
I'd like to invite you to put your right hand on your left shoulder,
And your left hand on your right shoulder,
And give yourself an affectionate squeeze,
Like you would a friend.
Because you are your own friend.
And you've shown up for yourself today.
Even when you're not feeling your best.
So well done.
And when you're ready,
Gently open your eyes.
