Welcome.
This is a somatic meditation.
For when your body is still bracing in the morning.
To help you curb high cortisol.
And help reset your nervous system.
Before you reach for the day.
Stay here for one more moment.
You don't need to get up yet.
Or if you have You can sit back down.
Or lay down.
Anything you feel like you need to check.
Hope will be there.
After you offer yourself this gentle entry.
To the day.
For these next few minutes.
Waking up doesn't have to mean rushing.
Notice what your body is doing right now.
Maybe your jaw is already tight.
Your stomach might feel uneasy.
Your thoughts are already moving quickly.
Where your body feels as though it's opened its eyes.
In the middle of an emergency.
Whatever it is,
Just notice it.
Take one slow breath in through your nose.
And let it leave your body without pushing.
Again,
Breathe in gently.
And breathe out.
As if you're letting the morning know.
That it doesn't need to come toward you so quickly.
Find your comfortable position.
And just keep breathing.
You You're awake.
But you're not in danger.
The day has begun.
But nothing is chasing you into it.
Feel the surface beneath you.
Holding you.
Allowing yourself to receive it.
Some bodies wake slowly.
And some wake ready.
Ready to solve and anticipate problems.
Ready to prevent something from going wrong.
The mind may not even know what it's preparing for.
Let the shoulders lift.
Belly tightens,
The breath shortens.
And the body begins the day.
Before you have chosen to begin it.
If that sounds familiar.
There's nothing wrong with you.
Your body may have learned that mornings are when demands arrive.
That waking means performing.
Or they're getting out of bed.
Means becoming responsible for everyone.
And everything again.
And your nervous system may be trying to help.
By preparing you early.
So there's no need to fight that response.
You can meet it with new information.
You can show the body.
That this morning is not every morning that came before it.
You're here in this room.
With your breath.
And this moment is not an emergency.
Place one hand somewhere that feels steady.
Over your chest.
On your belly.
Or against the bed.
Simply let your hands rest.
Wherever they're comfortable.
And feel the warmth or pressure of that contact.
Let it be a small signal.
That you are here with yourself.
Begin by noticing the surface underneath you.
Feel the bed.
Chair or floor.
Supporting your weight.
Let your eyes remain closed if that feels comfortable.
Or let your gaze rest on one quiet thing in the room.
Let the eyes discover that there's nothing moving toward you.
Nothing you need to defend against.
Take a deep breath in.
And on the exhale.
Bring your attention to your jaw.
Notice whether the teeth are touching.
Let the tongue rest lower in the mouth.
Let there be a little more space.
Between the upper and lower teeth.
Soften the muscles around the eyes.
Let the forehead become smooth.
Allow the back of the head to feel heavier.
You Notice the shoulders.
They may already be carrying the whole day.
But for now.
.
.
Let the shoulders carry only themselves.
Let them drop.
Even one small degree.
Breathe in.
And on the exhale,
Bring awareness to the stomach.
If there's any sensation there.
Fluttering tightness.
Emptiness.
There's no need to make it disappear.
Just see if you can make a little more room around it.
A little less gripping or holding.
The body is allowed to wake up.
Before it works.
And the body is allowed to arrive.
Before it performs.
Now let's listen for sounds.
Notice what sounds are around you.
Notice the nearest sound.
And then the farthest sound you can hear.
Notice the temperature of the air against your skin.
Where light enters the room.
And one place in the body.
That feels neutral.
Steady.
Are less tense than the rest.
It could be the hands.
Feet back of the head.
Or even the space behind the knees.
Let one small area become an anchor of calm.
Your nervous system doesn't need a speech.
It learns from what is happening now.
From the stillness of the room.
The steady surface underneath you.
And the fact that you can pause.
And that no one is demanding anything from you.
In this exact second.
Look around gently if your eyes are open.
Let the head turn slowly from one side to the other.
Simply letting the body see.
And register.
Where it is.
The room you are in.
The morning you are in.
This moment is smaller than the entire day.
And you only need to be here.
If the mind is still rehearsing.
Conversation.
A deadline or a problem.
Or any version of the day.
In which everything becomes too much.
Notice the rehearsal.
Without stepping inside of it.
And as you breathe,
Say quietly to yourself,
That is not happening right now.
If the mind returns to yesterday.
Say to yourself,
That is over.
If the mind races ahead,
Quietly say to yourself,
I will meet the next moment.
When it arrives.
And not before.
You don't need to carry the entire day.
In the first few minutes of waking.
Or solve.
What's going on this afternoon.
From your bed.
Let the morning come in slowly.
And gently.
On the first breath.
Then the next breath.
And the feeling of the room.
The simple movement of one hand.
The weight of one foot.
One moment at a time is enough.
When you're ready,
Take a slightly fuller breath in.
One that gives the ribs a little more room.
And let the exhale be slow.
You Again,
Breathe in.
And as you breathe out.
Imagine the body.
Releasing the message.
That something has already gone wrong.
As you breathe.
Silently say to yourself,
I am safe to wake up.
I don't have to begin the day in a rush.
My body can arrive slowly.
I can meet this morning one moment at a time.
Let those words be invitations,
Not instructions.
Let the body hear them.
Maybe the jaw softens.
The breath deepens.
Maybe nothing changes yet.
All of it is allowed.
The only goal is to stop treating the first moments of the day.
As proof that you are already behind.
Because that was never the case.
When you're ready.
Begin to feel the edges of your body more clearly.
Notice the fingers and the toes.
The back of the body against the surface underneath you.
You might roll the shoulders gently.
Move the jaw.
Stretch the hands.
Let the first movements of the day be movements that belong to you.
Before you sit up,
Burst stand.
Choose one thing.
That doesn't need to happen immediately.
One message that can wait.
A decision you don't need to make yet.
For one piece of pressure.
You can leave outside.
These next few minutes.
You are allowed to protect the way you enter the day.
You're allowed to move more slowly than your thoughts.
And to take your body with you.
Instead of leaving it behind.
You Take one final breath in.
And let it go with a soft sigh.
The morning is here.
And you are here too.
Not in danger.
Not late or failing.
Just waking.
And giving yourself the gift of presence.
Sending the message to your body.
That you are safe to wake up.
And you can begin gently from here.
Take your time.
Going softly into your day.
Thank you so much for carving out this time.
To be with yourself.
And to meditate with me.
Namaste.
