This practice is designed to help you gently step out of cycles of anxiety and stress by grounding your attention in the present moment.
Rather than trying to eliminate difficult thoughts or feelings,
You'll learn to relate to them with openness,
With curiosity,
And most importantly,
With kindness.
Over time,
This can create a real sense of space,
Steadiness,
And calm,
Even when life feels a little overwhelming.
So,
Finding a quiet place where you can sit comfortably and undisturbed for a while.
You may sit on a chair with your feet on the ground,
Or on a cushion with your legs crossed.
Allow your spine to be upright,
But not rigid,
And your hands resting naturally.
When you're ready,
Softly close your eyes,
Or if that doesn't feel comfortable,
Just lowering your gaze.
And we're going to begin the practice by simply arriving.
There's nowhere else you need to go,
Nothing you need to fix,
Nothing you need to achieve in this moment.
Just arriving.
Into the body,
Into your breath,
Into the present.
And just taking a slow,
Gentle breath in through your nose,
And a long,
Easy breath out through your mouth.
Again,
Breathing in,
And breathing out,
Letting the body soften.
Allow your breathing to return to its natural rhythm.
No need to control it,
Just noticing it.
Bring your attention as best you can to the sensation of breathing.
Perhaps you feel the air moving through the nostrils,
Or maybe the rising and falling of the chest,
Or the gentle expansion and release of the abdomen.
As best you can,
Just letting your attention rest there.
As you sit here,
Simply observe each breath as it comes and goes.
Breathing in,
I know I'm breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know I'm breathing out.
If the mind wanders,
And it will,
Just gently noticing where it went.
No judgment,
No frustration,
No need to admonish ourselves.
Just acknowledging thinking,
Or planning,
Or worrying,
And then kindly guiding your attention back to the breath.
Each return to the breath is part of the practice.
At some point you may notice feelings of anxiety or stress arising.
When they do,
Instead of pushing them away,
Just seeing if you can turn towards them with gentle curiosity.
Where do you feel this in your body?
Perhaps it's a tightness in the chest.
Maybe it's a knot in the stomach.
Some tension in the shoulders or on the jawline.
Let your attention just rest there.
Not trying to change it in any way.
Maybe just feeling it.
You might silently say,
This is what anxiety feels like.
Or,
This is stress.
Just as best you can,
Allowing the sensation to be there.
Just as it is.
Now as best you can,
Imagine your breath moving into that area of tension.
Breathing in,
Gently making space around the sensation.
Breathing out,
Softening just a little.
You're not forcing it to go away.
You're simply allowing it to be held in awareness.
It's like giving it a little room to breathe.
If it shifts,
Changes,
Stays the same,
Just notice.
Now as best you can,
Just begin to widen your attention.
Instead of focusing only on the breath or a specific sensation,
Open your awareness to include the whole body.
The points of contact.
The feeling of sitting.
The subtle movements of breathing.
And any sounds that might be around you.
Notice them coming and going,
Without needing to label or follow them.
Letting everything arise,
But also pass within your awareness.
As best you can,
Turn your attention to the mind itself.
Watching thoughts as they come and go.
Rather than getting caught up in those thoughts,
Imagine you are sitting beside a stream,
Just watching the leaves float by.
Each thought is a leaf.
Like a worry,
A memory,
A plan.
You don't need to grab onto any of them.
Just noticing,
Thinking,
And letting it pass.
Even anxious thoughts can be seen this way.
Just mental events,
Not facts you must act on right now.
Now as best you can,
Bring in a sense of kindness into your awareness.
Recognizing that experiencing stress and anxiety is all part of being human.
You are not alone in this.
You might silently offer yourself a few gentle phrases.
May I feel safe.
May I feel calm.
May I be kind to myself in this moment.
Try and let the meaning of the words matter more than getting them perfect.
May I feel safe.
May I feel calm.
May I be kind to myself in this moment.
If it feels natural,
Imagine this kindness spreading throughout your body.
Gently softening these areas of tension.
May I feel safe.
May I feel calm.
May I be kind to myself in this moment.
As best you can,
Just letting go of all specific focus now.
No need to concentrate on anything in particular.
Just resting in open awareness.
Allowing breath,
Sensations,
Sounds and thoughts to come and go freely.
You are simply the space in which all this is happening.
Nothing to hold on to.
Nothing to push away.
Just being.
Just beginning to bring the attention back to the body now.
Feel the weight of your body sitting.
The contact with the ground or the chair.
The presence and weight of your hands wherever they're resting.
As best you can,
Allowing yourself to take a deeper breath in.
And a slow breath out.
Gently bringing a bit of movement to your body as we come to the close of this practice.
Maybe gently wiggling our fingers a little bit.
Moving our toes.
Having a gentle stretch.
If your eyes have been closed,
Slowly allowing those to open in your own time.
If your gaze has been softened,
Just allowing that gaze to gently focus again.
And just taking a moment to notice how you feel.
There's no need for it to be any particular way.
But just acknowledging whatever is here right now.
And as you continue with your day,
Wherever you find yourself,
Just seeing if you can carry a little of this awareness and this kindness that we've practiced just along with you.
Remembering that even a single mindful breath can be a place of safety and refuge.
And thank you for practicing with me today.
