Finding yourself in a really comfortable position to rest in.
Maybe lying down or seated with some back support.
And once you're comfortable,
Just gently closing the eyes.
And we attempt to draw our focus in for a few moments.
So when you're ready to just start listening to your breathing.
Every inhale,
Every exhale.
Maybe it takes you a while to slow the breath down.
Maybe you have arrived in this space with quite a quick heart rate.
Don't worry.
Just take your time to slow your breathing.
And gently,
As your breathing starts to steady,
Starts to slow down.
Allow yourself to start to experience some softness in your body.
Whatever tensions and stresses you've brought with you,
Maybe in your face or your shoulders and the legs and the arms.
Just allow with every one of your exhale breaths,
These areas soften.
Maybe one by one.
Maybe they all soften together a little.
And continue to soften as you breathe.
And consider this as you continue a slow,
Soft inhale through the nose.
And your slow,
Soft exhales through the mouth.
Gently feeling more comfortable in your body.
Maybe there's a lot to soften today.
Try your best to be patient.
Patient with your steady breathing.
With finding that slow,
Steady softness through the body.
And also be patient with those harder to reach areas.
Wherever they may be for you.
And as we continue to breathe gently,
As we continue to soften the body,
And as we continue to draw the attention inward,
Invite you to find a more natural and normal breath.
Maybe this just means the breath is less audible.
Maybe we start to breathe in and out through the nose.
But just gently make your way to a breath that doesn't cause you any pressure or puts any extra stress on you to think about what you're doing.
Just breathe really naturally,
Really normally.
And you're just hanging out in this space that you've created.
You've softened the body gently.
And now you're able to enjoy the softness,
Enjoy some stillness here.
Maybe as you sit here,
Breathing gently,
Breathing naturally.
Maybe you start to notice other areas that need a bit more of your time.
Maybe you start to feel really good in some areas that you've softened already.
Just keep drawing your attention inward on your body,
On your breath.
Maybe even on your mind,
Other thoughts coming in now.
And as thoughts do start to come in,
Do your best to allow them to leave just as gently.
Imagine each time a new thought comes in,
It dissolves softly.
And slowly we try our best to expand that space in between each new thought.
Staying with your normal and your natural breath,
Honouring anything that's coming up in these moments of rest.
And these moments of focus.
We start to deepen the breath once again like we did at the start.
As we inhale through the nose,
Imagine the body is expanding,
We're getting bigger,
Maybe you feel that expansion in the belly.
And then as you exhale through the mouth,
Once again soften and release.
Continue to honour just a few more full breaths.
Keeping the attention drawn inward,
Not allowing yourself to get too distracted if you can help it.
Continuing to honour the expansion on the inhale,
And the softening on your exhale.
Maybe you find a couple more breaths here.
Maybe you start to bring some awareness back into physical body,
With a little wiggle here and there,
Maybe there's a little wiggle in the face muscles.
Maybe the breath becomes a little bit more powerful and starts to bring some energy back into the body.
But when you're ready to,
And only when you're ready to,
In your rested position,
Just gently scan through the body,
Tapping into what feels good,
Where it feels strong,
Where it feels powerful,
And also mindful of any areas that do need a little bit more of your attention.
Power to the breath now as you inhale through the nose.
Exhale and sigh out anything that's still clinging on,
Any stresses that are still there.
Holding yourself in this moment for as long as you need to.
Maybe there's some big power breaths to come,
Maybe you come back to that soft,
Normal and natural breath.
But when you're ready to just continuing to listen to the body,
Continuing to tap in,
Maybe the breath starts to slow.
And when you're ready to gently taking a little look around you,
Bringing awareness back to your senses.
Maybe finishing this rested meditation with a lovely stretch or a shake to bring back some energy.
And when you're happy to,
If you're happy to,
Gently bring your hands to heart centre,
Bowing the head,
Thanking yourself for your practice and your focus,
And also thanking yourself for finding that time to rest.
And I thank you for joining.
If you're continuing to breathe here and you're staying in your stillness,
Enjoy it for as long as you need.
