Hello,
Friend.
Thank you so much for joining me.
We're going to do a brief self-regulation practice that utilizes the eyes.
As you're getting to know me,
You've probably already guessed this is one of my favorite ways to engage the nervous system,
So I would not recommend you do this practice driving.
Anywhere that you're not moving and relatively safe is perfect,
And you can choose any position.
So just ensure that you're relatively comfortable,
And we're going to begin by finding our baseline.
So just using your eyes to scan the space,
Noticing the objects that you're sharing your environment,
Noticing the quality of light,
Taking in any sounds,
And tuning into the body,
Noticing any physical sensations,
Tension,
And then checking in with the mind.
And finally,
Checking in on the heart space,
Any emotional movements.
All right,
And once you know where we're starting from,
You're going to take a hand,
Any hand,
And you're going to cover one of your eyes.
Please close it first.
Pick an eye,
Any eye.
And then with the eye that's still open,
You're going to pick a spot.
It does not have to be anything exciting,
Doesn't have to be a specific distance away.
Just find a fixed point.
We'll be using this fixed point throughout the practice,
So if it tickles your fancy,
Choose something that you find pleasant to look at,
If that's available to you.
And we're just going to focus on that point.
And while you're doing this,
You're going to invite the body to be soft.
And what that means is if you feel the urge to stretch,
To move,
Or if your body in any other way needs to reorient itself,
Then you take a deep breath,
Yawn,
Stretch,
Do that,
While maintaining that fixed point with your gaze.
A few more breath cycles here.
And then when you feel ready,
Keeping your eye on that point,
Keeping your hand covering the other side,
And just rotate your head one way,
And then the other way.
It's kind of like a very slow head shake now,
While maintaining a fixed gaze on the point of your choosing.
Find a speed that works for you.
And then when you feel ready,
Find midline again with your head,
And then tip your chin up,
And then tip your chin down.
So almost as if you're nodding very slowly,
Yes,
Still with your gaze fixed on that point.
Remembering to let the body do what it needs to do.
And of course,
Remembering your breath is one of your greatest tools,
So feel free to release that.
If you notice that you're holding.
One more nod here,
Wherever you are.
Great.
And you're going to shut both eyes.
And take the hand away from the eye that was covered.
And then you're going to take your opposite hand,
Cover the opposite eye,
And then open up the eye that was just shut.
So we've just switched sides here.
And you guessed it,
Find that point that you were just looking at.
And land there.
Taking a few breath cycles just to acclimate to how this is different.
And then when you feel ready,
Same dance as the other side.
So you're going to keep your gaze focused on the thing,
And then you're going to very slowly rotate your head one way and then the other way.
So very slow,
No thank you.
Shaking your head.
Finding speed that works for you.
Lovely.
Remember to let your breath and body be soft,
If you can access that.
And then when you feel ready and complete with the no,
You're going to come back to midline,
Take a cycle of breath here,
And then you guessed it.
Try to nod your head yes.
So reaching the chin to the sky,
And then tucking the chin and reaching the nose down to the floor,
Keeping the gaze on that spot.
Very nice.
One more cycle wherever you are,
Remembering to release that breath.
And then when you feel complete,
Come to relative stillness,
Close both the eyes,
Remove the hand.
Take just a few cycles of breath here with both eyes closed.
And then when you feel ready,
Bat the eyelashes open.
And then finding that point again with both eyes open.
And then just taking a moment here with both eyes open to just move the head in all ways.
So take some time to rotate the head right left,
So finding a little head shake no,
And then up down.
Finding your yes,
And then maybe even finding some circles with the nose.
It's kind of rotating the head but keeping your eyes fixated on the point.
Remembering to invite relaxation to the body.
And then as you feel ready,
Come into stillness.
And on your next exhale,
Really release the breath if you're in a comfortable place where it feels safe.
You can even let out a little sigh,
Make some sound.
And then we're just going to check back in.
So using your eyes to gaze around the space again,
Just noticing the objects that you're sharing your environment.
Noticing the quality of light.
Noticing any physical discomfort,
Any tension in the body,
Any sensation of pleasure.
Checking back in with the mind.
Noticing what the brain train is up to.
Checking back in with the heart.
Noticing any emotional movements.
And I'll leave you here.
Feel free to repeat that if you found it helpful.
And also feel free to listen to your system and get it what it needs in this moment.
Thank you so much for practicing with me.
I'll see you next time.
