Hello,
This is Zia.
Welcome to this small practice that helps you self-soothe,
Contain,
And self-care through difficult moments.
Find a place where you can sit down comfortably and quiet for a few minutes.
If you prefer to stand or lie down,
Let that be accessible to you also.
Take a moment to ask your body to ask yourself,
What position would feel the best to me right now?
You might like to curl up while you sit up on a couch or lie down on your side in a fetal position.
Whichever one calls to you the most.
You might like to explore what it feels like to allow yourself to do what your body has an urge to do in this moment right now.
And rather than judge it,
To invite in curiosity so that there is an atmosphere of exploration through this whole process.
Isn't it interesting that my body wants to do this right now?
I wonder what it's asking.
When and as you feel ready,
You can bring your hands up in front of you,
Close to your body,
With the palms facing out,
As if you were getting ready to push something away.
From this point on,
Even while your mind listens to and follows the words,
Allow yourself to also engage as fully as you can with your senses and through your senses.
Feel your hands as if they were pushing something away.
Let your hands push in slow motion outward,
As if you're pushing away the weight of the world,
Your busy thoughts,
Other people,
External demands,
And perhaps even your own internal demands.
And as you in slow motion push outward,
I wonder if you could start feeling a sense of a little more spaciousness within you.
Notice how far your hands want to push up.
Notice how far they can.
Is it just a few centimeters or inches?
Is it a foot?
Is it two feet?
Just notice.
Once again,
Starting close to your body,
You might like to slowly push out the next layer that you might sense.
In slow motion,
With intention and calm,
I am creating a little space temporarily for myself.
It's like taking physical,
Emotional,
Mental,
Somatic,
Neurological break.
Why not?
Let your hands come to rest in your lap,
And let yourself sit for a moment and notice what might have changed for you.
Did your breath get a little bit more relaxed?
Did the action of pushing away allow you to lean back just a little bit more?
Did your shoulders feel lighter?
Or perhaps,
In this new space,
You've noticed things that the external noise didn't allow you to notice.
Observe as much as you can,
Rather than judge or try to change.
And notice how your hands feel.
Are they more alive?
Do they have more energy?
Are you more aware of them?
Now turn your mind's eye to the back of your body.
The back of your head,
The back of your neck,
The back of your shoulders,
Your shoulder blades,
Your middle back.
Your lower back,
Your pelvis,
Your buttocks,
The back of your thighs,
The back of your knees,
Your shins,
The back of your ankles,
All the way down to the bottom of your feet,
All the way to the bottom of your toes.
And as you focus on your back body,
You might like to experiment with leaning back just a little bit.
I wonder how you lean back.
Do you find yourself melting into your chair or the mattress you're on?
Or do you stay in the same position and just feel your muscles melting a little bit?
Beautiful.
Just noticing your own ability to notice.
Now you might like to lightly scan your body and notice any area of tension.
Perhaps it's your tight,
Tired eyes,
Or your belly holding all the tension.
Maybe it's your neck and your shoulder,
The weight of the world.
As you notice this tension,
Let your hands come to rest in that area.
Imagine how you would hold a bee,
To garment,
Or a young child or a baby that's distressed.
That same caring,
Soothing quality.
Allow your hands to hold your belly,
To hold your neck,
Your shoulder.
Let your hands rest in your belly,
In your shoulders,
In your arms.
Soothe your eyes,
Extending all the comfort and care that you would so easily give to somebody else.
How tender can your own hands be towards that tightness in your belly?
How well can your own hands hold and soothe your tight neck?
And let yourself breathe into this moment,
Into this action.
If your hands could speak,
What would they say to your belly,
Or your tight neck,
Or your tired,
Tense eyes,
Or your jaw that's clenching for lengths?
What would your hands say to the pain in your back,
Or your knee?
And what would that part of you,
As it feels the hands holding,
Say to your hands?
Let yourself sit quietly and listen to the conversation.
Take all the time you need to let your own body discover what your own hands can do for it.
Notice the warmth beneath your palms.
Notice your hand extending the warmth.
And care.
And then notice that part of your body beneath your hands,
How it receives it,
And what changes for you in this exchange.
Let your body feel your hands,
And let your hands feel your body.
You might like to notice what happens in other areas of your body as this exchange takes place.
Does your breathing change?
Do the thoughts in your mind change?
As much as you can,
Let yourself feel rather than think through these noticing.
Take as long as you need for this exploration.
Let that part of your body tell you how long it wants your hands to soothe.
Let your body tell you when it's enough.
Learning to listen,
And learning to hear quiet messages from your own body,
And learning to give to yourself what's needed in the moment.
So even though this recording ends,
You can stay exploring this for as long as you need,
And perhaps plan for when you will explore in the same way again.
And after the exploration,
You might like to notice and remember what changed for you,
And more importantly,
What you did to get that change.
Each time you push away the rest of the world and allow yourself some space and time,
Each time you give yourself even a little bit of what you really need.
You rewire your relationship with yourself and with the world,
And grow your capacity for more safety in the moment.
Happy exploration!
