Welcome to this guided meditation to ground and witness brought to you by Create the Calm.
Take a moment to settle into a position that feels supportive for your body right now.
You might be seated or lying down or even standing.
There's no one right way to be here.
If it feels safe and comfortable,
Allow your eyes to close.
If not,
Soften your gaze and let it rest somewhere neutral.
Begin by noticing that you are breathing.
There's no need to change your breath,
Just notice it.
Notice where you feel your breath most clearly today,
Perhaps in the gentle rise and fall of your chest,
The expansion of your ribs,
Or maybe even the subtle movement of your belly.
Let your breath be exactly as it is.
You're not here to fix anything.
You're here to notice.
As you continue breathing,
Bring your attention down into your body and notice where you're supported.
Feel the places where your body makes contact with the chair,
The floor,
Or the surface beneath you.
Imagine that beneath those points of contact,
The ground is steady and dependable,
Solid and present.
If it helps,
Picture the ground beneath you as something ancient and stable.
Earth that's been here long before you and will remain long after this moment passes.
Allow yourself to gently rest into that support.
Now bring your awareness to your feet.
Even if you don't feel much at first,
Simply place your attention there.
Notice any sensations that are present,
Maybe warmth or coolness,
Pressure,
Tingling,
Or perhaps very little at all.
Whatever you notice is enough.
Imagine your feet growing heavier as if gravity is gently drawing them downward.
From the soles of your feet,
Imagine roots extending into the ground below you.
Slow,
Steady roots that don't rush or strive.
With each exhale,
Allow those roots to grow a little deeper,
Anchoring you and stabilizing you.
Let your awareness move up into your legs.
Notice their weight,
The muscles in the bones,
Providing structure and support.
You might even imagine your legs as strong pillars,
Quietly doing their job without needing recognition.
There's nothing you need to do to deserve this support.
Your body knows how to hold you.
Bring awareness into your hips and pelvis,
A place where many of us carry unspoken tension.
See if you can soften just a little here,
Not all at once.
Just enough to let your body know it's allowed to rest.
Now notice your lower back and abdomen,
And the natural movement of your breath in this area.
If you like,
You might place a hand on your belly and feel it rise and fall beneath your palm.
This is the rhythm of life moving through you,
Steady and reliable.
You don't have to control it.
Bring your attention up into your chest and heart space,
Where breath,
Emotion and energy often meet.
If you notice tightness or tenderness here,
Simply acknowledge it.
You don't need to push it away or even understand it.
See if you can relate to it as a sensation,
Rather than a problem.
Shift your awareness to your shoulders,
And notice what they might be carrying.
With your next exhale,
Imagine them gently dropping,
Even just a fraction of an inch.
Let some of the weight you've been holding just slide off,
Just for right now.
Bring attention into your arms,
Your hands and your fingers,
Noticing any pulsing or warmth.
These are also signs of life and presence.
Then bring your awareness to your neck,
Your jaw and your face.
Unclench your teeth if they're touching.
Let your tongue rest easily and soften the muscles around your eyes and forehead.
Allow your whole body to be included in this moment.
From this grounded place,
Begin to notice your inner experience more closely.
There's no need to search for anything specific.
Simply notice what's already here.
Sensations may be present in your body.
Emotions may be quietly moving in the background.
Thoughts,
They may come and go.
Nothing needs to be different in order for this moment to be valid.
Bring your attention to the physical sensation first.
Notice where you feel something most clearly right now.
It might be obvious,
A tightness,
A heaviness,
Maybe a warmth.
Or it might be subtle,
Almost hard to name.
You might notice pulsing,
Buzzing,
Pressure,
Hollowness or a sense of energetic movement.
You may also notice areas that feel neutral,
Numb or quiet.
All of this counts.
There's no right sensation to be having.
As you notice a sensation,
See if you can describe it gently.
Without judgment.
You might silently name qualities like temperature,
Texture,
Size or intensity.
Is it sharp or dull?
Is it dense or light?
Maybe it's steady or shifting.
You're not analyzing,
You're simply getting curious.
Like a kind of witness,
Learning the language of your body.
Now notice if any emotions are present alongside these sensations.
They don't need a story.
You don't have to explain where they come from or what they mean.
Simply acknowledge them as energy moving through.
You might quietly name them if that feels helpful.
Sadness,
Irritation,
Tenderness,
Calm,
Uncertainty or you might just recognize that something emotional is here.
Even I don't know is a valid noticing.
If thoughts arise,
Allow them to be there too.
Rather than following them though,
See if you can recognize the experience of thinking itself.
Silently name it thinking and then gently return your attention to the sensations.
To what you can feel in your body right now.
You may find that some sensations or emotions feel uncomfortable,
Vulnerable or maybe unfamiliar.
If so,
See if you can stay just long enough to acknowledge their presence without trying to change them.
You're not required to like what you notice.
You're only practicing being with it.
And if at any point it feels like too much,
You can always return to the steadiness of your breath,
To your feet or to your connection to the ground.
As you continue,
Notice what happens when you allow sensations to exist without resistance.
They may shift,
They may soften or they may stay the same.
There are no expectations.
Today you're learning what you can notice about what's happening inside of you without being overwhelmed by it.
You're building the capacity to stay present with your own experience.
Silently offer yourself a few gentle affirmations,
Letting them land in your body rather than in your mind.
I'm allowed to feel what I feel.
I can notice sensations without needing to fix them.
I'm learning to trust my body's signals.
Spend a few quiet moments here simply noticing sensations,
Emotions,
Breath and thinking coming and going in their own time.
You're not behind and you're not doing this wrong.
You're practicing awareness.
As you move back into your day,
Carry this sense of grounding and witnessing with you.
You can return to it anytime with a breath,
A pause or a moment of awareness in your body.
If you'd like to go deeper into these practices,
You're warmly invited to explore the premium tracks and classes available through Create the Calm,
Where we continue building these everyday inner muscles together.
Following Create the Calm will help you stay connected to new releases and rating or reviewing this meditation helps others find their way here.
And if you feel called to support the work of Create the Calm,
Donations are always deeply appreciated and help make these offerings possible.
Thank you for taking this time to ground,
To witness and to be with yourself just as you are.
