Welcome.
Thank you for taking some time with me to pause,
Breathe,
And gently return to yourself.
In this 25-minute body scan guided meditation,
I'll be inviting you to focus directly on different areas of your body to build awareness of physical sensations.
Using the breath as an anchor to the present moment,
We'll be guiding our awareness from the bottom to the top of the body.
This meditation can be useful for anxiety and stress relief,
Settling the mind and relaxing the body for sleep,
And to strengthen bodily awareness for a healthy mind-body connection.
You can do this practice sitting up or lying down,
Whatever position allows you to relax while maintaining enough attention to focus on your body.
Let's settle in and journey together.
Take a moment to reconnect with your breath,
Feeling all the sensations involved with your inhale and exhale.
You might notice a temperature change in your nostrils with your in-breath and out-breath,
A rise and fall of your chest or belly,
Or a general sense of expansion and contraction in the entire body.
Whichever sensation feels easiest to notice,
Allow yourself to land with it,
Using it as an anchor for you into the present moment.
You might imagine your body softening with each exhale,
Releasing tension stored from the day,
And allowing some space around any stress that may be occupying your mind.
If you find it hard to stay with the sensations of your breath,
You can place a hand over your chest or belly,
Or silently repeat to yourself,
Inhale,
Exhale.
As you settle into this practice,
Expand your attention to your body,
First by noticing how your body feels at this moment.
You might notice tension or fatigue,
Heaviness or lightness,
Tingling,
Coolness or heat.
Whatever you're feeling at this moment,
Make space for it.
Allow it to be here.
It's normal for your mind to wander to thoughts or other events from your day.
When it does,
Bring your mind back to your breath or a sensation in your body.
Starting at the bottom of your body,
Notice your feet.
Whether they're making contact with the floor or another object,
Notice what sensations are present.
You might start by noticing your toes,
And moving your awareness to the arch of your feet,
To the heels and ankles,
And expanding to the feet as a whole.
Noticing any sensations of warmth or coolness,
Tingling or throbbing,
Or anything else that's present.
It's also okay to notice no sensations at all,
And if so,
You can wiggle or bend your toes,
Or roll your feet around to create a sensation to land with.
Move your awareness up to your legs.
Maybe you feel the contact of your leg muscles against the surface you're resting on.
Maybe you feel a sense of warmth,
Pulsing,
Fatigue or stiffness.
Allow yourself to be with whatever you notice.
When you're ready,
Move your awareness to your lower back and sitting bones.
The lower back often holds tension,
And you may notice some discomfort with drawing your attention here.
If you do,
You can allow for some gentle movement to release tension.
You can also send your exhale directly to this area to create some space around this discomfort.
Or,
You can bring your awareness back to the sensations of your breath.
Bringing your awareness to the middle of your back,
Noticing the expansion and contraction of your breath,
And the sensation these create in your middle back.
Noticing the upper back and the shoulders.
Allowing yourself to be with whatever you may notice here.
If there's any gentle movement that your back needs,
You can allow that to happen.
Bring your awareness down the sides of your body.
Maybe choosing one side to focus on for a few moments,
And then bringing your attention to the other.
Here,
You might notice the movement of your ribcage with your breathing,
Or sensations in your hips.
Allow yourself to be with whatever you notice for a few moments.
And if the sensations are too intense,
Bring your awareness back to your breathing.
If you're not noticing much in your body,
That's okay too.
You can create a sensation to land with through touch or movement,
Or connect back to your inhale and exhale.
You can invite awareness to your belly,
Abdomen,
And pelvic area.
Noticing any expansion and contraction with the breath,
Or any other sensations that arise here.
If there's any tension you can release,
Do so now.
And if that tension doesn't release,
That's also okay.
Invite yourself to stay with whatever you notice.
Move your attention to your chest.
Noticing if your chest rises and falls with your breath.
Noticing any feelings of heaviness or lightness in your heart center.
Noticing if you can sense your heartbeat.
Bring your awareness to your arms,
Hands,
And fingers.
Noticing how they're placed in space,
And the sensations of what they're resting against.
Narrowing your attention to your palms,
Noticing what's present here.
You can wiggle your fingers or gently move your hands through space to enhance any sensations you feel.
Bringing your awareness up to your neck and your throat.
There may be some gentle neck movement you'd like to invite here.
Moving your awareness to your head.
Noticing any sensations in the back of the head.
And moving forward over your scalp and the top of your head.
And downward to your face.
Noticing your facial features.
Your forehead.
Eyes.
Ears.
Cheeks.
Nose.
Mouth.
And chin.
Notice if you're holding tension in your face.
And relax any facial muscles that might be tight.
As we start to close this practice,
Expand your awareness back to your entire body.
Scanning it from head to toe.
Feeling its weight and presence.
Notice if your awareness of your body has shifted through this practice.
If it feels right,
You can take a moment to express gratitude for how your body serves you each day.
And maybe set an intention to come back to this practice to build a healthy relationship between your mind and your body.
Take one more slow,
Nourishing breath.
Invite in some gentle movement.
And bring your awareness back to your current time and space.
Thank you for taking the time to practice with me,
And I look forward to our next journey together.
Www.
Mooji.
Org
