Welcome.
This time is set aside for you.
There's nowhere else you need to go and nothing else you need to do.
If you've been feeling anxious,
Mentally busy or on edge,
This time is simply about allowing your system to settle,
Without forcing anything to change.
If you can,
Settle yourself somewhere comfortable,
Lying down on a bed or a sofa,
Or seated in a way that allows your body to be fully supported.
If you're using headphones,
Allow the sound to gently close off the outside world for a while.
You don't need to achieve anything during this meditation,
You don't need to try to relax or to try and clear your mind.
If your attention wanders,
And it almost certainly will,
That's not a mistake,
That's simply how the mind works.
And when you notice it happening,
You can acknowledge it quietly,
And then guide your attention back to where we are focusing.
No judgement,
No effort.
And if at any point you drift into sleep,
Or a deeper state of rest,
That's also fine.
You will still take in what's useful to you.
For now,
Just allow your eyes to close gently,
And let your body begin to settle.
Take a moment to notice the points of contact between your body and whatever's supporting you.
The surface beneath you doing the work of holding you up.
You don't need to hold yourself together right now.
As the sounds continue around you,
Allow them to fade into the background.
Not pushing them away,
Just letting them be less important.
Bring your attention to your breathing.
Not changing it,
Not improving it,
Simply noticing that it's already happening.
Notice the rhythm of your breath as it comes in,
And as it goes out.
The body breathing itself.
You might notice the breath most clearly at your nose,
Or maybe in your chest.
Or in the gentle movement of the abdomen.
There's no right place to focus,
Just choose one and stay with it for a few breaths.
As you breathe in,
Notice the slight sense of expansion.
As you breathe out,
Notice a subtle release.
Each out breath offering the body permission to soften a little more.
If at any point,
Your mind jumps ahead,
Or jumps back,
Or sideways into thought,
That's fine.
Anxiety often shows up as restlessness in the body,
Or urgency in the mind.
If you notice that,
You're not doing this wrong,
You're noticing exactly what's here.
Just notice it,
And return to the next breath.
Nothing else is required.
Now gently bring your awareness to your face.
Notice your forehead.
It feels tight,
Imagine it smoothing slightly.
Notice the muscles around your eyes,
And allow them to rest in their sockets,
And let the space behind the eyes feel a little more open,
And a little less busy.
Bring your attention next to your jaw.
If your teeth are touching,
Allow them to separate slightly.
Let the tongue rest where it wants to.
From here,
Allow your awareness to move into your neck and your shoulders.
So often the shoulders carry tension without us realising at all,
There's no need to force them to relax,
Just notice them.
And perhaps on an out breath,
Allow them to drop by a fraction.
Awareness moves down through the upper arms,
The elbows,
The forearms,
And into the hands.
Notice the palms,
The fingers.
Any sensations,
Warmth,
Tingling,
Heaviness,
Or perhaps very little at all.
Whatever you notice is fine.
Now bring your attention to your upper back,
The area between your shoulder blades,
And then slowly down the spine,
To the lower back,
And to the hips.
Allow yourself to feel fully supported here.
You don't need to stay braced or alert right now,
For these few minutes it's safe enough to soften.
Your awareness continues down through the thighs,
Through the calves,
The shins,
Into the ankles and to your feet.
Notice the heels,
The soles of your feet,
And finally the toes,
The whole body now present together.
For a few moments rest your attention on the body as a whole,
Breathing,
Supported.
Thoughts may still be present in the background,
And that's ok.
Rather than engaging with them,
You might imagine them like leaves floating along a gentle stream.
Each thought appears,
And rests briefly on the surface,
And then drifts past.
You don't need to decide whether a thought is important or unimportant.
You don't need to follow it.
This is how anxious thoughts lose their grip,
Not to be argued with,
But by being allowed to pass without action.
Just noticing.
And if another thought comes,
Place that one on a leaf too,
And let it move on.
There's no rush.
Now if it feels comfortable,
Allow a sense of imagery to form,
Lightly and without effort.
Imagine yourself somewhere calm and somewhere natural,
Perhaps near a gentle stream or slow moving water.
It might be a place that you know,
Or one you've never been to.
You don't need to see it clearly,
Just a sense of being somewhere unhurried.
The air feels mild,
And the light is soft,
And you are sitting or resting in a way that feels very easy to you.
Notice the sound of the water.
Steady.
Continuous.
That sound naturally brings attention back to the present moment.
Nothing is demanded of you here.
Allow yourself to stay here for a while,
Moving between awareness of the body,
And of the breath,
And of this gentle scene in front of you.
From this place you might bring to mind something in your life that you appreciate.
Nothing dramatic,
Nothing forced.
Something simple.
Let that sense of appreciation register in your body,
Perhaps as warmth,
Or ease,
Or perhaps softness.
And if nothing comes to mind,
That's okay too.
There's no requirement here.
Now,
Silently,
You might allow these words to settle if they feel appropriate.
I am here,
And I don't need to solve anything right now.
This moment is manageable.
You don't need to feel wonderful.
You don't need to feel calm all the time.
Just here is enough.
For the next few minutes,
Simply remain in this state,
Aware,
Supported,
And unhurried.
And if thoughts come to pass,
Then just let them pass.
If sensations change,
Notice them.
There's nothing you need to add,
And nothing you need to remove.
Each time you practice noticing without reacting,
You are teaching your nervous system that anxious moments can move through without taking over.
And when this meditation begins to draw to a close,
Allow your mind to know that you can return to this state at any time,
Even for a few breaths during the day.
When you naturally come back to waking awareness,
You may notice a sense of steadiness,
Or clarity,
Or quiet presence that stays with you.
Take your time.
There's no need to hurry.
When you are ready,
Gently allow your awareness to return,
Bringing this sense of presence with you.
