Welcome and thank you for joining me in this short mindfulness practice to help you move calmly through your day.
Today's practice is a brief time out for you to reflect,
To rest and to reset.
To take advantage of the third space between our daily activities.
The practice aims to help you develop your ability to pause as you go about your daily tasks,
So that you can incorporate moments of gratitude,
Relaxation and intention into your daily routine to feel calmer and more in control.
So that you can be fully present in the moment and progress easily through your day.
To get started,
Allow yourself a quiet,
Undistracted space where you can sit easily.
Please make yourself comfortable.
Sit up so your spine is straight with your hands resting easily and your legs and feet supported.
Be alert but able to relax easily in your chosen position.
Soften your forehead and then let your eyes lower and if you want to,
You can close them gently.
Start to relax your jaw,
Your neck and your shoulders.
Once comfortable,
I invite you to take a couple of deep breaths.
Breathing in and breathing out.
Again a deep breath in and out.
Slowly and easily,
Not forcing the breath,
Just breathing in a relaxed and gentle way.
Let's take the opportunity now to firstly reflect on what you have just finished.
Take a moment to think about what you have just come from.
Focus on what you achieved and what went well.
Was it a chance to express yourself?
Was it a nice cup of coffee?
A kind or fun interaction?
Is there something positive you can take from that?
Something that you can feel grateful for?
Something that you could learn?
This positive reflection on what we have done supports growth and a productive mindset.
Let's take the opportunity now to rest for a moment,
To pause and recharge ourselves.
I invite you to take your focus to the soles of your feet.
Focus there for just a moment and then bring that awareness through your ankles and heels,
Up through your calves,
Over your knees,
Your thighs and into the pelvic region.
Continue to bring your focus up to your belly and hold that focus there for a moment,
Making space for the breath and feeling its energy moving in and moving out.
Calmly and gently breathing in and breathing out.
Now take your attention a little higher,
Up through the upper torso,
Across the top of your shoulders,
Again making space for the breath and feeling its energy moving in and moving out,
Calmly and gently breathing in and breathing out.
Send your focus from the shoulders down the upper arms,
Over your elbows,
Down the forearms,
Into the wrists,
The hands and the fingers.
I invite you again to take a couple of deep breaths,
In and out and again a deep breath in and out,
Calmly and easily,
Not forcing the breath,
Just breathing in a relaxed way.
Focus on your throat and feel the breath as it passes through your throat,
The cleansing breath going in and then the warm air going out.
Take your focus from the throat to the chin,
Across your lips and over your nostrils and cheekbones,
The ears.
Continue your focus upward over the temples and the eyes,
The eyelids and eyebrows,
Up to the forehead and then finally bring your focus to the crown of the head.
Hold your focus there and take a couple more deep breaths,
Breathing in and breathing out and again a deep breath in and out,
Calmly and easily,
Not forcing the breath,
Just breathing in a relaxed way.
Notice the benefit of this short relaxing pause,
A space of self recovery to honour yourself.
Let's lastly take the opportunity now to reset.
I invite you to set your intention for how you want to show up positively for what's next.
Think about how you want to go into that experience,
With gratitude,
With love,
With peace,
With calm,
Having a clear and optimistic intention supports a more positive interaction.
Try and maintain that intention.
As we come to a close,
Bring your attention back to your breath again,
Take a couple of deeper breaths,
Noticing the rise and fall of your chest as you inhale and exhale,
Focus on your whole body,
Remembering where you are sitting,
Becoming mindful of the contact of your body with the seat.
Briefly notice the sounds you can hear and then when you are ready,
Feel free to open your eyes.
Thank yourself for your commitment to your meditation practice today and accept my gratitude for sharing this meditation with me.
I hope it helps you incorporate moments of gratitude,
Relaxation and intention into your daily routine to feel calmer and more in control so that you can be fully present in the moment and progress more easily through your day.
Thank you.
