40-Minute Body Scan Meditation

Welcome to this 40-minute body scan meditation.

Taking this time as an opportunity to notice your body with complete and focused attention as best you can.

And bringing with this attention a particular attitude of openness,

Curiosity,

And acceptance of whatever is here in this moment.

The body scan is a practice that helps us get in touch with the body and mind by bringing attention to the felt senses in the body through physical sensations.

You may experience many different sensations such as itches,

Aches,

Tingles,

Feeling of lightness,

Heaviness,

And perhaps even discomfort or pain.

Or you may not be able to notice any sensations at all,

And that's okay too.

As we move through the body part by part,

Some areas may feel tense and tight.

And if possible,

You can try to soften those areas if you like.

But if you're unable to,

Just letting those sensations ripple and resonate wherever they need to go.

Just allowing yourself to acknowledge whatever is arising into the field of awareness.

Understanding when the mind wanders,

Which it will.

Accepting this lost focus.

And then kindly and gently returning attention back to the part of the body we're attending to.

Taking some time now to come into a supported position,

However you need to prepare to best be able to sustain this practice through our 40 minutes.

You can lie down,

Sit in a chair,

Or even stand.

Adjusting in whatever way you need to,

Knowing too that you're not stuck in whatever position you choose.

If you like,

Consider taking off your shoes,

Using a pillow or a cushion under your knees if you're lying down,

Or behind your back if you are sitting.

Closing your eyes if you choose,

Or simply keeping them open with a soft,

Unfocused gaze.

And bringing attention now to the entire body as a whole resting here.

Realizing that with each breath,

The body expands and softens.

Inhaling and exhaling.

There is no place to go,

Nothing else to do,

But simply being here with the body in this moment.

Breathing.

And now narrowing your attention and allowing it to travel down the torso,

Down the left leg,

And into your left foot.

Starting here by noticing the toes on your left foot.

Sensing into the big toe.

Scanning through the smaller toes,

Down to the pinky toe.

Scanning the spaces between the toes of the left foot,

And noticing points of contact with the other toes.

You might notice a felt sense of a shoe or a sock,

Perhaps a sense of temperature or air movement,

Perhaps internal sensations of tension,

Tingling,

Itching,

Or perhaps you notice nothing at all,

And that's okay.

Spreading attention through the left foot,

Scanning the bottom of the left foot,

From the ball of the foot across the arch to the heel.

Scanning to the top of the left foot.

Scanning to the Achilles tendon.

Becoming aware of any sensations present here.

Sensing attention now into the ankle,

The inner ankle,

And the outer ankle.

Noticing where the attention is now,

Is it straight or is it here in the body,

In your left ankle?

Remembering the mind wanders,

No judgement,

Just noticing and returning again and again.

Putting go of the left foot,

Moving your attention into the lower left leg.

Scanning the calf muscle,

Perhaps noticing points of contact with the floor or lack of contact with the floor.

Scanning around into the shin,

And rising up to feel the connection into the left knee joint.

Sometimes as we move through the body attending in this particular way,

We may become aware of sensations of discomfort or pain.

When this happens,

Knowing that we can focus on the breath for a time if the sensation is too intense,

Or we can simply view the sensation of discomfort or pain as just that.

Another sensation to be felt and noticed with kindness and curiosity.

Letting go of the lower left leg and moving into the left knee.

Sensing the back of the knee,

Sides of the knee,

Through the knee joint to the top of the knee and the kneecap.

Just simply noticing what sensations are present here in the left knee.

Continuing the scan up to the left upper leg,

Scanning the back of the upper leg,

Sensing into the large hamstring muscle,

Through the large femur bone to the tops of the thigh.

Noticing what sensations are present here in the upper left leg.

Releasing the left leg and bringing attention down the right leg,

Coming to rest in the right foot.

Noticing first the right big toe,

Bringing a sense of curiosity to physical sensations that may be present in the right big toe.

Scanning through the rest of the toes on the right foot.

Sensing spaces between the toes and points of contact between all of the toes on the right foot.

Scanning through the sole of the right foot,

Sensing the ball of the right foot,

The arch,

And the heel of the right foot.

Scanning to the top of the right foot.

Once again,

Just bringing a sense of curiosity.

What sensation is here in the right foot?

Moving up the right Achilles tendon and into the right ankle.

Letting go of the right foot,

Moving into the right lower leg,

Sensing first the calf back of the lower right leg.

And scanning to the shin.

Moving up the right leg to the knee,

Sensing into the back of the right knee,

The sides of the right knee,

Through the knee joint itself,

And to the top of the right knee and the right kneecap.

Letting go of the lower right leg and moving attention up to the upper right leg.

Scanning first the back of the hamstring muscle,

The right leg,

Through the large femur bone,

And to the top of the right thigh,

Attending to the body with an open and curious attention,

Noticing the right upper leg.

Letting go of the legs and moving our attention into the hips.

Scanning first into the left hip,

Noticing surface sensations of clothing,

Pressure,

And internal sensations,

Perhaps of a achiness or pulsing or tingling,

Or again,

Perhaps no sensation at all in the left hip.

Knowing this is just another event to notice,

Lack of sensation.

And scanning over to the right hip,

Noticing surface sensations and internal sensations of the right hip.

Scanning between the hips into the pelvic girdle,

Home of our systems of reproduction and elimination,

Bringing this same sense of open and kind curiosity to sensations in the pelvic region.

We may notice as we move through the body scan that particular judgments or thoughts arise around parts of the body,

Recognizing that this is simply distraction and mind wandering,

Just like any other distraction.

Letting go and returning back to sensing into the body.

Moving attention now around to the buttocks and the tailbone.

Noticing points of contact with the floor,

Chair,

Or lack of points of contact.

Noticing any sensations at the tailbone,

The bottom of the spine.

Moving attention now into the lower back,

Noticing what sensations are here in the low back.

Seeing the slight curve of the low back.

Continuing to scan up the back to the mid-back and to the upper back.

Many of us carry tension in our back muscles and if this is true for you,

Just simply acknowledging this as sensation.

Seeing if this same sense of acceptance and kindness can be brought to every sensation discovered in the body.

Moving attention now around back to the front of the torso,

Sensing into the belly.

The belly home to our systems of digestion and assimilation.

Noticing perhaps sensations on the skin,

Clothing,

Pressure.

Our internal sensations of hunger,

Lack of hunger,

Fullness.

Connecting with the breath here at the belly.

Feeling the belly rising and softening with each in-breath and out-breath.

Noticing where the attention is now.

Coming back to the felt sense of the body.

Moving attention now to the chest,

Sensing here too,

Perhaps physical touch of clothing,

Sensations on the skin.

Noticing here too with the breath.

Feeling the rising and falling of the rib cage as the lungs fill and empty.

Breathing.

And sensing perhaps deep within your chest,

The beating of the heart.

Noticing here too with the breath.

And now letting go of the torso and bringing attention down the left arm to the left hand,

Sensing into the fingers.

Noticing here sensations of temperature,

Pressure.

Sensing into the thumb.

Scanning through the rest of the fingers on the left hand,

The spaces between the fingers.

And scanning into the palm of the left hand.

Noticing the top of the left hand.

And scanning into the left wrist.

Sensing up into the left forearm.

And sensing into the left elbow.

And continuing up the left arm to the left upper arm.

The bicep,

The tricep,

Into the armpit and the connections with the torso at the left shoulder.

Sensing the left arm and moving attention now across to the right arm,

Down the right arm to the right hand,

Sensing into the right fingers.

Noticing the right thumb,

The fingers of the right hand.

Sensing into the palm of the right hand.

And scanning to the back of the right hand.

Noticing physical sensations or lack of sensation in the right hand.

Moving attention now into the right wrist.

And scanning into the right forearm.

And into the right elbow.

Moving attention up into the right upper arm.

Scanning the bicep and the tricep.

Into the armpit and the shoulder.

The connection with the body of the right arm.

Sensing sensations in the right arm.

Letting go of the right arm and moving attention now to the tops of the shoulders.

Sensing into the tops,

The front of the shoulders,

The clavicles,

And the back of the shoulder blades.

And scanning to the neck.

Sensing the slight curve at the back of the neck.

Scanning the sides of the neck and the front of the neck.

And in the neck,

Connecting with the breath as air flows through the windpipe.

Moving attention now to the face and the head,

Beginning with the jaw.

Noticing if the jaw is clenched or soft.

And scanning to the mouth.

Sensing the lips inside the mouth,

Noticing the teeth,

The tongue.

And connecting here also with the breath in the back of the throat.

Moving attention to the cheeks.

And scanning to the nose.

Sensing here at the nostrils,

Movement of air flowing in and out of the body.

Moving attention to the eyes.

Noticing the eye sockets,

The tiny muscles surrounding the eyes,

And the eyeballs themselves.

Scanning up through the eyebrows to the forehead.

Noticing if the forehead is smooth or furrowed.

Sending attention to the temples and to the ears.

Pausing for a moment to notice sound reaching the ears.

Scanning to the back of the head.

Noticing on the head,

On the scalp,

Presence or lack of hair.

Larger points.

And finally,

Moving attention to the very top of the head.

Pausing here to imagine for a moment that air is flowing in and out through the top of the head.

On the inhale,

Air is flowing down through the body,

All the way down the arms and the legs.

And on the exhale,

Flowing back out through the body and up out the top of the head.

Whole body breathing itself.

And widening attention now to include the body as a whole resting here.

Just breathing in this moment.

And beginning to bring movement back into the body,

Wiggling the toes and the fingers.

All the way back toWomansee.

And as you're ready,

Opening your eyes.

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