Creating Space For Healing And Embracing Sweetness

Hello my friends.

Today we're going to go on a special healing journey to create space for all the difficult emotions you might be experiencing after losing someone or something that you cared deeply about.

Grieving and emotions,

Big emotions,

Certainly go hand in hand and they can feel really overwhelming and stay with us for extended periods of time.

This is an exercise to create a little bit of space so if just for a little while you can come home to yourself and have some lightness and a connection to the here and now.

It's okay to feel the roller coaster of all emotions.

We're supposed to and when we take intentional action to give our brain a little bit of room that can allow our grieving journey to progress more smoothly and successfully.

As always if you'd like to welcome in that soothing havening touch I invite you to do so.

It helps create a calming regulated nervous system and allows the mind to take that breath much like breathing allows our body to regulate and slow down.

The havening touch begins as though you're washing your hands under warm water palm on palm.

A gentle havening hug moving your hands down your arms or fingertips across your brow or under your eyes utilizing any of those motions in any way that feels comfortable and safe for you.

To begin let's take a moment to connect to the here and now inviting our attention to turn inwards and let's welcome in three soothing breaths.

Now I'll provide some breath counts and I invite you to also breathe at your own gentle loving pace if that feels more comfortable.

Breathing in for a count of four three two one and out for a breath of five four three two one.

Breathing in four three two one and release five four three two one and one more gentle breath in four three two one and release five four three two one.

Beautiful.

Now I'd like to invite you to find a space in your world that brings you joy.

Now this may be a real space perhaps the beach beautiful field maybe your favorite chair in the family room or in your bedroom or it could be an imaginary space someplace you've never been before.

Allow your mind to get creative and expansive.

Create an environment that brings your mind and body a space of calm and care and perhaps safety and joy.

As you invite your mind to explore and create this space notice the colors that are here.

Are there any senses that you can notice any smells?

If you were to reach out and touch different objects in that space what they feel like to interact with?

Invite your mind to bring that space to life and now this is your special space.

A space that you can come to anytime your mind and your body would like to relax into a state of soothing calm or when they need a breath to breathe especially when big feelings feel a little too big.

Now I'd like to invite you to imagine that into this space a beautiful balloon floats in.

This could be a vibrant hot air balloon maybe a balloon of your favorite color maybe it's clear and see-through you can only see the outline as big or as small as you'd like it to be and that balloon floats gently right over to you and as that balloon approaches you notice that it's a special balloon but this balloon can be as big as it needs to be.

This balloon is designed to carry your worries and your concerns your stressors or your anxiety for a little while.

We're going to welcome in a gentle breath and then I'd like to invite you to imagine that as you release that breath you're flowing out all of your concerns and worries into that filling that balloon up with them let's breathe in four three two one and release letting everything go and noticing how that balloon expands as you exhale get all out filling that balloon it's a loving caring friend who wants to support you and another gentle breath in of soothing caring oxygen breathing in and noticing if there's any worries or concerns that you can once again exhale into that balloon inviting them to be set aside for just a moment releasing seeing how that balloon continues to expand and now it's not going to pop it's a magical friendly balloon that can carry all of this and more and as we continue this guided exercise notice that at any point you can return to this balloon if your mind has any additional worries or concerns needs to put aside for a moment just allowing your breath to come and go and as needed exhaling those worries and when you're ready invite that balloon to gently flow just little ways away and notice that in front of you there is a beautiful piece of paper or a whiteboard or a chalkboard whatever arises in your mind could even be a sparkling magical space that you can interact with we're going to take a moment and create whether it be through drawings visual images a collage or even beautiful loving words three representations of kind and care for what you've lost what is no longer here noticing that you have all the colors in the world available to you and bringing to mind that first experience or that first word and drawing it out or writing about it in your mind's eye on that piece of paper from the whiteboard or the chalkboard or even that imaginary magical space that allows whatever expression you'd like right now it's remembering what was the sweet joyous experiences in the past but because they happened have created the opportunity to now have grief and loss grief is tied to care and love we grieve because we cared and give your mind and your body the opportunity to remember and connect with that through the lens of loss and love and when you're ready just taking a moment to check in are there any worries or concerns you'd like to release into that balloon it's right over there or are you ready to now move on to the next experience of expression now noticing what would this individual or this experience that you've lost would have preferred for you to have what is a gift they would have given you this can often come through the lens of what did you feel when you were with them why was this entity so important and meaningful to you and noticing that creating the expressive colorful beauty of whatever that arises in your mind and your body is there a warmth and a tenderness but they extend compassion and big hugs and care for you but they remind you of a favorite toy or a poem that they might have shared with you at some point or a sweet moment of shared joy or even a cuddle on the sofa or arm around your shoulder allow your mind and your body now to imagine expressing that one to the world inviting your sensory experience to bring it to life as big bold and vibrant as you can right now what colors come to mind what stories does your mind remind you of we are such beautifully narrative creatures meaning making we love stories and again if you notice any concerns or worries or feelings of sadness coming up acknowledge them lean into them with loving care and welcome in a gentle breath and release them into that balloon inviting your mind and your body to have a little bit of space right here right now and finally when you're ready let's turn to the final experience that you're going to create let's look a little bit out into the future noticing the experiences from the first and the second images that you've created those expressions those words that came to mind and what would it be like to invite your mind to carry these experiences forward for them to be an ongoing part of your day-to-day life a part of your remembrance of what was a part of your celebration of why you're grieving remember we grieve because we care we grieve because we've loved what would it be like to carry these experiences and invite your mind to what if my grief could also have the experience of sweetness and celebration for having loved and cared so deeply what if the sorrow of loss also had the lightness of having had this experience the gratitude for what used to be and the knowledge that in your mind and body these experiences live on notice what you created in images one and two and create in your mind express right about here visually in your imagination what it would be like to carry these experiences forward we grieve because we have cared so deeply remember to give your mind and your body that space and that gentle awareness the darkness carries light we can help our mind remember that when that darkness arises it's often because the light might have changed and is through this type of work and taking these gentle moments for yourself just like you did today that you can reconnect with that light in a new way and carry it with you into your future as we bring this gentle exercise to a close invite you to rest a hand gently on your heart space and breathe in another soothing breath breathing in four three two one and release five four three two one beautiful now notice that balloon those worries and concerns may come back into your mind and your body that balloon will be expanding and growing smaller as you navigate in your life and remember that anytime you can welcome in a gentle breath and imagining that you're exhaling those concerns those worries into that balloon inviting it to float away and give your mind and your body a little space just for a few minutes and in that space if you so choose you can always return to the special special space your safe space this calm caring world that you are just listening and even any of these images reminding your mind that we grieve because we have cared deeply that loss is a sign of love that you are not alone