I invite you now to take all the time you need to find a comfortable seated position.
You might choose to sit in a chair with your back supported and the soles of your feet flat on the floor.
Or you might choose to come down onto the floor and possibly support the edge of your seat on a bolster or folded blanket.
Take all the time you need to make yourself absolutely comfortable.
Inviting the navel to lightly draw inward towards your spine.
Aligning your heart over your hips and your head over your heart.
Nice tall long spine.
Close your eyes or soften your gaze.
Let the jaw unclench.
Let the shoulders fall back and down away from the ears.
And begin to connect with your breath.
Just simply observing any and all sensations of your breath.
You might allow the breath to slow down a little bit or to deepen a little bit.
But just inviting all of your attention into your breath.
Observing the sensations of the inhalations and the sensations of the exhalations.
So much of our time day to day is spent on directing our energy upwards into our minds,
Our worries,
Our plans and anxieties.
This can lead us to feel out of touch with our body.
And so in order to reconnect,
We need to start directing that energy downward.
This way we begin to ground ourselves,
To calm ourselves,
And to find our center whenever the world gets too crazy.
In this practice we will focus on feeling the earth underneath us and grounding and rooting our energy downward.
Because feeling grounded does not necessarily occur only when we've cultivated a balanced mental state.
It can also develop from noticing what it feels like when our body is completely supported by the earth.
Grounding is an amazing resource that we always have within ourselves.
It can be as easy as taking a few slow deep breaths and noticing any point of contact between our body and the support underneath us.
This calms our nervous system when we feel a sense of support in our life and in our world.
When we allow the ground to hold us,
We can release resistance.
We can release tension.
Grounding has also been proven to reduce stress and anxiousness,
Improve sleep,
Reduce inflammation,
Enhance blood flow,
And help decrease pain and discomfort.
When we learn to be supported by the ground,
We are able to live in a completely different way.
We are able to become more available to ourselves and the people we love.
So as you continue to breathe slowly and deeply and mindfully,
Can you now begin to notice the support underneath you?
Any support underneath your physical body?
Can you be noticing all the points of contact between your body and your seat and the floor?
As you feel into the support,
Can you surrender to gravity?
Can you allow yourself to give even more of your weight to it?
Letting go of resistance,
Letting go of gripping and holding,
But fully allow yourself to land.
Your whole body surrendering downward.
Feel the lower jaw open and loosen.
Invite even more heaviness into the top of your shoulders.
Feel into the support underneath the base of your spine.
Notice that the more that you root down through the base of your spine,
The more length you'll find in your spine and the bigger lift you'll find in your heart.
Continue giving your weight to the support underneath you.
Maybe allowing yourself to feel held.
Maybe even allowing yourself to tap into that grounding,
Nurturing energy of the earth below.
Now I invite you to bring to mind the image of an hourglass that was just turned upside down.
The sand emptying from top to bottom.
Envision your body as an hourglass and drain the sand out of your upper body down into your lower body.
Let all the heaviness empty from your neck and shoulders.
Feel the solidity draining from your shoulders and chest down into your belly.
Allow the heaviness to keep moving from your belly and flow down into your pelvis,
Legs,
And feet.
Let your body land on the ground completely.
Give all of your weight to it and continue to concentrate on the support underneath you.
Taking five more mindful breaths here.
Falling into the support.
Allowing yourself to feel grounded.
And now take just a brief moment to allow yourself to observe any difference you may feel now compared to when you started this practice.
Is there a deeper sense of calm?
Do you feel more relaxed,
More supported?
Were you allowed to draw your attention out of the thinking anxious mind and down into your physical body to support your healing and your nervous system?
Hold on to any feelings of peace and grounding throughout the rest of your day.
Thank you so much for sharing your time with me.
Again my name is Farah.
I've been teaching yoga for over 18 years and I'm very passionate about helping those with anxiety and stress to feel more relaxed and grounded.
I would also love to hear from you regarding any questions,
How you felt after this practice.
Please place your comments below.
I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.
