Hello and welcome.
It's Faye here and I'm here to lead you through a short mindfulness meditation for anxiety and stress.
The intention for this practice is to leave you feeling a little more grounded,
Relaxed,
And aware of your present moment experience in your body and breath.
To begin,
Allow yourself to get comfortable.
You can be seated or you can lie down for this practice.
Take a few deep breaths,
Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly.
Allow yourself to let go of any stress you've been feeling.
Release any tension that you might be holding in your shoulders,
Your jaw,
The space between your eyebrows.
Allow the stress to melt down your body and into the ground beneath you.
Allow your breath to return to normal.
Bring your awareness to what it feels like to breathe right now in your body.
Welcome your attention to the physical sensations of breathing.
Wherever that physical sensation of breathing is most vivid,
Place your awareness there.
You might feel it most in the rise and fall of your abdomen.
Or maybe you feel it the most in your nostrils.
Wherever that sensation is the clearest,
Simply place your focus right there.
Allow yourself to experience the inhale,
The exhale,
And the in between.
And each time that you notice that the momentum of your mind has drawn your awareness away from your breath,
Gently and non-judgmentally,
Place your attention back on your breath.
You might find it helpful to say within your mind,
Inhale each time you breathe in and exhale each time you breathe out.
By silently saying these words,
You can draw your attention back to your breath.
Your mind will wander.
Simply notice when it does and with compassion and love for yourself,
Accept and acknowledge that your mind has wandered and bring your awareness back to the physical sensation of breathing.
Observe each breath as though it's the first breath you've ever taken.
This is an opportunity to pay attention,
To pay attention to this present moment.
Place your attention on your breath.
Simply notice and feel what it feels like to breathe in this present moment.
And as the momentum of the mind draws your awareness away from your breath,
Kindly and gently bring your awareness back to your breath.
Allow yourself to explore this moment,
To be curious about this moment,
To allow your breath to open up the doorway to this moment.
As you prepare to come out of this meditation,
Notice how you feel in your body.
Take a moment to feel this feeling of presence.
Take a moment to experience it,
To notice what it feels like in your body to be present.
Offer yourself some gratitude for taking the time to be present and carry this feeling of presence with you as you go into the rest of your day.
May you be present.
May you be peaceful.
May you be gentle on yourself today.
Thank you for meditating with me today.
Namaste.
