Welcome.
If you're here because everything feels a little too much right now,
Then I'm so happy that you're here and I'm so glad that you pressed play.
Before we begin,
I want to gently say that everything is going to be okay and that there's nothing wrong with you.
If your body feels tense,
If your thoughts feel loud,
Maybe you feel on edge,
Tearful,
Restless or wired,
Then that's your nervous system trying to protect you.
We're not going to try to fix anything,
But we want to leave today's meditation feeling a little more calm,
A little more in the present and a little more peaceful.
Let's simply begin by arriving and settling in.
Once you're in a comfortable position for you,
Whether that's seated,
Maybe you're lying down on your mat or maybe on your bed,
I invite you to gently close your eyes if you feel safe to do so,
Or maybe gently softening your gaze to an object in the room that you're in and notice where your body is being supported right now,
Whether you're supported by a chair,
The ground beneath you or perhaps your bed,
The weight of your body being carried.
You don't have to hold yourself up in this moment,
Let gravity do its job and allow the weight of you to sink into whatever's holding you today,
Let it support you here.
Together let's take a few gentle but deep breaths.
On the inhale we'll be inhaling through our nose and we'll be sighing everything out on an exhale through your mouth.
Let's do three of these.
So when you're ready,
Take a gentle breath in through your nose and when you reach the top,
Pause for a second and exhale with an audible sigh out through your mouth,
Almost like you're letting go of any tension.
We'll do another one of those together,
A gentle breath in through your nose,
A gentle pause and exhaling with a sigh out through your mouth,
In through your nose,
Pause at the top and let all of that breath go with a sigh and then allowing your breath to come back to its natural rhythm,
Not forcing it in any way,
Just allowing it how it wants to be.
When the nervous system feels overloaded it often believes there is danger,
Even when there isn't.
So during today's meditation we're going to give your nervous system some gentle signs of safety.
I invite you to bring your awareness to your feet,
No matter what position you're in today,
Just notice where they make contact with whatever is holding you.
Perhaps that's the ground,
Perhaps it's your heels on your bed or your mat,
But just press them down slightly,
Just enough to feel the support.
This small action sends a message to your body that there is ground beneath me.
Bring your attention to your shoulders and let them rise gently towards your ears,
Just moving your shoulders up and then slowly allow them to drop down.
Do this movement again,
Just moving your shoulders up towards your ears and then allow them to sink back down again,
One more time,
Moving your shoulders up and gently and slowly releasing them down.
Now I'd like you to bring your focus and attention to your jaw,
We can often hold so much tension here,
Allow your tongue to come away from the roof of your mouth and just allow your jaw to soften even just by one percent,
Notice if it feels tight,
Allow it to soften as much as possible.
This may feel difficult and your jaw and you may not feel fully relaxed,
But just allow your body to require a little less effort if possible.
Sometimes when we feel overwhelmed,
It's because we may be stuck in fight or flight mode and our breath may become shallow and quick,
So we'll now invite it just to slow a little,
If it's quick,
Without forcing anything.
Let's do a few more of those deep breaths together,
In through the nose and out through the mouth,
We'll breathe in for a count of four and out for a count of six.
Longer exhales help our nervous system shift towards a little more calm,
So together let's breathe in through our nose for one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And out through your mouth two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
That's great,
Let's do another,
In through your nose for one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And out two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Continue at your own pace,
We'll do a few more of these,
And if your mind wanders that's completely okay,
And if your body still feels activated that's also okay,
We're not trying to eliminate any sensations,
We're just simply lowering the volume a little.
In for four and out for six,
Allow your breath to come back to its natural rhythm.
You might say quietly to yourself,
But any sensations or feelings that I've been experiencing,
This is my body trying to protect me.
Notice if anything shifts,
Even if that's a tiny softening,
If it feels comfortable and safe for you to do so,
I invite you to place one hand over your heart and feel the warmth of your own touch.
You are not broken in this moment,
You are simply responding,
And responses can be guided gently.
If you're still feeling overwhelmed or there's still any activation,
Then that's okay,
Calm is not an on and off switch,
It's a gradual returning.
You could imagine the nervous system like waves in the ocean,
And right now they may be choppy waves,
We're not forcing the sea and the ocean to go flat,
We're waiting for the waves to settle naturally,
And they will.
You don't have to solve everything right now,
You don't have to process everything right now,
Everything doesn't need to make sense right now,
And you don't have to decide anything right now.
In this moment,
There is nothing to fix,
Only gentle settling.
Let's stay here for a few quiet breaths,
As we begin to close our meditation together,
Take a moment to notice how your body feels now,
Not perfect,
Not transformed,
Just noticed,
And perhaps slightly more grounded than before,
And that is enough.
You've done so well during a time that can be incredibly overwhelming,
With a lot of sensations,
A lot of thoughts,
A lot of feelings.
You should be really proud of showing up for yourself today.
When you feel ready,
Let's bring some gentle movement back to our bodies,
Gently wiggling your fingers and your toes,
Perhaps moving your head very gently and slowly side to side for a gentle neck stretch.
If it feels good for you,
You may like a deeper stretch,
And you may like to pop your arms above your head,
And stretch to the sky.
If you've had your eyes closed throughout this meditation,
Then whenever it feels comfortable for you,
Just gently flutter open your eyes,
Or if you've had your gaze softened,
Just gently bring your attention and awareness back to the room you're in,
And I'd love for you to carry this with you throughout the rest of your day,
Or through your evening,
But when your nervous system feels overloaded,
It is not a failure,
It is protection,
And protection can be soothed,
And you're doing far better than you think.
Thank you for meditating with me today,
And I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day or evening ahead.
