Body Scan - Calm & Reconnect - 45mins

Welcome to the 45 minute body scan.

Bringing your way into a comfortable position lying down.

With your legs and arms lying long.

And noticing what's here in the body and mind.

And being with whatever is arising without the need to change or want any other experience.

Seeing the sensations that are arising in the body.

As you lie here to the ground can you notice what contacts the earth?

Perhaps you can notice the contact of the air to your skin,

Your face,

Hands perhaps.

Maybe you can also notice the quality of the light.

Even if your eyes are closed.

Noticing any and all sensations as best as you can.

Perhaps sensations like heaviness,

Lightness,

Temperature.

Coolness,

Heat.

Sensations of movement or stillness.

And maybe other sensations like tingling,

Aching,

Throbbing,

Burning.

Paying attention to all the sensations that are arising in this moment.

The sensations may be strong,

Intense,

Vivid and easy to recognize.

And some sensations may be more subtle,

Soft.

And maybe not so easy to recognize.

Paying attention to all these sensations as they are.

Or perhaps you are noticing no sensations and that's also okay.

In this practice we're opening to explore and be curious about this body,

About the sensations of the body as we lie here.

And cultivating other attitudes like friendliness.

Feeling and accepting the body as it is,

Right here and now,

As much as we can.

And if you're noticing that it's difficult to be with the body,

Perhaps you can be with the breath.

Bringing your attention now to the breath and in particular the belly.

Can you notice the movement of the belly rising and expanding as you breathe in?

Falling away,

Softening as you breathe out.

And at any time you can return to this breath during this practice.

Knowing that there's no particular goal to achieve or any particular state that we're looking for.

There's no right way for the body to feel.

We're simply being with our direct experience.

Feeling the body as it is,

Right here and now.

And now beginning to move your attention all the way down.

Your left leg,

Down to your left foot,

Your left heel.

What is there here to notice in your left heel?

And now to the arch of the left foot,

The ball of the left foot and to the toes,

The big toe on the left foot,

The little toe and all the toes in between.

And even the space between the toes.

Noticing each of these parts,

Any sensations,

Perhaps sensations like temperature,

Hot or cold,

Pressure,

Heaviness or even a feeling of lightness.

Any other sensations,

Aching or perhaps no sensations at all and that's okay as well.

All sensations are welcome.

Exploring the sensations from the heel to the toes,

The whole of the sole of your left foot.

And now to the top of the left foot,

The sides of the left foot and now taking the whole of the left foot including the ankle.

What are the physical sensations,

If any at all,

To notice?

And numbness also counts as a sensation.

Getting go of the left foot and now moving to the lower left leg,

The calf,

The shin and the left knee,

The left kneecap,

The back of the knee,

The sides of the left knee and now into the left knee.

Are there any sensations here?

And now to the left thigh,

The front of the left thigh,

The back of the left thigh and to the sides.

What is there here to know about this thigh?

Perhaps subtle,

Not so obvious sensations or more intense,

Easy to notice sensations.

And now to the hip,

The left hip.

And now widening the focus and taking in the whole of the left leg from the hip all the way down to the toes,

Holding the whole of the left leg in your awareness.

And any absence of sensations is also just as important as any sensations that you can feel.

Breathing in to the whole of the left leg and breathing out,

Breathing out of the whole of the left leg.

Take a few breaths here.

Breathing in and out into the left leg.

And now letting the left leg go,

Observing the difference between the left leg and the right leg.

And now let's explore the right leg,

Traveling all the way down the right leg to the right heel.

What is there here to notice in the right heel?

The arch of the right foot,

The ball of the right foot,

The toes,

The big toe,

The heel,

The little toe and all the toes in between,

Noticing any and all sensations in the sole of the right foot.

And if you notice that your mind has wandered off,

Gently and patiently come back to where we're at with this body scan.

Exhaling the sole of the right foot and now the top of the right foot and the sides of the right foot.

And now expanding to the whole of the right foot,

Including the ankle.

What is there here to notice?

Are there any sensations and feelings to know,

If any,

In the whole of the right foot?

And also noticing the mind and any emotions that might be arising,

Like irritation,

Boredom,

Sleepiness.

Noticing all difficult and uncomfortable thoughts and emotions that are arising,

As well as pleasant and comfortable thoughts and emotions as we practice this body scan.

There's no need to change anything as we bring the attitude of curiosity,

Kindness,

And being with and allowing and accepting,

Moment to moment,

As best we can,

The experience of being with this body.

Letting go of the right foot,

Moving to the lower right leg,

The shin,

Calf,

To the knee,

Knee cap,

The back of the knee,

The sides of the right knee,

Inside the knee.

Notice what there is to notice here with this right knee,

The whole of the knee.

And at any time you feel that this body scan is not right for you,

Perhaps difficult thoughts,

Emotions,

Might be arising,

Feel free to return to the breath as an anchor,

A home base,

At any time.

Moving up to the right thigh,

The front and the back of the right thigh,

As well as the sides.

What is here to notice in the right thigh?

Or perhaps nothing at all?

And the right hip.

And now widening,

Expanding your attention to the whole of the right leg,

From this part by part narrow focus to this broader focus,

As you feel into the whole of the right leg now,

From the hip all the way down to the heel and toes.

And letting go now of the right leg,

Using the inhale and the exhale,

Taking a few fuller and deeper breaths.

Let go of the right leg.

Moving your attention now to your left arm,

All the way down the left arm to the hand and fingers.

Move your attention to your left thumb,

To the little finger and all the fingers in between on the left hand.

What is here to notice?

Warmth or cold?

Perhaps tingling?

Warmness or perhaps no sensations at all?

And now to the palm of the left hand and the back of it,

The left wrist.

Moving now to the whole of the left hand,

Noticing any sensations in the left hand.

Moving up the left arm,

The forearm and the elbow.

What is there here to experience in the left elbow?

To the upper arm.

Notice any sensations of contact or touch?

Up to the left shoulder.

And now expand your attention to the whole of your left arm,

From the shoulder all the way down to the fingers and thumb.

Taking a few fuller,

Deeper breaths here.

Inhaling and exhaling into the whole of the left arm.

And now letting go of the whole of the left arm.

And move your attention to your right arm,

Travelling all the way down to the right hand and fingers,

The right thumb.

Are there any sensations here to notice?

Perhaps tingling?

Numbness?

Warmth?

Or maybe no sensations at all?

And everything is welcome in this practice.

The right thumb and all the fingers.

And now the right palm and the back of the hand.

And now the whole of the right hand,

Including the wrist.

What is there here to know about the right hand?

Subtle or strong sensations?

Easy to notice or not at all?

Or even no sensations at all?

And now to the lower right arm.

Up to the elbow.

Up to the upper right arm.

And the right shoulder.

Noticing any sensations here?

And now from the right shoulder all the way down to the fingers and thumb.

Breathing and exhaling,

Breathing into the whole of the right arm.

Deeper and fuller breaths if you can.

And if you get distracted,

If your mind wanders off,

Gently return to continue the body scan practice without judgement or criticism,

Knowing that it is natural for the mind to wander off.

Gently bringing it back time and time again.

And breathing out,

Letting go of the right arm.

And bringing your attention to your torso,

Your trunk,

The front of your body.

Your attention to the pelvic bowl.

To the anal region.

To genital region.

To the stomach.

What is there here to notice in each of these areas,

If anything at all?

Is there movement?

Or stillness?

Pressure?

Gurgling?

Tingling?

Or no sensations at all?

Internal organs?

Are there any sensations here?

The front ribs?

You may notice as the breath comes in,

How the body responds to the breath coming in.

Maybe noticing movement,

The belly,

The ribs or chest.

Or maybe not.

And now moving up to the front of the neck.

What is there here to notice?

Something to notice here?

What emotions and mental states might be arising for you in here?

Fainness?

Frustration?

Worry?

Restlessness?

Or maybe pain?

Discomfort?

Can you acknowledge what's arising for you as best you can?

And not seeing these thoughts and emotions that are arising as a problem.

Simply noticing and allowing.

Doing things to be as best you can as we experience the body as it is.

And feeling free to return to the breath as an anchor at any time.

And now expanding to the whole of the torso,

The trunk,

The front of the body.

Breathing in.

Expanding into the whole of the front of the torso.

And breathing out.

Just noticing and letting go,

Releasing of the breath.

Being with the torso.

And notice what there is here to notice.

Now letting go of the front of the torso,

The trunk,

And bring your attention down to the back of the torso.

Starting with the tailbone.

The bottom.

Just noticing contact of the bottom to the ground.

Maybe pressure.

Is there anything else to notice here?

The sacrum.

Bring your attention to your lower back.

Moving from the lower back to the middle back.

The back ribs.

The upper back and shoulders.

What is there here to know and sense?

Travelling up to the back of the neck.

The sides of the neck.

What is there here to experience?

Breathing a few deeper,

Fuller breaths here.

Breathing into the whole of the back of the torso.

Breathing out.

Perhaps softening.

Releasing a little bit more.

The back of the torso.

And now can you breathe in to the whole of your torso?

The front and the back.

Breathing in and breathing out.

A few fuller and deeper breaths here.

And now letting go of the torso.

The front and back.

The whole of the torso.

And moving your attention to your face and head.

To the back of your head.

What is there here to notice?

The weakness,

Pressure,

Aching or some other sensation,

If anything at all.

The sides of your head.

What is here to notice?

The sides of the head.

And now the top of the head.

The crown of the head.

Any sensations here?

And now to your face.

Starting with your chin.

And out to the sides of your jaw.

The left and right sides of your jaw.

Is there anything to notice here?

And around your mouth,

Your lips.

And you may like to open the mouth a little,

If that feels right for you.

Feeling into the mouth,

The teeth,

The tongue.

Where is the tongue sitting in the mouth?

Feeling any sensations within the mouth?

Tightness,

Heaviness,

Aching.

What is there here to notice,

If anything at all?

And now bring your attention to your nose.

Perhaps noticing the breath coming into the nostrils.

And the temperature as it comes in.

And maybe the temperature or any other sensations as the breath leaves the nostrils.

Perhaps tickling,

Pressure,

If anything at all to notice.

Moving up,

Bringing your attention to your eyes,

Your eye sockets,

Your eyeballs,

The eyelids.

Expanding to the whole of the eyes now,

Both the eyes,

What is there here to notice?

Out to the temples.

And the forehead.

Feeling if in each of these parts of the face,

The sensations.

Breathing in.

And breathing out.

A little bit fuller and deeper breaths.

Breathing into the whole of the front of the face.

And breathing in and out.

To the whole of your face and your head.

And letting go.

Letting go of the face of the head.

And now the whole of the body.

From the top of your head,

The crown,

All the way down to the soles of your feet.

Breathing in,

Expanding into the whole of your body.

Taking these fuller,

Deeper breaths.

And breathing out.

Breathing out from the whole of the body.

Breathing out from the legs and arms.

From the torso and your face and head.

Breathing out.

Feeling what there is to notice in the whole of the body.

Perhaps softening,

Releasing,

Letting go a little bit more as you breathe out.

Letting go a little bit more.

Breathing the body,

The thoughts and emotions in each and every moment.

Without judgement.

And bringing curiosity and gentleness to the practice.

Breathing in and out here.

Slowly,

Fully and deeply.

As best you can.

Thank you for your practice today.