So let's start by taking a deep breath in through the nose and then out through the mouth.
Just noticing that awareness sitting behind the eyes,
Just taking it down into the body as you breathe in and breathe out.
Just noticing the rise and the fall of the chest and take a breath deep down into the belly.
Imagine that you've got a balloon inside of your belly that's inflating on the in-breath,
Deflating on the out-breath.
So really bringing your attention and awareness to the breath,
To the balloon in this moment.
And as you're focusing on the breath and the balloon you might notice thoughts popping into the mind.
It might be in the form of thoughts or images trying to pull you in one direction or another.
It might be into the past,
Ruminating over different things.
It might be into the future,
Worrying about things that haven't happened yet.
Or it might just be thoughts that are just trying to get you out of being in the present moment.
Whatever they are,
Whatever your mind is doing,
Just notice it's totally okay.
That's just what the mind does.
It just tries to keep you busy,
Trying to grab your attention with different things.
Just notice.
Notice where it's wandering off to and generally just bring it back to the present moment,
Back to the breath as you inhale and exhale.
And back to that balloon inflating and deflating.
And you might also notice sounds.
Maybe sounds coming from around you,
Within your immediate environment.
Just notice what sounds are around you.
Or it might be coming from sounds that are further afield.
Maybe from outside the place you're in right now.
Just notice.
Just be aware.
Notice how some sounds are further away than others.
Notice how some sounds are more distinct than others.
Or you might find that it's just a nice calming silence that you're aware of.
But just notice how the senses pick these different sounds up.
And then just gently bring you back to the now.
Back to the inhale.
Back to the exhale.
Back to that balloon inflating and deflating.
You might also be aware of feelings.
Could be in the form of emotions.
You might find yourself just checking in with yourself to see what emotions are present.
Maybe even labelling those different feelings that are coming up for you.
Or it might even be a physical feeling you're experiencing or being aware of.
Maybe the clothes on your skin.
Maybe the seat beneath you.
Maybe your awareness wasn't even there before but now it is.
Just through the pointing of that attention to that sensation.
Maybe you can notice that movement from the awareness of your left hand into your right hand.
And down into the bottoms of your feet.
To the left foot.
The right foot.
Just like pointing a flashlight into a darkened room.
You can point your awareness from one sensation to another.
So once more just bringing it back to the breath as you inhale and exhale.
Back to that balloon inflating and deflating.
Whether it be the rest of the day,
The week or moving forwards.
Just get into the habit of just noticing where your mind has wandered to.
Could be a thought,
An image,
A sound,
A feeling.
Just start by noticing where your awareness is,
Where your attention is.
And just practice bringing it back into the now.
Using the breath,
Using that balloon as an anchor back into the present moment.
