Find a comfortable position,
Either lying down or seated.
Let your hands rest easily,
And if it feels comfortable,
Allow your eyes to close.
Take a slow inhale through the nose.
And a gentle exhale out through the mouth.
Again,
Inhale and exhale,
Letting your body begin to settle.
Allow your breath to return to a natural rhythm.
There's nothing to change,
There's nothing to fix,
We're just noticing.
So bring your awareness to the places where your body is being supported.
It might be the floor,
The chair,
Or the bed beneath you.
Notice the steady contact points.
Your back.
Your legs.
Your hips.
Your shoulders.
Let the feeling of support send a message through your system.
In this moment,
You can soften.
Now bring your attention down to your feet.
Notice your toes,
The soles of your feet,
The heels.
You might feel warmth,
Coolness,
Tingling,
Or very little at all.
Whatever you notice is perfectly fine.
And with your next exhale,
Invite the feet to relax.
Not forcing,
Simply allowing.
Now move your awareness up to the ankles,
The calves,
The shins,
And the knees.
And as you breathe out,
Let the lower legs soften.
Feel the knees supported.
No effort is needed.
Bring your attention into the thighs,
Front,
Back,
And sides.
Notice any holding or tension.
And with an exhale,
Allow a small release.
Now feel the hips and pelvis.
Let the hips be heavy,
Grounded,
And supported.
On the out-breath,
Soften the belly and the pelvic area,
And allow the body to rest.
Now gently bring your awareness to the center of the chest,
The heart space.
You don't need to feel anything special here.
We're just bringing our attention to this area.
And take one slow breath in.
And as you breathe out,
Allow the heart space to soften.
Now imagine at the center of your chest a small point of light.
It might appear as a soft glow,
A warm ember,
Or a gentle radiance.
And with each inhale,
Allow this light to become a little brighter.
And with each exhale,
Allow it to expand.
Inhale,
The light brightens.
Exhale,
The light expands.
Let it fill the heart space.
Allow it to come all the way through the heart space,
As it radiates gently throughout the chest,
The front,
And the back.
Feel it expand,
Even brighter now.
Coming all the way up through the throat,
The jaw,
The face.
Expanding all the way up to the crown of your head.
And feel it begin to expand downward,
Into the belly,
Past the hips,
Down the legs,
All the way down to the feet and the tips of the toes.
Rest for a moment with a sense that your whole body is being softly illuminated from within.
And if you'd like,
Imagine the heart light flowing down the arms,
And resting gently in the hands.
Bring awareness to the neck and the throat.
Allow the throat to soften.
Relax the jaw.
Let the tongue rest easily in the mouth.
Soften around the eyes and the forehead.
Now sense the entire body all at once.
So from the top of your head,
All the way down to the tips of your toes.
And allow the heart light to remain in the heart center.
That calm inner flame.
Taking a deeper inhale.
And a slow,
Complete exhale.
And when you're ready,
Begin to notice the room around you again.
You might notice some sound.
The temperature of the air.
You might begin to gently wiggle your fingers and toes.
Coming back into the present moment.
Back into the room fully.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
And take the steadiness with you as you continue your day.
