Welcome to this guided havening exercise to regulate your nervous system.
Go ahead and begin with the havening touch.
So you can do the havening touch in three different ways.
You can rub your palms together,
Just rubbing your palms together with a pace and a pressure that feels soothing and calming.
You can also rub down your arms from shoulder to elbow,
Shoulder to elbow,
Shoulder to elbow.
Or you can do the havening touch on your face,
On your face,
Cheeks,
Or forehead.
You can rub your palms on your face or rub your fingertips across your forehead or across your cheeks.
And we're going to do the havening touch for the entirety of this exercise.
This havening touch has been shown to create delta waves in deep parts of your brain.
And these delta waves can actually downregulate your amygdala,
Which will then decrease your cortisol levels and increase the levels of happiness hormones,
Dopamine,
Serotonin,
And oxytocin.
So continue to do the havening touch.
And we're going to start with our eyes open.
So just for a moment,
Look around your environment with your eyes.
You can move your eyes and your head and your neck just slowly and gently as you visually take in your environment,
Finding four shades of green,
Three shades of pink or red.
Notice something that's shiny,
Something that looks soft,
And then find the smallest circle that you can find in your environment.
When you're ready,
Take a breath and allow your eyes to close,
Continuing to do the havening touch.
And just begin to listen for all of the sounds that you can hear.
So you can hear my voice,
And you can probably hear the havening touch as well.
Do your palms make a little bit of a sound as they touch one another,
Or as they touch your arms or your face?
Listening to my voice,
Listening to the sound of the havening touch,
And listening to anything else you notice too.
Maybe there's the sound of a fan,
Or the sound of birds,
Or the sound of traffic.
Noticing all of the layers of sound that are available to you right now,
Breathing.
Now we're going to begin to feel our bodies.
So you can feel the havening touch,
Like what's the temperature of the skin on your palms?
Can you feel the texture of your skin?
Can you feel the texture of your skin so much that you feel all the tiny bumps and ridges that form your fingerprints?
Just feeling what the havening touch feels like.
Now you can notice what else you notice touching your skin.
Maybe your hair is touching your face or your neck.
Or maybe you can feel the waistband of your pants,
Or the texture of your socks,
Or the hem of your shirt.
Just feeling whatever you feel touching your skin.
And notice that you can also feel your body in contact with the chair,
Or the bed,
Or the floor,
Wherever you are.
So if you pay attention,
You can feel your back in contact with the chair.
And you might notice that some parts of your back are in more contact,
And some parts of your back aren't touching the chair at all.
And you can feel your weight resting on the chair or the bed.
You can feel the contact your body is making with the chair or the bed.
What does that contact feel like?
Is it soft or hard?
Is it bumpy or smooth?
Is your body making symmetrical contact or asymmetrical contact with it?
There's no right or wrong,
And you don't have to correct anything or move.
You're just noticing what is.
And then bringing your awareness to the rhythm of your breath.
So you're still doing the havening touch,
Which has all of those benefits on your amygdala and your whole body.
And you're feeling your breath.
So you can feel the air moving in and out through your nostrils.
You can feel the air causing your chest and tummy to rise and fall.
And again,
If you feel the contact between your back and the chair,
You'll notice that with every inhale,
You make a little bit more contact.
And with every exhale,
You make a little bit less.
Just really noticing that,
Feeling that,
And doing the havening touch.
Again,
You can do the havening touch on your palms,
On your arms,
Or on your face,
Cheeks and forehead.
So just move between those places,
Doing the soothing touch,
Feeling your breath,
And begin to breathe in and out through your heart.
As you breathe in and out through your heart,
Just notice how you're feeling.
Notice if there's anything your heart wants you to know today.
Breathing in and out through your heart,
Doing the havening touch.
Maybe you could think some thoughts of appreciation for yourself for doing this today.
Think some thoughts of appreciation for you showing up and doing something active to regulate your nervous system.
And as you think thoughts of appreciation for yourself,
Just notice how you feel now.
What feels different from when we started?
Often this is deeply calming,
Deeply relieving of anxiety and stress and overwhelm.
And this exercise isn't just good today,
It actually will have cumulative effects on your nervous system if you use it regularly.
So just knowing that as you do this exercise to regulate your nervous system,
You're doing some of the best self-care you could possibly do,
Because you're actually rewiring the stress in your system,
And allowing your body,
Heart,
And mind to release.
Taking a few more breaths in and out through your heart with your eyes closed,
Noticing if there's anything else that your heart or body wants you to know right now,
And just taking that in.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes and again find those shades of red or pink and green,
And find the smallest circle,
And the shiny thing,
And the soft thing.
Taking two more breaths in and out through your heart,
Noticing how you feel.
Great work.
Thanks for joining me.
