Welcome.
This practice may be done in a seated position or lying on your back.
Take the next few moments to find the suitable position for you today.
If you're lying on your back,
You can have your legs in whatever position allows your spine to be most comfortable.
So maybe the legs are straight out like shavasana,
Or have the knees up,
Feet flat.
If you're seated,
Consider sitting up on a pillow or a rolled blanket to allow a little elevation of the hips.
Have the spine be as tall and straight as possible.
Let's start with a big breath in through the nose.
Open the mouth.
Exhale.
And then two more breath cycles like that.
Slower.
Inhale through the nose.
Hold at the top.
Let it go.
Exhale out the mouth.
Feel the breath on empty.
And then again,
Inhale through the nose.
Slowest one yet.
When you feel like the inhale is complete,
Sit in a little bit more,
Like a second inhale.
Hold.
Exhale through the lips.
Feel the breath on empty.
And then seal the lips.
Breath goes in and out of the nose,
No longer exaggerating length of any phase.
Bring your left hand to the centre of the chest,
Right hand to the belly button.
When you come to your next exhale,
Make it complete.
And again,
Feel the breath on empty.
Slow inhale through the nose.
First through the right hand,
Lifting the belly.
Take your inhale up through the centre of the chest.
Feel your left hand lift up.
Finish the inhale up by the tops of your shoulders.
Exhale slowly,
Shoulders,
Chest,
Belly button.
Again,
Rolling the inhale up,
Belly,
Chest,
Shoulders.
Roll the exhale down,
Shoulders,
Left hand,
Right hand.
Feel your belly button draw back towards your spine,
Away from the right hand,
As you finish the exhale.
Slow it down even more.
Inhale,
Abdomen,
Chest,
Shoulders.
Hold the breath.
Exhale,
Shoulders,
Chest,
Belly.
Slight retention at the bottom of the exhale.
And then inhale softly,
Belly button,
Centre of the chest,
Top of the shoulders,
Right where the apices of your lungs are,
Right up by the base of the neck.
And then slow exhale from the tip tops of your lungs,
Down through the chest and the belly.
Once that exhale is complete,
Let the breath return to normal.
If you need to change your position,
Do so.
If you're seated,
Maybe switch the cross of the legs,
Or wiggle your legs if you're lying down.
You can start to either bring your arms down by the sides of the body if you're lying flat,
Or if you're seated,
Bring your hands to your knees or fold it in your lap.
Once you feel settled,
Do your best to stay still.
Let's take a clearing breath together.
Inhale through the nose.
Slow exhale through the mouth.
Feel yourself on empty.
And then let the breath flow in and out of the nostrils,
Not altering the pace.
Let it go at its own cadence.
Bring your awareness to the space behind the forehead,
The mind space.
Then bring your awareness to the heart space,
The centre of the chest.
Take an inhale from the heart space up to the seat of the mind.
Pause.
Bring your exhale from the mind space back down to the heart space.
And then again.
Inhale,
Seat of the heart,
Up to the mind space.
Exhale,
Seat of the mind,
Back to the heart.
Continue this visualization of the inhale moving from the heart up to the mind.
Exhale,
Back down,
Mind to the heart.
Go at your own pace,
Never straining the breath.
And then when you forget about it,
Let that visualization go and rest.
The breath goes back to the subconscious place where it is most of our life.
Bring your awareness back to your breath.
Start to make small movements through your fingers and toes.
And then thank yourself for making time to check in with your breath,
With your body,
With your spirit.
And thank you for spending the time with me.
If this was helpful,
I'll see you over at the full version of this practice.
