This is called the relaxing body scan exercise.
Take a few moments to adjust your position.
Get your body settled and when you're ready let your eyes close gently.
Think by taking your attention down to your feet.
Really concentrating on the feet.
Perhaps moving them a little.
Really feeling what sensation there are right now in your feet.
Remember that for this exercise there's no right or wrong.
The exercise is simply one of noticing what sensation there might be in the feet right now.
As you notice and hold your attention on the feet,
Feel the muscles softening a little.
Relaxing and releasing.
Softening and loosening.
Just simply letting go.
Remember there is nothing else you need to be doing right now.
Having given yourself the time and space for this exercise,
There is nothing else you need to be doing.
Nowhere else you need to be.
No one else you need to be pleasing or satisfying.
It is just a time for relaxing,
Releasing,
Letting go.
So now moving your attention up to the calves,
It is almost like you're moving your attention up through the calves.
Feel what sensation might be there at the moment.
Perhaps some parts feel different to others.
And again,
Even if some areas feel tight or tense or uncomfortable,
Just be interested to notice how they feel at this particular time.
Almost like a partial observer.
Just noticing.
Being interested.
It is a gentle curiosity.
Just noticing how your calves are feeling at this particular time.
And as you hold your awareness on your calves,
Feel the muscles softening and loosening.
Relaxing and releasing.
Just simply letting go.
Take your attention up to the thighs and feel them relaxing and releasing.
Feel it deeply.
Completely.
All down through the thighs and the calves and the feet.
Sometimes it might feel almost like the muscles are melting down into the chair or onto the floor if you're sitting down.
Just relaxing and releasing.
Hips feeling a little heavier,
Like they could be melting or merging.
Just feeling them letting go.
Deeply.
Completely.
Letting go.
And now,
Feel it all through the buttocks,
The hips and the pelvis.
Sometimes it helps to imagine there is a belt or a band around the hips and that it's just been loosened just a little and the big muscles around the hips softening and loosening and relaxing.
Releasing quite effortlessly.
Effortlessly.
Just going with it.
Bring your attention up to your tummy.
You will probably notice a rising and a falling.
A little with the breath and then that feeling of letting go again.
All through the tummy.
Calm and relaxed.
Just going with it.
Calm and relaxed.
Move your attention up to your chest.
Again,
Just being aware of the chest rising and falling with breath.
And feeling the ease of it all.
Just allowing the breath to take up whatever rhythm feels comfortable for you and for life.
Effortlessly just going with it.
More and more.
Deeper and deeper.
Just letting go.
Now feel a wave of relaxation flowing down through the arms.
Notice the upper arms softening and loosening and down around the elbows and into the forearms.
Relaxing.
Releasing.
Letting go.
And then down through the wrists,
The hands and the fingers.
Sometimes you might notice almost what feels like a tingling flowing into your hands and hands,
A feeling of lightness almost like they could be floating.
Just going with it effortlessly.
Effortlessly just going with it.
Now feel it all through the shoulders.
Perhaps just a rising and lowering the shoulders just a little bit.
And the head moving from side to side.
And the muscles up.
Either side of the neck softening and loosening.
Just feeling it all through the shoulders,
The neck and the throat.
Feeling the ease of it all.
Just going with it.
Bring your attention to your face.
With your lips just lightly touching.
Feel the jaw drop a little.
The tongue just touching.
Soft and loose.
Feel it all through the mouth.
And feel it up and over the nose and through the cheeks.
Feel the eyelids smoothing out.
Feeling it deeply all through the eyes and temples.
Soft and loose.
And feel it all around the ears,
The back of the head,
Up over the top of the head.
And now feel the forehead smoothing out.
Feel it deeply,
Completely.
Feel it all through the body.
More and more.
Deeper and deeper.
Just simply letting go.
Going with it.
Feel it through the body and the mind.
Going with it.
Just going with it.
More and more.
Deeper and deeper.
Just simply letting go.
Letting go.
Take as long as you choose to sit quietly.
Then when you're ready,
You might just like to take a deep breath or two.
Perhaps move your feet a little,
Feel your hands move a little.
And then when you're ready,
Let your eyes just gently open up again.
More and more.
