Begin by finding a position for the body that is both comfortable and alert.
You can sit or lie down.
And if you lie down,
You might find it restorative to put your legs up a wall or on a chair.
You can close your eyes or keep them open with a soft downward gaze.
Feeling into the body,
Feeling into the areas of contact in this moment.
You can begin at the feet.
Feel where the feet are touching the ground or the chair.
Feel the legs,
The back,
The arms,
The head.
Maybe also notice your breath entering and leaving the body.
The intention of the body scan is to be present with our body without any expectation.
It can be nice to have relaxation,
But try to remove any goals or expectations and just be present with what's there.
The idea is to be checking in with each area of the body in a curious and non-judgmental way.
So it's as if you're opening the door to a room that you've never been in before.
Look around with curiosity.
See what's there.
You might also notice that there's some areas in the body that you can't feel at all.
This is totally okay and normal.
Just check into those areas as if you could feel something and see if anything changes.
If it does or if it doesn't,
It's all okay just as it is.
So starting back with the attention with the feet,
Feeling to the areas where your feet are touching the ground or the chair,
Maybe feeling your toes,
If that's available to you.
Maybe feeling tingling or temperature,
Feeling if there's any pressure from resting on whatever surface the feet are resting on.
Now moving the attention to the ankles and the lower legs.
What's here,
If anything?
Do you feel the pressure of your legs against the chair or the floor?
Maybe the fabric of your clothing against the skin?
If you find it helpful,
You can imagine that you're breathing into your lower legs.
Or you can imagine that your attention might light up whatever area you're focusing on as if your attention was a flashlight.
Now letting go of the lower legs and moving the attention to your knees and upper legs.
What's here right now?
Again,
Maybe pressure,
Temperature,
The position of your legs,
Or nothing at all.
If you feel numbness,
This also counts as a sensation in this practice.
Noticing also that thinking about an area or picturing it is different from actually feeling into it.
Now letting go of the upper legs and moving the attention to the lower belly and pelvis.
Notice any sensations in this area.
Maybe feeling the breath in the lower belly or not.
And if you notice somewhere in this meditation that your attention has drifted,
Bring it back with a gentle,
Loving attention.
If it's helpful,
You can label whatever it is that's drawn your attention.
Thought or sound or planning.
Letting go now and feeling into the stomach area,
The chest,
Feeling the sensations of the breath here with each inhalation and each exhalation.
Feeling the spine against the floor or the chair or nothing at all if you're sitting on a cushion.
Notice any sensation or the absence of sensation here.
From here now,
You can move the attention into your hands.
Feeling your hands,
Notice how well you can feel your hands without needing to see them.
Feel,
If you can,
The individual fingers,
The palms,
The position of the hands and whatever they might be resting on.
Again,
Pressure,
Temperature,
Any sensations that are here and available for you.
When you're ready,
Moving the attention to the wrists and the forearms.
What's here to feel?
Now moving the attention to your elbows and upper arms,
Noticing any sensations.
And again,
If your mind wanders,
Just bring it back to wherever we are,
Starting again where you are right now.
From here,
Moving the attention to your shoulders,
The back of your neck,
And then to your throat,
Into your jaw.
Feeling into the face,
What does your face feel like?
Chin,
Mouth,
Nose,
Cheeks,
Eyes,
Forehead,
Ears.
Now opening the awareness to include the entire body again,
Being alive,
Breathing,
Here in this moment.
If you like,
Imagine that you're breathing from the crown of your head all the way down into your toes,
And up and out again.
Noticing all the sensations of the body and allowing them to be just as they are in this moment.
And if you notice that you've drifted off into thought,
Just bring the attention back.
Without judgment,
Just noticing.
Opening to sensations of the body and sensations of the breath.
And we'll take about another minute here,
Opening to sensations,
Noticing the breath.
.
.
Now allowing some movement back to the body,
Can wiggle the fingers,
Wiggle the toes,
Stretch the body in any way it wants if that feels good.
And then when you're ready,
In your own time,
Opening your eyes very slowly and coming back into the room.
And if you can,
Take a moment to reflect on your experience in this new moment.
