If you have experienced a trigger,
A sudden urge to consume a substance or act on a behavior that is no longer serving you,
Sit with me for a moment.
Let's ride it out together.
Close your eyes.
Take a few deep cleansing breaths.
Deep inhale through your nose.
Drop the jaw.
Let out an audible sigh.
Breathe in.
Drop your arms by your sides.
Let out a sigh.
One more big breath in.
And as you exhale,
Drop your jaw.
Drop your arms and sigh it out.
Maybe you shake out your hands,
Roll your neck,
Roll out your shoulders.
If it's comfortable,
Find stillness.
Notice your body.
Become aware of physical sensations.
Perhaps labeling them,
Not attaching thoughts or feelings to these sensations,
But simply naming them.
Heat,
Tingling,
Pulsing.
Recognize where you're feeling this urge.
Is it a heaviness in your chest?
A lump in your throat?
A twitch in your feet?
Wherever you feel this physical sensation,
Place your hand.
Relax your hand on this area.
Inhale deeply through your nose.
Exhale slowly out of your mouth.
Inviting you to repeat the following words.
I am experiencing an urge.
This is a normal human reaction to experience.
With every inhale,
I breathe in strength.
With every exhale,
I allow my body to soften.
I have everything I need to ride out this urge.
My mind,
My body,
And my breath.
I have everything I need to ride out this urge.
I have my mind.
I have my body.
And I have my breath.
Keep breathing deep past your chest,
Past your ribs and lungs,
Deep into the belly.
You can keep your hand here for the rest of the meditation or remove it if you're feeling safe to do so.
These moments are heavy and intense.
But they will pass.
For so long we have relied on these substances,
These behaviors to fulfill us.
Perhaps they did.
Perhaps they held us when we needed to be held.
Listened to us when no one was listening.
Loved us when we could not find love.
These anxieties,
These feelings of overwhelm,
They are only ever passing through.
They are visitors who we can learn to manage with the right supports.
Supports that show us we are worthy of kindness,
Compassion,
And love.
And you are worthy of kindness,
Compassion,
And love.
This journey of breaking years,
Perhaps generations of patterns and cycles is not for the faint of heart.
We are only ever doing the absolute best that we can.
So commend yourself.
Commend yourself every time you take a breath instead of a drink.
Every time you turn inwards instead of towards a substance.
It's not easy.
The greatest things never are.
Take pride in the steps that you take,
Even if each step forward is followed by three steps back.
And know that every time we choose our heart over our urge,
We are allowing a part of ourselves to heal.
The part of ourselves that needed to be held,
Listened to,
And loved.
Breathe here for a few more moments.
Noticing if we are clenching our jaw.
Soften the skin between your eyebrows.
Relax your eyelids.
Allow the shoulders to soften away from the ears.
I am experiencing an urge.
This is a normal human reaction to experience.
With every inhale,
I breathe in strength.
And with every exhale,
I allow my body to soften.
I have everything I need to ride out this urge.
My mind,
My body,
And my breath.
We'll take three more cleansing breaths.
Inhaling through our nose.
Exhaling,
Sighing it out.
Breathing in,
Finding length in the spine.
Exhaling,
Relaxing the shoulders.
Let it go.
One more deep belly breath in.
Exhale.
It is here that we will heal.
