Gentle Body Scan

Welcome to the body scan practice.

This practice can be done in a seated position,

Lying down,

Or even standing.

So just finding a position that allows you to be relaxed,

Comfortable,

Alert,

Awake.

Feeling free to close your eyes or keep them open for this practice.

And beginning now by taking a few deep and slow breaths.

Slowing down the body and mind as you enter the present moment.

Noticing the points of contact where the body meets the floor or chair or cushion.

Noticing any sense of pressure or temperature.

Other sensations at these points where the body is supported for this practice.

And then just taking a few deep breaths.

We're going to start now with some abdominal breathing.

Settling your awareness on the breath at the abdomen.

And just feeling the rise and fall of the belly as you breathe in and out.

No need to analyze or count the breath or breathe in any particular way.

Just breathing and sensing into the felt sense of breath moving in and out of the body.

Riding the waves of breath in and out.

When you notice the mind has wandered away from the sensations of breathing.

This is not a problem at all.

In fact,

It's very normal for the mind to wander to all sorts of places.

Just sampling the breath.

It's normal for the mind to wander to all sorts of places.

To sounds,

Thoughts,

Memories,

Emotions.

And when you notice this,

Making space for these experiences,

Acknowledging wherever the mind went.

And then gently guiding attention back to the sensations of breathing at the belly again and again.

When you're ready now,

We're going to transition into the body scan.

And the body scan practice is intended to increase awareness of the mind-body connections.

And so in this practice,

I'll be guiding you to direct your awareness into various parts of the body.

Noticing the felt senses in each region.

And as you explore the body with your mindful awareness,

You'll perhaps notice a whole range of sensations.

Some that are pleasant,

Others that are neutral,

Some that are unpleasant,

And even some that may be intense and painful.

In some regions,

You may not notice any sensations at all.

Giving yourself permission to feel whatever is arising.

Seeing if you can approach all sensations,

Regardless of their charge,

With the same mindful curiosity.

Without striving to feel or not feel a particular sensation.

Without striving to change just what is.

Being kind and patient with yourself.

Observing the quality of sensations that arise and using the breath to gently explore what is here.

Perhaps observing the transient nature of sensations coming and going.

And as you move awareness through the body,

You may also notice certain thoughts and emotions that enter your awareness.

And acknowledging these thoughts and emotions too,

Making space for them.

Without getting caught up in thought or emotion,

Seeing if you can just note them.

And then using the breath and sensations in the body to ground in the present moment.

And my instructions in this practice are just meant as guidance.

You are in full control.

And if you are finding that you begin to experience intense physical pain or emotional distress with instructions to bring your awareness to certain parts of the body.

Just taking care of yourself in whatever way that is.

Trusting your own sensitivity and wisdom.

You may choose to shift awareness to the breath at the abdomen or sensations of the body against the floor or chair.

Maintaining a gentle awareness here as long as you need.

And then when you are ready,

If it feels right,

Gently returning awareness back to the body sensations of a particular region.

This can be a safe way to explore what might be difficult for you.

By trusting your own wisdom.

And now gathering your awareness along with the breath at the abdomen.

And moving your attention like a beam of light down both legs to the feet.

Feeling into the sensations in both feet up into the ankles.

Perhaps beginning by noticing where the feet meet the floor.

Exploring more superficial sensations like sock against skin or air against skin.

And then moving your awareness deeper into the sensations of the muscles and the tissues of the feet and ankles.

Breathing into the feet as you explore the sensations present with mindful awareness.

And on this next out breath now releasing awareness from the feet and moving your awareness up into the lower legs all the way through the knees.

Being gentle with yourself,

Being kind and curious as you open up to the sensations in the calves,

The shins.

The knees,

The kneecaps.

What sensations are here right now?

And releasing awareness from the lower legs and knees and shifting your awareness to the feet.

And releasing awareness from the lower legs and knees and shifting awareness up into the upper legs and hips.

Sensing and feeling into the thighs and hamstrings,

Into the hips.

Breathing and being present,

Bringing your tender awareness to what is here in the body.

And now shifting awareness into the pelvic region.

Being sensitive and gentle with yourself here as you explore the pelvic basin.

And then shifting awareness now into the abdomen.

Noticing sensations of clothing against the belly.

Being breathed in and out.

And then feeling into the sensations and the muscles and the organs.

The home of digestion,

Assimilation.

And being curious what sensations are here in the belly right now.

And also noticing any thoughts,

Emotions that may arise.

And acknowledging these and letting be.

Settling awareness into the sensations of the belly and the breath.

And moving awareness through the midsection and into the back and exploring the lower back,

The mid back and upper back,

The shoulder blades with mindful awareness.

Noticing the sensations in the muscles,

The spine.

Breathing into the full back with tenderness,

Awareness.

And shifting awareness into the shoulders.

Breathing in and out and noticing sensations throughout the shoulders.

And whenever you're ready,

Releasing awareness from the shoulders and moving your attention down both arms into both hands.

Noticing any sensation or lack of sensations in the hands,

Any warmth or coolness,

Tingling,

Dryness,

Moisture.

And exploring both arms now from the wrists and up the arms into the armpits.

Being present here and now.

So you breathe into the arms and explore the sensations here.

And where's the mind right now and where's the body and breath?

And gathering your attention now and bringing your awareness into the chest region.

Feeling into the rib cage,

The lungs,

The heart.

And the home of your vitality with mindful awareness.

And moving awareness now up into the neck and throat.

Being gentle with yourself as you explore the sensations associated perhaps with breathing and swallowing.

And shifting awareness up into the chin and jaw,

Exploring the fleshy part of the chin,

Exploring the jaw that works so hard for you to eat and express yourself.

What sensations are here right now?

And exploring the mouth,

The lips,

Gums,

Tongue.

Perhaps all the way back down to where the mouth meets the throat from the inside.

And exploring up into the nose,

Noticing the sensations maybe of air coming in and out of the nostrils.

Perhaps any change in temperature on the inflow and the outflow.

Exploring the cheeks and temples.

Exploring the ears,

The inside of the ears,

Tiny hairs within the ears,

Bony structures,

As well as the outside of the ears.

What sensations are here?

And bringing awareness into the eyes,

Perhaps feeling a heaviness or fluttering in the eyelids,

And any temperature or sensations in the eyeballs,

Maybe even behind the eyeballs.

And shifting awareness into the brow and forehead,

Being present to what sensations may be here now.

Letting the brow and forehead just rest as they are as you feel in to what's here.

Noticing sensations of hair or skin on the sides and top of the head.

Feeling into the skull,

Exploring the inside of the head,

Exploring the inside of the head from the inside and out.

Now expanding awareness and enveloping the whole body with your mindful attention.

The whole body integrated and synchronized,

Being breathed in and out.

Perhaps resting in awareness of the full body here for a few moments.

Feeling breath traveling from the toes and feet up through the top of the head and back down.

You are alive and breathing and feeling.

Mind and body as one.

Body and breath as one.

Bringing awareness now to the points of contact where the body is supported by the chair or floor.

And as we come to the end of this practice,

Thanking yourself for bringing mindful awareness into the body for this practice.

This is an act of self-care.

Thank you for watching.