The body scan,
A guided meditation.
Find a comfortable lying position.
Let your hands rest gently on your abdomen.
Feel the sensation of your hands as they rise and fall with the cycle of breath.
The mind is naturally distractible.
It will wander.
During this exercise,
If you find yourself distracted by your thoughts,
Simply shift your awareness back to the rhythm of breath and continue to follow the guided meditation.
Remembering that in noticing,
You are mindful.
Now bringing your awareness to your breath,
Let the quality of attention be light and easy.
Simply observing and noticing the natural rhythm of your own breath.
As if floating on an undulating sea,
Up one wave and down the next.
Not trying to control the speed or depth,
Just riding the waves.
Noticing the sensation of the full cycle of breath.
As you inhale,
Noticing the breath entering through your nose and moving back to your throat and down into the lungs.
As you breathe in,
Feel your abdomen gently rising and fall as you exhale.
See,
Feel and hear your breath.
Breathing in,
Noticing the pause between the inhalation and the exhalation as your body switches from breathing in to breathing out.
Enjoying the sensation of breath as it moves in and out.
Now,
Bringing your attention to your feet.
Noticing the toes,
Top of the foot,
Sides and sole.
Noticing the heel as it makes contact with the surface that you're lying on.
Any feelings or sensations,
Maybe tingling,
A sense of pressure or touch,
Temperature.
Simply noticing what is present in that moment.
And bringing your breath down through the body to the feet and breathing with your feet.
And when you're ready,
On your next exhalation,
Gently release and let go.
Letting go of the feet.
Bringing your awareness to your shins and calves,
Ankles.
The feelings and sensations of skin,
Bone,
Muscle and joints.
Just noticing what's there right now.
And when you're ready,
On your next inhalation,
Breathing into that area.
And as you exhale,
Gently release.
Letting go of any tension.
Just letting it melt away.
And bringing your awareness now to your knees.
Tops,
Sides and back of the knees.
The skin,
The joint,
Tendon.
Simply observing the sensations of the knee.
And on your next inhalation,
Breathing into the area of the knee.
And when you exhale,
Letting go.
Letting any tension just dissolve and melt away.
And bringing your awareness now to your thighs and buttocks.
Tops and backs of the thigh.
Buttock area.
Noticing any areas of your body that are tense.
Noticing any areas of tension.
Sensing the pressure of your body making contact with the surface you're lying on.
The sense of touch.
Being aware of the skin,
Muscles,
Bones and joints.
And when you're ready,
Bringing the breath into the area as you inhale.
And as you breathe out,
Let the area soften and release.
Letting any tension just flow out with the breath.
Noticing as you begin to sink deeper.
Become more relaxed.
Sinking deeper into the surface that you're lying on.
Bringing your attention now to your hips.
The pelvic area.
Just noticing any sensations.
Any areas of tension.
And as you inhale,
Breathing in.
You're breathing into the pelvic area.
And as you exhale,
Just gently release and let go.
Bringing your attention now to your back.
Lower and upper back.
All the many muscles.
Muscles.
Bones.
Backbone.
The back of the ribcage.
Often a place where we hold lots of tension.
Just breathing and noticing any sensations.
And on your next inhalation,
Breathing in to the area.
Breathing in to your back.
And as you breathe out,
Feel the area soften and release.
Letting any tension flow out with the breath.
As you sink deeper and deeper.
Deeper and deeper into a state of relaxed awareness and stillness.
Totally present in each moment.
Content to just be as you are right now.
Bringing your awareness to your chest.
Noticing the chest as it moves with the natural rhythm of your breath.
Feeling the ribcage rising and falling.
Just observing the chest area.
Skin.
Muscles and bones.
Lungs.
Directing the breath into the area of the chest as you inhale.
And as you exhale,
Just letting any tension melt away.
Moving your awareness to your shoulders and arms.
And some fingers.
All the many muscles and bones.
Many joints.
Just being aware of the sensation.
Simply noticing what is present in this moment.
Noticing any areas of tension in the shoulder region.
Breathing with the area of your arms and shoulders.
Directing your in-breath to every aspect of your shoulders and arms as you inhale.
And as you exhale.
And as you breathe out,
Feel the area soften and release.
Feel the breath moving from the shoulders,
Through the arms,
Fingertips.
Letting it melt away.
Just noticing as you sink deeper and relax into the surface you're lying on.
Bringing your awareness now to your neck and your head.
Noticing the pressure or sensation of touch where your neck and head make contact with the surface you're lying on.
Seeing any areas of tension.
Simply observing sensations.
Breathing with that area of your body.
And when you're ready,
Breathing into the neck and head.
And as you breathe out,
Just letting any tension release.
Letting go of the neck and the head.
As you sink deeper into a state of relaxation.
Letting go of your relaxed awareness.
And bringing your attention to the face.
The many muscles in the face.
The skull,
The brain.
Mouth and jaw.
Just observing.
Sensing the skin.
Going deeper into the muscles.
Breathing with the face.
And when you're ready,
On your next inhalation,
Gently breathing into the area of the face.
And as you exhale,
Gently release and let go.
Allowing any tension to simply melt away.
Letting your face soften.
Any tension flows out with the breath.
As you enjoy a state of relaxed awareness and stillness.
Totally present in each moment.
Content to just be as you are.
Right now.
Now bringing your awareness to every single muscle and bone in your body.
Simply observing and noticing the sensations.
Breathing with your entire body.
And when you're ready.
Breathing into every single area of your body.
Breathing into any remaining tension.
And as you breathe out,
Feel your body soften and release.
Letting any tension just melt away.
Allowing any tension to simply melt away.
Flow out with the out-breath.
Enjoying a state of relaxed awareness.
Being totally present in each moment.
Content to just be as you are.
Right now.
Enjoying a state of mindful awareness.
And as you hear the bell,
Bringing the end to your practice.
Beginning to wriggle your fingers and toes.
Moving your body.
Opening your eyes.
Bringing yourself back to the room.
Calm.
Alert.
Peaceful.
