Welcome.
This is a five-minute beginner meditation designed for people struggling with anxiety problems.
I will assume that you are relatively new to meditation and may be having a hard time understanding how it's done and how to use it as a tool in your anxiety recovery plan.
I will give you a bit of instruction,
Then we will do five minutes of sitting quietly,
Relaxing,
And bringing our focus to an object that you can touch and hold in your hand.
This is helpful for people that struggle with breath-centric anxiety who find that focus on the breath is difficult.
If you are feeling very anxious or even near panic now,
Sitting quietly for five minutes may be very difficult.
That is okay.
Sit for as long as you can.
If you end early,
That is not a problem.
That's not failure.
You can return to this meditation as often as you need in order to practice.
Try increasing your time by a few seconds each session until you have completed the entire five minutes.
Instructions.
Find a small object to hold loosely and gently in your hand.
It should be a small and light enough object so that it is not difficult to hold.
It doesn't matter what that object is.
It does not have to have any special meaning.
You will simply use the object as a focus point in this practice.
Once you have your object in your hand,
Find a comfortable place to sit where you will be supported without having to exert much effort.
Pick a good chair,
A sofa,
Or a good spot on the floor.
You do not have to sit cross-legged.
Be comfortable.
Adopt an upright posture with your shoulders back and your chin level or slightly tilted up.
If you're hunching or find yourself in a defensive posture,
Note this and do your best to correct it before you start.
You may close your eyes or simply lower your gaze.
Once you are sitting,
Take 30 seconds to fully release the tension in your body.
This may feel like the first scary thing that I'm asking you to do.
Let go of the tension.
Go as limp as you can.
This may feel dangerous or wrong to you,
But do your best to fully relax.
It's okay if you have to release the tension over and over during the exercise.
During the meditation,
Breathe naturally.
If you have anxiety focused on your breath,
You may struggle with being hyper-focused on breathing.
You can use this meditation to practice moving your focus away from your breath,
Letting go of the need to control your breathing,
And allowing your body to breathe like it is capable of doing.
It knows what to do if we let it handle what it is designed to handle.
All we are required to do for the next five minutes is to relax our bodies and train our focus.
Your body and brain may work overtime to get your attention.
This is okay.
You can allow that,
And you could bring your attention back to the object in your hand,
Rather than giving your attention to the sensations and thoughts.
This is the heart of our meditation practice in anxiety recovery.
Okay,
Get into a comfortable position,
And let's get started.
To help you gauge the time left in our meditation,
I will sound a gentle bell every minute.
This may also help you bring your attention back to the object in your hand if you find that your mind is wandering or you become distracted.
Get neutral.
Relax your body.
All the way.
Let go.
It's okay.
Repeat this when you need to.
Bring your attention to the object in your hand.
Notice its weight.
Notice how it feels in your palm,
And how your fingers are arranged around it.
What does that feel like?
There is no right or wrong answer to that,
And nothing that you are required to feel or experience.
The object is just a convenient place to bring your focus as we practice now.
Relax your body.
Let all the tension go.
Pretend you are a rag doll.
No tension.
If you lose focus or begin following thoughts or sensations,
That's okay.
Gently bring your focus back to the object in your hand.
There is no failure here.
Notice the texture of the object in your hand.
Is it smooth or is it rough?
Is the surface all the same texture or does it vary?
Gently acknowledge the sensation as you run a finger across the object or just feel it resting in your hand.
Stay relaxed.
Keep releasing the tension in your body.
Breathe.
If you are a breath holder,
Be aware of when you may be doing this.
Let go.
Let the air flow into your body,
Then out of your body in a natural rhythm without forcing it.
Keep relaxing your body and keep returning your focus to the object in your hand when your brain begins chattering at you.
How heavy is it?
Feel and experience the weight of the object as you hold it loosely.
Allow yourself to gently gauge its weight by moving your hand just a little bit.
This may be difficult and scary for you.
Your mind will wander.
You will want to engage with the unpleasant sensations in your body.
You will want to respond to and argue with any scary thoughts that you may be having.
But it's okay for the sensations and thoughts to be there.
Let them be there.
You are learning to move through those feelings and that fear.
You are learning that you do not have to fear what you feel and think.
Keep breathing.
There's no need to either hold your breath or focus excessively on your breath.
Let go.
Let your body breathe on its own and bring your attention back to the object in your hand.
Release the tension in your body.
Get loose.
It's okay to let go.
Spend some time experiencing the shape of the object you are holding.
Is it smooth and rounded or does it have sharp edges?
Is it a hard object or is it softer to the touch?
Take a few moments to focus on these properties and allow yourself to let go and just experience them without adding a story to them.
This is how we practice letting go and training our focus.
Continue to release any tension in your body.
Relax your muscles even if your brain wants you to tense up.
It's okay if you have to keep releasing.
Now breathe and bring your focus to the object in your hand.
Fully experience it and allow everything else to fall away.
Just let time gently pass as you use your sense of touch to fully explore the object.
And relax.
Great job.
That's it.
You did it.
You did five minutes just focusing on the object in your hand.
Great job.
When you are ready,
Open your eyes,
Blink,
Look around the room,
Slowly and deliberately stretch your arms or legs.
Really stretch.
Enjoy it like a dog or a cat does.
You've earned that stretch.
You did a great job.
Bring your attention to the tasks and subjects that matter to you now.
What lies ahead of you?
What can you accomplish today?
What small steps forward can you take?
You just did five full minutes where you worked on not giving anxiety your full attention.
Bring that with you for the rest of the day.
Focus on the task at hand rather than on your anxiety.
This takes practice,
So don't be discouraged if you fall into old habits.
Just correct and move on.
Feel free to use this little five minute meditation break several times during the day if you can.
Learning this skill and working on applying it to your anxiety recovery is a great investment in yourself and your future.
And you are worth it.
Thank you for listening and I'll see you in the next meditation.
