For this practice,
We will explore where we feel emotions in the body.
This practice is especially useful when you feel overwhelmed by emotion and are unable to articulate what's going on.
You will need a pen and paper or a journal for this exercise.
You can spend a few moments with this practice or as long as you need to explore a particular emotion.
For the sake of practice,
You may need to use recall to explore a past emotion.
As you become more skilled with this practice,
You can utilize the awareness in moments of extreme overwhelm.
If you happen to have a strong emotion present,
Great.
Let's explore that.
If you are simply in a space of practice,
Bring to mind now a person or a situation that caused a strong emotional response.
It might be experiencing anxiety,
Stress,
Or anger,
Irritation.
Maybe it's something pleasant like joy or gratitude.
Allow yourself space to discover the emotion you feel called to work with today.
If it feels comfortable,
You can practice with your eyes open.
Drop your awareness into the body.
Take three deep cleansing breaths to come fully into this present moment.
Bring to your awareness any emotions you may be experiencing or have recently experienced.
Pinpoint one emotion for this practice.
Repeat this emotion into your mind's eye.
Feel the emotion and acknowledge the points in the body where the emotion is most felt.
For example,
Many people experience anxiety in the chest,
The stomach,
And the limbs.
Anger or fear often arises in the stomach,
Causing tensions in the shoulders,
And may result in a furrowed brow.
Joy or gratitude may bring a lightness in the stomach and in the head.
These are simply examples.
Notice what is true for you.
Pause the recording and write down the emotion that you are working with today.
Recognize the emotional experience in the body.
Write what you feel.
Be as specific as possible.
When you feel complete,
Come back to the recording.
Now,
Turn your awareness toward the mind.
Explore both individual thoughts and overall mental states.
A mental state may be something like anxiety,
Hope,
Or the craving to fix something.
The individual thoughts may be about a person,
An event,
Or a problem that needs solving.
Again,
Pause the recording and be with the thoughts around this emotion.
Write the thoughts down as you notice them.
Be as specific as possible about all of the thoughts that you are experiencing associated with the emotion.
Take as long as you need.
When you feel complete,
Come back to the recording.
Now,
Close the eyes and simply breathe.
Feel the breath.
Breathe in the body and bring all of your attention back to the present moment.
Notice if the mind wants to explore the content of the practice.
Just breathe.
Allow thoughts and feelings to rise and fall,
Focusing all of your attention on the inhalations and the exhalations.
Remember,
You are not your thoughts.
You are not your emotions.
Allow yourself to release the practice now.
Notice how you feel.
Notice the quality of the mind.
Allow these thoughts and feelings to remain separate from the still,
Quiet place with the breath.
Moving in and out.
Take a deep inhale through the nose and a gentle exhale out the mouth.
Open the eyes.
If you feel called,
Journal a bit more about the experience.
How did this make you feel?
Was it easy or hard?
Were you able to notice subtle differences in the body and the mind?
There are no right or wrong answers.
This is simply practice.
This is simply noticing,
Exploring the inner workings of you.
If you feel called to practice with another emotion on another day,
Do so.
If this practice doesn't resonate,
Leave it behind for now.
Allow your journey to unfold.
For you,
In your own way.
Namaste.
