Hi there,
My name is Tori and I'm going to help you out over the next few moments.
I want you to stop what you're doing as you listen to these words.
You can either close your eyes or find something in the distance to gaze at.
Now bring your hands together in front of your chest in prayer position,
Palms and fingertips against one another firmly but not forcefully.
Begin rubbing them together vertically like you're trying to keep your hands warm during a cold winter day.
Feel the energy and heat between the tight space of your hands from the tops of your fingertips all the way down to the base of your palms.
Do this for the next few moments,
Noticing the warmth,
Allowing this moment to be just as it is,
Like a ship in the night,
Knowing it is passing by.
Now place your hands somewhere comforting on your body.
Maybe you'll place both hands on your chest or one across your forehead and the other over your stomach or one on each thigh.
It doesn't matter what area you choose just as long as it feels comforting to you.
Your hands can stay here until the end of this meditation.
Now we're going to practice a specific type of breath work that stimulates your vagus nerve,
Which is the main nerve of your parasympathetic nervous system.
This single cranial nerve holds the role of relaxing your entire body,
Ranging from your heart rate to digestion to your respiratory system.
Okay,
So on your next inhale,
I want you to breathe in through your nose for four seconds and then you'll hold the breath in your body for four seconds and then breathe out of your mouth for six seconds and hold again for four seconds.
We're going to go through this many times,
So stay with me here.
If you've ever done box breathing,
This is almost exactly that using four seconds for each inhale and hold,
But we'll be exhaling for a bit longer at six seconds.
Okay,
So let's go again.
In through your nose,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Out through your mouth,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
And hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Now it may take you a few tries to get your breath aligned with the timing of this breath work.
That's totally normal.
It takes me at least four rounds until I feel like I'm in the rhythm.
All right,
So let's keep going.
In through your nose,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Out the mouth,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
And hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Again,
In through your nose,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Out your mouth,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
And hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Now I want you to see how low in your belly you can inhale.
You don't need to be forceful.
Just get curious.
See how far down you can send your breath.
All right,
In through your nose,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Out your mouth,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
And hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
In through your nose,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Out your mouth,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
And hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
You're doing great.
I'll let you practice this on your own a couple more times,
And don't worry about perfecting it.
Simply practice it and see how far down in your belly you can send your inhales.
As you practice this breath work,
You send messages all across your body,
Permitting it to relax,
Telling it that you are safe right now.
Your heart rate may be lowering,
Your stomach may begin digesting again,
And you may be able to take deeper breaths at this point.
I now want you to stop holding between each inhale and exhale and take a couple of deep,
Normal belly breaths,
Noticing the space you've created in your lungs,
Chest,
And stomach,
And even the back of your rib cage.
Feel the space you've created,
And as your breath begins to normalize,
Think of these words as you inhale and exhale.
As you breathe in,
Imagine safety entering your entire body.
Maybe you can think of a color that represents safety,
And imagine that color flooding each cell as it enters in with your breath.
And as you breathe out,
Imagine you're releasing fear.
Think of a color that symbolizes fear,
And picture each exhalation pulling more and more fear out,
Letting it flow away from your being,
Disintegrating back into the air.
Play with this for a few more breaths.
Inhale safety,
Exhale fear.
These physical interventions melt away the discomfort,
Letting your mind calm once more.
You know,
We tend to think that our minds lead our bodies,
But I believe that that is a bit backwards.
I believe that the body leads the mind.
I've found that it's a lot easier to rationalize with the body rather than with the mind.
Sometimes dealing with our minds is like dealing with a sleep-deprived toddler out of control and unable to calm or please.
When you find yourself in these challenging moments,
Remember the calm wisdom of your body.
Remember these tools to connect back with it,
Letting the body steer the ship,
Training your mind that it doesn't need to be in control all of the time,
That it too needs a break.
There is a certain power in letting go of the thinking and letting ourselves feel instead.
Giving yourself the gift to pause and work through this temporary moment of unease has reminded your body and mind that they are not in harm's way right now.
And as you open your eyes and begin to look around,
You'll see that right now you are okay.
Right now you're inside your body,
You're breathing.
So let whatever sensation you feel in this moment be okay too,
Whether it feels good or not so good.
Feeling your breath,
Noticing the ground beneath you,
Taking as much time as you need here,
Maybe even wrapping your arms tightly around yourself,
A thanks for the caring nurture you've shown,
Knowing you can come back here whenever you need to.
And when you're ready,
Close out of this app and take the first step to continuing your day.
