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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
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This powerful breath meditation will help you gather your awareness into the present moment when you feel overwhelmed or stressed.
So no matter what's been going on for you, just taking some time now to sit as comfortably as possible. Just really taking your time to settle in. And then if you care to, just allowing the eyes to gently close now, or you might like to keep the eyes open and just gaze softly somewhere just in front of you. And when you're ready, just taking some deep, slow, full breaths now. So breathing in and feeling the lungs expand.
And breathing out and feeling all of the muscles of the chest let go and soften. And as you breathe in again now, just conscious of that feeling of fresh, clean air entering and filling the body. On the exhale, feel the body again soften and relax. And just taking a couple more breaths in this way now. And with each exhale relaxing more and more fully into this time, this place, this moment.
And now just letting go of any effort to control the breath. Just let the breath become natural again. And no matter how stressed or tense the mind is right now, there's no need to try and fix or change anything at all. Just letting the mind be as it is. And we're going to focus attention to the feeling of the body in contact with the surface beneath you.
Just noticing what sensations can you feel right now at the contact points where body touches the surface beneath. And it might be feelings of tingling, pressure or textures. It might be heaviness or lightness. Just really bringing your full focus into feeling what's here to be felt. And allowing the weight of your body to settle down into gravity a little more with each exhale.
And now just bringing attention to the whole physical body. And notice how the body is gently being rocked and craddled by the movement of the breath. Sometimes just noticing the soothing rhythm of the natural breath can bring soothing and softness to the mind and body too. If the mind wanders away from feeling the breath, just notice what thoughts carried you off. And no matter what the thoughts were, no matter how important they claim to be, just letting them go and coming home again to that feeling of the breath moving in the body.
Just letting the feeling of the breath be an anchor, a resting place. Giving yourself permission to let everything else go now and simply be fully focused on the breath. Nothing but the breath. Nowhere else to get to. Nothing more that needs to happen.
Just breathing. Not getting caught up in thoughts, just allowing the thoughts to come and go on their own, without chasing them or trying to change them. But remembering if you do get lost in thought, just noticing the distraction, letting it go, and coming gently back to the breath. And just taking these last moments of this meditation to really luxuriate in the feeling of the flow of the breath. And just giving yourself that permission to rest here.
And letting everything else go. And now just inviting in a little bit of a longer and deeper breath. A couple more breaths like that. Filling the lungs with air on the inhale. And as you exhale, feeling all of those muscles of the chest and lungs let go.
And now once again, feeling a sense of your whole physical body. And noticing the position of the body, position of the legs, and torso, the arms, and head. Whole physical body. And just noticing the connection points between your body and the surface you're sitting or lying on. Feeling the weight of the body against that surface.
And just taking a moment to now also connect with the different sounds in the surrounding environment. And when you're ready, just beginning to wriggle the fingers and the toes a little bit. And gently opening the eyes. And as you get ready now to reconnect with the rest of your day, just taking this more centered and grounded awareness with you into the rest of your day.
Unwinding Stress
This powerful breath meditation will help you gather your awareness into the present moment when you feel overwhelmed or stressed.
Duration
Your default time is based on your progress and is changed automatically as you practice.
So no matter what's been going on for you, just taking some time now to sit as comfortably as possible. Just really taking your time to settle in. And then if you care to, just allowing the eyes to gently close now, or you might like to keep the eyes open and just gaze softly somewhere just in front of you. And when you're ready, just taking some deep, slow, full breaths now. So breathing in and feeling the lungs expand.
And breathing out and feeling all of the muscles of the chest let go and soften. And as you breathe in again now, just conscious of that feeling of fresh, clean air entering and filling the body. On the exhale, feel the body again soften and relax. And just taking a couple more breaths in this way now. And with each exhale relaxing more and more fully into this time, this place, this moment.
And now just letting go of any effort to control the breath. Just let the breath become natural again. And no matter how stressed or tense the mind is right now, there's no need to try and fix or change anything at all. Just letting the mind be as it is. And we're going to focus attention to the feeling of the body in contact with the surface beneath you.
Just noticing what sensations can you feel right now at the contact points where body touches the surface beneath. And it might be feelings of tingling, pressure or textures. It might be heaviness or lightness. Just really bringing your full focus into feeling what's here to be felt. And allowing the weight of your body to settle down into gravity a little more with each exhale.
And now just bringing attention to the whole physical body. And notice how the body is gently being rocked and craddled by the movement of the breath. Sometimes just noticing the soothing rhythm of the natural breath can bring soothing and softness to the mind and body too. If the mind wanders away from feeling the breath, just notice what thoughts carried you off. And no matter what the thoughts were, no matter how important they claim to be, just letting them go and coming home again to that feeling of the breath moving in the body.
Just letting the feeling of the breath be an anchor, a resting place. Giving yourself permission to let everything else go now and simply be fully focused on the breath. Nothing but the breath. Nowhere else to get to. Nothing more that needs to happen.
Just breathing. Not getting caught up in thoughts, just allowing the thoughts to come and go on their own, without chasing them or trying to change them. But remembering if you do get lost in thought, just noticing the distraction, letting it go, and coming gently back to the breath. And just taking these last moments of this meditation to really luxuriate in the feeling of the flow of the breath. And just giving yourself that permission to rest here.
And letting everything else go. And now just inviting in a little bit of a longer and deeper breath. A couple more breaths like that. Filling the lungs with air on the inhale. And as you exhale, feeling all of those muscles of the chest and lungs let go.
And now once again, feeling a sense of your whole physical body. And noticing the position of the body, position of the legs, and torso, the arms, and head. Whole physical body. And just noticing the connection points between your body and the surface you're sitting or lying on. Feeling the weight of the body against that surface.
And just taking a moment to now also connect with the different sounds in the surrounding environment. And when you're ready, just beginning to wriggle the fingers and the toes a little bit. And gently opening the eyes. And as you get ready now to reconnect with the rest of your day, just taking this more centered and grounded awareness with you into the rest of your day.
Duration
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