Your body and mindfulness.
Your body is a teaching manual of what you carry in your mind and heart.
An inability to sit still may point to a restless mind. A heart that feels heavy may indicate sadness. A throbbing head may signal anxiety.
By the same token, the body offers ways to calm the mind.
If you bring your attention to points of your body where “dis-ease” are held, the mere act of acknowledgment gives space for tension and unpleasant sensations to soften and dissipate.
For the following five-minute exercise, lie down on your back and relax. Sink into the feeling of your body and the gentle rhythm of your breath. Invite your breath to slow and deepen into abdominal breathing.
Bring your attention to sensations in your face, head, and neck; noticing points of tension or tightness, heaviness or pressure. On the out-breath, the “letting go” breath, invite sensations in this area of your body to release, relax, or simply be.”
Direct your awareness to sensations in your torso, arms, and hands; sensing any areas of tingling or numbness, cold or heat, strain or knots. On the exhalation, encourage sensations in this area of your body to soften, loosen, or be as they are.
Notice sensations in your thighs, calves, feet, and toes; feeling for tightness or hardness, soreness or numbness. On the “letting go” breath, allow sensations in this area of your body to release, ease, or just be.
End with a full-body cleansing breath. Inhale deeply as you “sweep” your body for any remaining tension from the bottom of your feet, up your spine, to your head. On a long, full exhale, release all “dust and debris” from an imaginary blowhole on top of your head.
Thank you for taking care of yourself
Adapted from 50 Mindful Steps to Self-Esteem by Janetti Marotta