Body scan:
I invite you to begin by finding a comfortable position. Allow your body
to settle. Take a slow, gentle breath in through your nose…
and exhale softly through your mouth, letting your body unwind.
Now, take another slow breath in, feeling the air move through your chest
and belly, and as you breathe out, imagine your body settling a little
deeper into the surface beneath you.
Give yourself permission to be here, just as you are.
Let your attention move to the top of your head. Notice any sensations
there… maybe warmth, tingling, tightness, or ease. What sensations do
you notice in your scalp? Just take a moment to observe what’s there,
without judgement.
Then shifting your awareness to your forehead. Notice any sensations in
those muscles- maybe tension from expression, maybe stillness, maybe
calm. Invite the space between your eyebrows to soften, relaxing any
furrow in your brow. Letting your eyes rest gently in their sockets.
Notice the sensations in the rest of your face. What do the muscles in
your cheeks and in your jaw feel like? Is there tingling, tightness, heat?
Now I invite you to use your awareness to soften the muscles around
your temples and let your jaw release. You might even let your lower jaw
drop slightly, maybe creating some space between your teeth if that
feels right. Just letting go of any tensing in your jaw.
Now, moving your attention to your neck and shoulders. Notice what
sensations you feel here — perhaps a sense of heaviness, tension,
warmth, or pulsing. Tightness. What sensations are present at the base
of your skull, the sides of your neck, your throat….what do you notice?
Now I invite you to imagine tension melting away from these areas. Let
your shoulders drop away from your ears, letting gravity take them,
feeling heavy and relaxed.
Now I invite you to draw your awareness down the arms, slowly — down
the upper arms, elbows, forearms, wrists, all the way to your hands and
to the tips of all five fingers.
Notice what you feel: tingling, pulsing, coolness, warmth, or stillness.
Any sensations on your skin or in your muscles. Notice weight,
temperature, pressure.
Now releasing any tension you may be holding in your arms, letting them
grow heavy, Imagine any tension gently streaming out through your
fingertips. Let the weight of your arms surrender to gravity.
Bring awareness now to your chest. What do you notice here? Tightness,
heaviness.. constriction? Or maybe openness and calm. Bring your
awareness to the movement in your chest as your breath rises and falls.
Imagine your breath creating more space within your chest. Feel your
ribcage expanding as you breathe. Allow your upper back to relax and
soften.
Now, move your awareness to your stomach and abdomen. Notice any
sensations here — maybe some tightness, clenching… maybe fluttering,
or stillness. Bring awareness to sensations of weight, or movement. See
if you could even assign it a color or texture, or temperature. With each
exhale, imagine the muscles around the abdomen releasing.
Now shift your focus to the hips and pelvis. See what you notice here.
See if you can describe the sensation. If there's tension, what does the
tension feel like? Is it tight and heavy? Or maybe constricting and
pulsing. Does it have a color or a temperature? Now use your awareness
to soften the muscles in your hips, allowing any tension to release,
feeling your hip muscles become relaxed and passive.
Now bring your attention down through your thighs, knees, and calves.
Notice how these large muscles feel. Maybe they feel strong. Maybe
they feel heavy, or tired. Maybe there's tension. How would you describe
the feeling? Color, weight, pressure? Let these areas soften. Feel them
grow heavier, and sink further into the surface beneath you. Let the
knees be soft, and the legs to be loose and at ease
Now move your awareness to your feet. Your ankles, soles, and toes.
Notice the sensations here…maybe you sense coolness, tingling, or the
feeling of contact with the floor. Then allow the feet to relax completely,
Let your feet grow heavier against the surface beneath you.
Now bring your awareness to your body as a whole. What do you notice?
Can you describe the sensations you feel? What areas call your attention
as you rest in space?
As you breathe here, see if you can let your body become even more
passive. Allowing yourself to soften even more, relaxing every cell. Feel
the heaviness of your body as you sink deeper into yourself and this
feeling of relaxation.
When you’re ready, start to gently deepen your breath.
Wiggle your fingers and toes.
Maybe stretch your arms overhead or roll your shoulders.
And when it feels right, open your eyes or lift your gaze, returning to the
space around you