29/03/2020
5 STEPS TO CALM Try this quick technique to give yourself a few minutes of breathing space from stress and worry. Remember that 'you are not your thoughts' - so even if your thoughts are anxious, you can still find calm.
1. Find a place to sit quietly, where your body feels supported and you feel comfortable. When you’re ready, take a few deep breaths and allow your eyes to close. Take a moment to tune into the sensations of sitting. If you’re in a chair, feel the soles of your feet on the floor. Sense your body settling.
2. Now ask yourself, What is my experience right now? What thoughts are here? What feelings are present? What bodily sensations are there? Just allow anything you discover to be as it is - no need to change anything in any way.
3. Now gently shift your attention to the belly and the breath. Feel the sensations of breathing right down to the belly, the rising of the belly on the in-breath, the falling of the belly on the out-breath. Give the mind just one thing to do here, feeling the breath as best you can, moment by moment.
4. Now see if you can expand your attention around the belly. Allow your attention to radiate outwards from there, expanding it into the body as a whole. Feel the whole body sitting and the whole body breathing, from the crown of your head to the soles of your feet. If you can, move your attention further outwards, beyond the body. And further still - expand your attention into the space around you, the room in which you’re sitting. Hold all of this as best you can in a wider and open awareness.
5. When you’re ready, gently allow your eyes to open. And notice how you feel!