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The ENP members Podcast.
Alrighty. We're good to go.
Speaker 2:Stunning. So welcome, everybody. Hi. I'm your in house psychotherapist and mindset coach, Young. And tonight, we're here to do a session, which is a little bit different.
Speaker 2:Right? We're following up from last month where we did everything around journaling. And now we're going to be learning another coping skill is what I really want you taking away from this session. It is a skill. So we are going to be learning all about meditation and mindfulness.
Speaker 2:So you all need to jump on to Menti. Move that out of the way. So you can go to www.menti.com, use our code. Our code tonight is 52083815. Or I will also pop it into the chat and you can click that link and it will take you directly there.
Speaker 2:Now tonight, there's going to be a little bit of interaction. Okay, you'll see in a minute, but it's more so I just want you being present and allowing me to guide you all. Okay, so for once you don't have to do anything, but just follow my lead. Okay, which will be a nice break for me getting used to loads and loads of homework when we're on calls. So hopefully you should all be logged on by now.
Speaker 2:Please know that when you do interact with Menti, it is completely anonymous. So use that away to your heart's content. There is a Q and A at the very end. You can ask a question about meditation and mindfulness, but you can ask a question about anything at all whilst you have me. Okay?
Speaker 2:If you're watching this back as a recording, don't fast forward me. Listen to everything that I say. But also, if you are watching this back as a recording, you go to menti.com. Unfortunately, the training will be gone. It is a live interactive tool.
Speaker 2:Do try to come along live. Okay? So tonight we are going to be learning all about meditation and mindfulness. There is so many reasons why I want you to learn this as a skill set. First of all, to open up a range of coping skills for you.
Speaker 2:Okay, now meditation, mindfulness, and a lot of people asking what's the difference between them? We will get to that in a minute. But I want you looking at as a broad spectrum for now. It is going to be something that will help. Right?
Speaker 2:It's just about finding how to find make it work for you. So people will come to me and say, I tried meditation just wasn't for me. I kept falling asleep or I can't find my heart starts racing when I do it or, oh my God, I get really anxious when I do it. And I'm going to explain why that happens in a little while. But as you move through this program, naturally, what should happen is you should appoint have a massive influx of emotions.
Speaker 2:Right. That's meant to happen. Oshin will have have it happened to him in his whole journey through life. Right. Moving into business, he's probably had days where he's like, Oh my fucking God, even said today his blood results came back with high cortisol, which tells me that there has been emotions happening too.
Speaker 2:But he's latching onto the cortisol because it has a number behind us. But there is emotions most definitely happening, whether he's aware or not aware that is causing that cortisol to increase up. Right. But when we can sit and feel those emotions, that's where we really start to become quite powerful, because it's when we start to suppress them. Those emotions don't disappear.
Speaker 2:They actually run rampant and they start to come out in ways that maybe we have less control over. Maybe that's when we have those big emotional outbursts. Or maybe that's when we start getting things like migraines. That's when we start getting things like irritable. That's when we start getting things like anything at all, Eczema can flare up, insomnia, right?
Speaker 2:That's all can be contributing factors to suppressed emotions that can tend to bring them out. So let's start as we mean to go on. I want you to take a nice deep breath and check-in with your bodies. Check-in with your mind. Check-in with that emotional space.
Speaker 2:Do a quick little body scan and see what's coming up for you. See if you can feel them swirling anywhere in your body in particular. And maybe then if you can see what emotion that is. Whenever you're ready to do so you can pop it into Menti. Let me know what emotion you feel right now.
Speaker 2:If your knee jerk reaction is to say tiredness, tiredness is usually a mask. Okay, is one that feels more acceptable for us to say. Tiredness is usually masking another emotion underneath. Tiredness can sometimes unleash emotions. That's the nice way we can have that big influx out when we are tired, we can't hold it any longer.
Speaker 2:So let's see how he actually feeling. So someone saying that they are feeling tired. Okay, if you are feeling tired, you can actually genuinely feel tired, too. Right. If you're physically feeling exhausted.
Speaker 2:But sometimes when we say tired and you're waking up feeling tired, It's not physical tiredness. It's an emotional piece. So we need to look at that, too. Okay, so someone saying they feel anxious, but not sure why. And that's Okay.
Speaker 2:Sometimes we almost need to not look at emotions too hard. We just need to accept that they are. They won't always have a way. There can be lots of different reasons why we get an influx of emotions like anxiety, sadness, frustration, irritability, lots of different reasons why. Right?
Speaker 2:There's such a thing called environmental triggers where I always use the example of there's a tree outside my house, right? And I think it's like a Japanese maple or something like that. It does the cherry blossom thing. But whenever it goes like bursting into red, I always get these like, oh, that's kind of like excitement and fear all at the same time. And it always happens to me before I can catch why.
Speaker 2:The reason why that happens for me is when we moved into this house, I was heavily pregnant and that tree was blossoming just as we were on the countdown to, like, going into labor. And I had had a traumatic birth the first time. So I was having so much excitement with so much fear at the same time. And at the same time, the final season of Game of Thrones was coming out. They were advertising with the big red tree.
Speaker 2:And I was like, this baby better come. Better come before that comes. Was unaware I'm being in hospital when that episode drops. Right. So you can see how all of that emotional origin is triggered by that tree.
Speaker 2:But if I wasn't aware of that, could be like, oh my gosh, am I feeling suddenly a little bit excited? Why am I suddenly feeling a little bit of fear? I may not be aware of it, but sometimes we're aware of them. Sometimes we're not. Right?
Speaker 2:The smell of blown out candles. Right? Do you all get a bit of like a, oh, like birthday, right? Does it bring you back to childhood, the smell of blown out candles, bin bag liners, any of you who are eighties children at where bin bag going out during Halloween. Right?
Speaker 2:You'll get a lovely kind of about bin liners. Right. So an environment can sometimes trigger an emotional response, but sometimes we're not aware of it. Other times your mind can be kind of like on a timer, right? And your mind is like, we have we done anxiety in a while.
Speaker 2:Come here. It's been a while. We haven't felt throw it in. Throw it in. Go on.
Speaker 2:Surprise her. Right? Whoosh of anxiety. You're like, what is that? What is that?
Speaker 2:And your body's going. It just does it sometimes just for the laugh. We won't ever know the way, but you don't need to know the way. The more important one is the how. How do we respond to it?
Speaker 2:Okay. Right. So a few of you are saying anxious. Okay. Working on patience.
Speaker 2:This will absolutely help that working on patience. Overwhelm. You're in the right place. Fear, disappointment, hungry for more success. Love that.
Speaker 2:So ambition. We love to see it. Emotional multitasker. Okay, so we have an awful lot of things going on in mix right now. Whatever yours were, I want you to take a screenshot in your mind of them what they were.
Speaker 2:And now we're going to place them down next to us. We're going to go into a little bit of theory around meditation and mindfulness. And then we're going to come back and we're going to do some practical work around it. And I'm going to guide you through meditation. Okay, so here are five signs that you need meditation and mindfulness.
Speaker 2:So the first one is maybe you feel like you're in a constant state of stress and anxiety. And when that becomes our normal function, your mind will go, well, this is normal. This is keeping us safe. And to actually slow down can trigger even more stress and anxiety. So if you find that you're very stressed on the go, on the go, on the go and somebody says, will you sit down, have a cup of tea?
Speaker 2:You sit down with a cup tea and you're like, oh my God, this is way worse, right? I'm falling behind. You need meditation and mindfulness. And if you have difficulty focusing, Sarah, I can see you laughing, so I know that this one's affecting you already. Right?
Speaker 2:If you have difficulty focusing and you're like, oh my god, I just need to get this one thing done. Should take me twenty minutes, but now it's taking me an hour. What is going on? You need meditation and mindfulness. If you find that you have emotional reactivity, right?
Speaker 2:So your emotions just tend to burst out of you. And maybe it's that you're suppressing them and they all unleash out and maybe your reactions to things aren't quite in response to where they should be. Right. So let's say the perfect example for me, right, speaking of my own experience is when getting the kids out for school in the morning and I'm like, Where are your shows? Where are your shows?
Speaker 2:And they're going, I don't know where my shoes are. Can I play Minecraft? And I'm like, Oh my God, and I'm holding it. I'm holding it. I haven't done much meditation and mindfulness lately.
Speaker 2:I'll hold it until one of them comes out and they have one shoe. I know the other shoe is missing. And I'm going, You had two a second ago. I'm just going to fucking explode. Right?
Speaker 2:That's a sign I need meditation and mindfulness more in my life. Right? So that emotional reactivity should have gotten that reactive over one shoe going missing? Maybe. But no, not really.
Speaker 2:Right? I could have been calmer. So that's where meditation and mindfulness will come in. Also, if you have poor sleep quality, right, this one's few washing. If you have poor sleep quality, it could be because you have an increase in cortisol.
Speaker 2:Right? So cortisol comes up as the stress hormone where it literally gets released due to those kind of like safety mechanisms within our mind and body, right, where it literally says, Oh my God, there's a predator after us, release some cortisol so we don't sleep as much. We sleep in shorter bursts, we're hyper vigilant. So our body isn't going into a full relaxation state. So therefore, cortisol will usually wake you up at three a.
Speaker 2:M. Right. If you find that you wake up at three a. You're like ready to start the day or, oh my god, remember when you do this in fifth year? How embarrassing.
Speaker 2:Let's think about that. Cortisol, right? That poor sleep quality will be triggered by that. And meditation and mindfulness will help you relax your body to bring on those cortisol levels. But also, if it does still happen to you, will help you to go back into that sleep state.
Speaker 2:And then finally, physical symptoms of stress. Right. So things like migraines, things like tense bodies, things like pains and tummies, which is the common one. If you've children or teenagers, pains, their tummies, usually a stress manifest for kids and headaches. What else do we have?
Speaker 2:Cold sores and loads of different things. Irritable, right? They will all be physical symptoms of stress that can come up, too. So if you find that you're somebody who, you know, shows physical symptoms when you're going into stress, meditation and mindfulness. Right.
Speaker 2:So tell me, take a vote and see which ones you connect to. Is there any particular ones that stand out to you that maybe you're like, oh, yes, this is where mine lives for me. You can choose all of them as well. I do believe if I clicked the right button, maybe I didn't. Difficulty focusing.
Speaker 2:I need more meditation on mindfulness. So let's see. The majority are saying poor sleep quality and difficulty focusing. Okay. So difficulty focusing is coming in a good bit.
Speaker 2:So let's see how you all feel when we learn how to do this and implement it in ways that feel achievable for you. Okay. So let me explain to you the differences between meditation and mindfulness. So let's start with So meditation is where you dedicate intentional time. Right?
Speaker 2:We're literally sitting down as we are going to do in a minute to do some meditation. You can do it in lots of different ways. Right. So you can take it through a visualization where somebody will guide you to kind of like, you know, I want you to imagine that you're on a beach. You can feel the sand holding you firmly underneath you.
Speaker 2:You can feel, you know, the softness of the sand. You can feel the heat of the sun, the gentle breeze against your skin. Right. And it'll take you to that visualization or maybe the nice ones. Sometimes they're like you're on a boat floating down a stream, right?
Speaker 2:Giving you the visualization. And then as well, you can have a mantra. So sometimes ones that are in self compassion, self love, self confidence, they will have mantras behind them like I am enough. I am loved. I am cared for.
Speaker 2:I am confident. Right. They will have mantras like that behind it, and that would be the guiding force behind the meditation. And then as well, having breath work with the meditation can be a big piece as well. So things like timed within meditation to guide you through it.
Speaker 2:So box breathing or in for four, hold for seven, out for eight. Right. There's all different types of ones. And it will become as well your anchor for meditation, where it will bring you back to your breath. You if your mind starts to wander as it should, right?
Speaker 2:Your mind is meant to wander during these things. The aim is not to keep your mind focused. The aim is to bring your mind back. Okay, that's the that's the the main aim of meditation and mindfulness is to bring your mind back, not to keep it focused. So don't beat yourself up if it goes away.
Speaker 2:Go, Oh, there it's a way of bought it back. Bring it back to your breath is the best anchor you can have. So bring it back, concentrate my breath in, my breath out, feeling the temperature, feel the temperature change, feel my stomach rising, chest rising and allow them to drop. Right. So we're coming back to that anchor piece.
Speaker 2:And the goal is relaxation. Right. The goal is to allow your mind to have a space simply to rest for a little while, in what ways our mind can rest. So that's meditation. And then we have mindfulness.
Speaker 2:So mindfulness is the one that's interweaved into our day. It's kind of like awake meditation. Right? You're still doing something at the same time. It means that you can be with your friends and you're being you're doing mindfulness.
Speaker 2:You're staying present. You're being here, right? Where you're aware that you're still having thoughts, but you're bringing yourself back. Right? You're still driving the car, but you're being mindful that you're here.
Speaker 2:You're present right now in this moment. So it's learning to be focused in what you're doing while still living life. So it can be paired with action so we can do them together. It allows you essentially just to be present. So many of us, myself included, I'll be with the kids and I'm like, be present, be present, be present.
Speaker 2:And I'm like, I need to send that email. Oh my god. Did I did I remember to put the clothes into the washing machine? Otherwise, no one have clothes tomorrow. Right.
Speaker 2:And I will do things like that. I do this on this call. Right. That that like, did I put the clothes in the dishwasher or the dishwasher? Wouldn't that be terrible?
Speaker 2:Into the washing machine? I've literally had that on this call, but I bought myself back using my breath. Okay, so it's about bringing yourself back, being present, coming away from the future, the past tense and coming back to now. That's what mindfulness is. And now my meditation tips for you all.
Speaker 2:First of all, I'm going to tell you this will be easy for a small amount of you and hard for the majority of you. So what will make it easier is setting it as an expectation that this is a skill set. Okay, think of it as you do like running. Right? Think of it as like any skill set, learning a language.
Speaker 2:It's about building it up over time. So start small. Okay, now I'm going to be guiding you through one today and it will be around twenty minutes. Right. See where we go with this.
Speaker 2:But in your own time, start with ones that are like five to ten minutes because you're not going to have the accountability here of me sitting with you. So start small and make it achievable for you. Dedicate a time and space for us. Okay, so if you find that maybe you really like doing meditation, going to sleep, do it going to sleep. If it helps you ease off to sleep, remember, the goal is relaxation because not for people like I never say wake to the end.
Speaker 2:If the goal is relaxing you enough to fall asleep, fantastic. We've hit the goal mark, right? But if you find that maybe it's for focus, get it earlier in the day. If you want to relax enough so then you can focus, take it a bit earlier in the day. Keep your breath as your anchor.
Speaker 2:So if your mind does wander off and you're like, and I know my mind, this is like focus, come back, concentrate, listen to what they're saying. Are you listening? Are you listening? Are you being present? Are you present now?
Speaker 2:My mind would do that. That's not being present. So instead, to the breath. Feel it coming into your nose. Filling your lungs, feel the temperature as it changes as you breathe out and relax your jaw.
Speaker 2:Right? Just come back to that. Know as well that you can do guided meditations or self guided at the start, I would encourage you all to start with guided ones. This is where somebody is talking you through it. They're physically giving you the visualizations.
Speaker 2:They're giving you the breath work right there, talking to you through it. There's a voice over on it until you feel kind of established, until you have the lingo, you have the approaches that you quite like, and then you can go self guided. So that's where you're just putting on a timer. And you run with this, you guide yourself through it A little bit trickier. Wait until you build up skill set a bit more until you do it.
Speaker 2:You can try it if you want for sure. But it can be the trickier of the two. And then finally, be patient with yourselves. We live in an incredibly fast paced world where everything has to be done now, now, now. So to go against that and to slow down, can your mind can fight you on it?
Speaker 2:I can tell you you're being unproductive. I can tell you that you're doing it wrong. Is it done yet? Speed up. Maybe do less time.
Speaker 2:Is it nearly done? Let's just stop it here. Be patient with yourselves in it. Know that it's a skill set. Okay, and my top apps that I recommend around is the headspace app is a fantastic one that will teach you.
Speaker 2:I think Oceana used to use the Headspace app that will teach you to do it. And some gorgeous kind of like cartoons and visualizations that will help you understand that that little bit more. And I think it's gamified. I think it gives you levels and stuff like that as well. And I think there's a free version and a paid version.
Speaker 2:It's been a while since I've used Headspace, not a lot of my clients use it, and they do like it. The Calm app is a lovely one too. Again, you can have a free version and a paid version. The Calm app is a lovely one if you like Matthew McConaughey reading you some guided meditations. Right?
Speaker 2:There's all different celebs on there. There's Harry Styles is on there too. There's all different people. And then there's just meditation guides as well on there. Insight Timer is my favorite one.
Speaker 2:This is where I live. If anyone wanna find me doing some meditation, it's on Insight Timer. Insight Timer is what I will call like Spotify for meditation. There's so many different, like, coaches who upload their stuff for free, and then you can do paid content as well. You can do courses on it where they people will walk you through different types of meditation.
Speaker 2:And I really like it there, even just for the timer. Right. The timer itself is a lovely one as well. All right. It's so simple, but I really like the timer over there where it does the lovely little bell at the end.
Speaker 2:And so that's my favorite one. My client the other day told me that they've been using one called Happier, and they said they quite like that one. I can't stand over it. And they also said Smiling Mind is one that they've been using. So I said I'd throw them in there so you can research, see if you like them.
Speaker 2:And then one that I absolutely love that I've been using years that will use when I'm out about, it's called Buttify. Buttify has a beautiful interface, limited amount of meditations that you can do as well, which I really like. Because sometimes when there's too much choice, I get overwhelmed. This will break it down by what you're doing. So you can do one for when you're like commuting, one for when you're out walking.
Speaker 2:So it becomes a bit more of mindfulness of you're doing something at the same time. So if you're somebody who like me doesn't have a whole lot of time during the day and you feel this is too time sensitive and my mind won't let me relax enough to do this to make it achievable. But if I is really nice because it interweaves in with your life and they're all very short. I think the longest one is like fifteen minutes. I really like that one.
Speaker 2:Okay. So what we are going to do now is I'm going to change my screen and we are going to do some. We're going to do a little guided meditation. So if you like, you can turn your cameras off. You can leave them on.
Speaker 2:You can lie down. You can stay in a chair. Stay wherever you are comfortable. We're going to be doing this for about twenty ish minutes. Okay.
Speaker 2:So ensure that you are comfortable. So, okay. Take a nice deep breath. Allow yourself to be anchored in. Try to find a quiet space where you won't be disturbed.
Speaker 2:Settle your body into a comfortable position. You can be seated on a cushion with your hips slightly elevated. Maybe in a chair with your feet flat on the ground Or maybe even lying down with a pillow beneath your knees for support. Wherever you are, allow your body to feel held. Imagine that you're being cradled where you are.
Speaker 2:Allow your eyes to close softly or you can lower your gaze to a spot in front of you. Allow your eyelids to grow heavy and relaxed. Allow your hands to rest wherever they feel most natural. Maybe you could turn your palms upwards on your thighs to invite openness. Or maybe gently fold it on your lap to symbolize inner stillness.
Speaker 2:If you find that your mind wanders, bring it back to your breath. Feeling the sensation as you breathe in that cool air into your nostrils, filling your lungs. And as you breathe out through your mouth, feeling that warmth. Breathing out any stress. Take a moment to acknowledge this act of kindness you're giving yourself, a gift of presence, calm, and peace.
Speaker 2:Begin by arriving fully in your body, bringing your intention to calm. Notice the points of contact between you and the surface beneath you. The pressure of your bones on cushions or maybe the warmth of your hands resting on your legs. The comforting sensation of a pillow beneath your head. As you breathe in, scan for any areas of tension.
Speaker 2:Breathe into your jaw, your shoulders. Breathe into your lower back, your legs. As you breathe out, imagine them softening, getting heavy. Picture your breath as a gentle wave smoothing out sand, washing away tension. With your next inhale draw in a sense of quiet acceptance.
Speaker 2:And as you exhale, release any resistance to being exactly where you are. There's nowhere else to be. Nothing else to do more important than this. This moment is complete. It is enough as it is.
Speaker 2:Now bring your attention to the natural rhythm of your breath. Simply notice what you notice. Don't try to change it. Just allow it to follow its natural flow. Observe the simple exchange, the dance of air entering and leaving your body.
Speaker 2:Notice the sensation of that clean air into your nostrils and the faint warmth as you exhale. I want you to follow the journey of your breath inwards. Feel it rising up to your nostrils, down past your ribs. Imagine it filling your lungs like a balloon and gently deflating. If it helps you can gently place one hand on your belly and one on your chest.
Speaker 2:Feeling the gentle rise and fall. If you're comfortable to do so, imagine your belly filling with air and then slowly rising up into your chest. As you exhale, leaving your chest first and then your belly. Remember that your breath is your anchor. Both now and always.
Speaker 2:Steady, reliable, always here to guide you home. Even when the waves of thoughts and growth grow choppy, your breath is your anchor. It is your lighthouse that keeps you safe. As you breathe in now, I want you to breathe in to your nose slowly for a count of four. Imagine as you breathe in, you're drawing in a golden light, shimmering with a calmness, like sunlight on the ocean.
Speaker 2:As you breathe in for four, I now want you to hold gently for two at the top. Taking two seconds to savoring the fullness of full lungs. As you exhale through a relaxed mouth, I want you to count out for six. Picture any stress, tightness dissolving. Imagine you blowing it out.
Speaker 2:Maybe give it a color to represent all that stress leaving your body as you breathe in replacing it with that golden shimmering light. As you breathe out, I want you to imagine releasing something that maybe you've been carrying unnecessarily. A worry, a should, a hurt, maybe a lingering frustration. Breathe and let it go. Trusting that if it really needs you, it can return at a later time.
Speaker 2:For now, you're choosing peace. As you breathe out, I want you to sigh and leave your jaw relax. Now bring your attention back to your natural breathing rhythm if it hasn't yet. Bring your attention still to those sensations in your body. If your mind wanders to maybe plans or memories, Acknowledge it with a thought of kindness.
Speaker 2:Ah, there's my mind doing its job. Thank you, mind. And bring it back to the anchor of your breath. Gently guiding it back with compassion. Each time you return to this breath, you're building this skill set, the most gentle discipline you can.
Speaker 2:A reaffirmation of your commitment to yourself. Release any criticisms should your mind wander. It's meant to. It all always does. What matters most is that compassionate return.
Speaker 2:Now we're going to bring awareness to your body in sections, starting with your feet. Picture your breath flowing all the way down, bringing that gold shimmering light, a beam of lightness down to your toes. Imagine warming your toes. Feeling any tingles, any sensations there. Bring your attention to the arches of your feet.
Speaker 2:Your heels of your feet. Just notice what you notice. Any tingling, heaviness, perhaps lightness. Notice what you notice. There's no good or bad.
Speaker 2:With your next exhale, imagine any tension here melting into the earth, allowing it to be absorbed. Move slowly up your calves, bringing that light with you. Slowly notice how it creeps up to your knees, your thighs, Breathing in any light, exhale and release. Imagine that golden relaxation coming up to your glutes, encasing your whole lower body. Imagine all the muscles releasing, sinking into the surface below them, knowing that they are safe.
Speaker 2:Continue this path up through your torso. Feel your belly rise and fall with each breath safe and unguarded, whatever rhythm feels right. Visualize your spine lengthening as if a string at the top of your crown is lifting you gently towards the sky. Lifting you proud. Bring your intention to your hands.
Speaker 2:These incredible instruments of doing. Thank them for all they have done, all they have held, all they have created. And now let them rest. Bring your attention to any sensations within your hands, any tingling, anything at all. Just notice what you notice.
Speaker 2:Bring your attention to your chest. Noticing any sensations, any tension that may be held there. Feeling the breath, make it gently rise and gently fall. Bring your attention to your arms, up into your shoulders, allowing them to get heavy and sink. Bring that lightness up through your neck.
Speaker 2:Imagine it massage out any stress that may be holding there. And finally feel that golden light on your face. Feel the warmth of it. Relax your foreheads, your eyes, the tiny muscles around your mouth. Allowing your jaw to fall open ever so slightly.
Speaker 2:Your eyebrows to get heavy. Imagine your whole body glowing with the warmth of deep relaxation. Your whole body and being in a cocoon of safety. And now to combine with that lovely golden safe energy, we're going to bring in a subtle uplifting energy. I want you to visualize a sphere of radiant light above your head.
Speaker 2:Whatever color feels uplifting for you. Maybe white or gold, rainbow, whatever comes to mind when you think of uplifting. Imagine all the positivity this brings. With your next inhale, we're going to draw this light down onto the crown of your head. Imagine it filling your entire being like water pouring into a glass.
Speaker 2:Breathe it in, feel it nourish every cell, awakening a joy within you, a pride within you, a beautiful energy. As you exhale, let this light flow, spilling out into every ripple of your body. Picturing it go beyond your body into the space around you. With the next deep breath, I want you to imagine it expanding further. Little streams of it reaching loved ones, maybe even strangers, people in need of healing.
Speaker 2:It all coming from this beautiful energy within you. And now we come back to our anchor. Encasing that beautiful energy within you. We come back to the simplicity of breath. Let go of any imagery.
Speaker 2:We'll be counting of breaths and just be with the inhale and the exhale. Notice how your body feels now compared to how you began. Any differing sensations, maybe it feels lighter, maybe your breath has changed. Whatever you notice, honor it without judgment. Gently start to wiggle your toes, your fingers, moving the body in whatever way helps it to reawaken.
Speaker 2:Maybe gently swaying, whatever feels right. Whenever you're ready, open up your eyes slowly. Take a moment to take in your environment around you. Take a moment to breathe in this peace that you have created and carry this grounded, uplifting energy with you for the rest of the day and go well. Okay, come back to me.
Speaker 2:How are we all feeling? I am very curious now. You can input on to Menti. Let me know how you're feeling. I know we know a lot of you felt anxious at the start.
Speaker 2:I know a lot of you felt overwhelmed. I think there was some fear. Someone else said that they were ready for success, hungry for it. Reflect upon how all those felt. Maybe they're still there, but maybe there's more sensations now.
Speaker 2:Maybe there's more emotions now. Maybe there's this little same where there's a calmness behind them. Take a moment and connect in and see where you feel right now in this moment. I know even by me talking you through it, I feel slower. I feel less high energy.
Speaker 2:I feel like I could go to bed. I'm like, I always love that visualization of the energy coming down through the crown of your head, and nourishing yourself and then the overflow spreading out to others. I love that visualization. And it is true. The more calm we are, the more energy we have, the more it free flows out.
Speaker 2:Think about when I'm trying to find my kids shoes. If I'm calm and chill, They're usually more calm and chill and they find the missing shoe which is usually in the bathroom. So let's see how are you all feeling? Change my screen back so you can see. Okay.
Speaker 2:So ye are feeling happy, more relaxed, grounded, present, feel very present, good. Emotional release, good. Because what you may find sometimes is if you do find that mindfulness at the very start feels like a huge influx of emotions, that can be a hard piece of like overwhelm sometimes for some people experience that emotion release. So if you do cry when you do mindfulness or meditation, that's good. That's what we're aiming to do here is to feel and be present with this.
Speaker 2:And even if you feel a resurgence of like anger and frustration, that's good. You're feeling the emotion that you're maybe your mind and body have been needing to feel. And it's from there then that we can honor them And then help them be processed and move along life in a way that maybe you need to within that. Okay. So if somebody's feeling calmer, I don't see any more anxiety coming in here that was here earlier.
Speaker 2:So hopefully that that helped. And to know that you can bring that little pockets into your day by bringing in that mindfulness piece. So maybe if you find that that anchor of the breath worked for you, bring that in. Right? There's a certain traffic light by my kids, school that we do every single day on the school run.
Speaker 2:I do it, and they do it. Right? It was unintentional, but now they've started copying me. So this does trickle out. Right?
Speaker 2:Those what we're saying about it, the overflow stemming out to others. This is a place where it stems out to others. People will subconsciously pick up on your energy and they will match it. Okay? I feel nice and chill.
Speaker 2:I feel like I can breathe a little bit deeper now. So tell me, guys, have you any questions around any of that at all? Whether it's in relation to meditation, mindfulness, or anything that's going on for you right now. Maybe there's a certain hoping mechanism or anything at all that you're curious about me and Oshin were saying we're going to try to do more trainings like this where there are a bit more workshops where we're learning how to do things together. And know we did one around the the procrastination that worked really well when we were doing what we called body doubling for the last fifteen minutes.
Speaker 2:We went away and did a task altogether. So anything like that that maybe you're curious about that you maybe would like to try that you feel you're being roadblocked against. You can't quite figure it out yourself. Anything at all that you feel like that? Me know and I'll I'll create something here that if it's my experience and my expertise, I will absolutely create something for you.
Speaker 2:Okay. How often a day should we be doing this? Once a day, twice a day, whenever needed? So what I would encourage you to do is as you're building this up, as it's a skill set that you're learning, I would encourage you to start once a day. So it depends on kind of what your main aim for it is.
Speaker 2:Right? So let's say if it's relaxation, I would be bringing it maybe first thing in the day. Or if you find that it's relaxation to help you fall asleep, I would bring it at the end of the day. Sometimes what you can find as well is this very much be a scientist with this experiment and play around with this. So I do encourage some clients if they find that their mind races an awful lot at the end of the day, I would encourage you to do this at around four or five p.
Speaker 2:M. Take like five, ten minutes and allow yourself to go into this then because what you may find is you come out of it with a bit of clarity around, you know what? This thing is hanging over me an awful lot. My mind kept being pulled to it during the meditation. I need to have that conversation.
Speaker 2:I need to make that phone call. And at five p. M. You still have time in the day. You still maybe have a little bit of energy.
Speaker 2:Maybe it's booking an appointment that's hanging over you. Meditation will help you to see where your mind keeps pooling to that maybe to pull it back from. And that will help you give that clarity, but also energy to focus to do it. If it's that you're trying to get more focus, which I know many of you were as well, I would encourage you to do it at the point of the day where you find your energy starts to dip. So for me, that's usually like two to three p.
Speaker 2:M. My energy starts to dip off. I tend to bring in a little bit of meditation and mindfulness there. But what I would encourage you to do is if you're doing this as a stress coping mechanism as well, like an awful lot of clients will like, have something coming up soon, right? So like it's something that I'm nervous about.
Speaker 2:So I could say, right, on the day I will do meditation. But the reality is that on the day, my adrenaline system will probably be a little bit higher, which is hard then to start a new skill set then. So if you're trying to build up and keep this as a, let's say, support system for you in place when you need it the most, start practicing it now. Okay, let's imagine you've never seen an umbrella before ever. And I told you it's for the rain.
Speaker 2:We're not allowed to use it until it rains. Right? And you're you have never experienced an umbrella before. And now it is lashing rain outside. And I said, here's your umbrella.
Speaker 2:And you've this is a completely alien thing to you. You've never seen it before. How wet are you gonna get before you can actually get that umbrella? Right? You're gonna be struggling.
Speaker 2:You're gonna be trying to figure it out. Right? Whereas if when it's raining, when the pressure isn't as strong, you're practicing the sunburn outside. You know how to put it up. You know how to put it down.
Speaker 2:You want to wrap it up. You know what it does. You know that maybe when it flips inside out, here's what to do. So practice these skill sets, even when you feel you don't need them. Don't wait until stress levels are high.
Speaker 1:I might touch on just my experience with that real quick. So when I started doing mindfulness over years ago, it was more so to manage emotions through a tough time I was going through at the time. And I started doing five minutes every morning. First actually started doing three minutes every morning and it was just about building consistency. At the start it was very uncomfortable.
Speaker 1:Like as you said it's a skill, it's something that you need to practice. At the start it's super uncomfortable. I went from three minutes to five minutes to ten minutes and the longer I went the more in control I felt when I was doing them. I found that I used to get very tired at the start when I was doing them and then I was like there's no way I'll be able to have my eyes closed for fifteen minutes without falling asleep first thing in the morning. But the more I did it then I used to come out of them feeling like I had way more energy but it took probably three months of consistency to actually develop that skill.
Speaker 1:So just for anybody that is starting, it is very uncomfortable at the start. Just be prepared for that.
Speaker 2:Yeah. And that's a great insight. But it goes to shows all the testament. It's quite similar to physical exercise. Like at the start, it will feel uncomfortable.
Speaker 2:You won't know if you're doing it right. Your body also won't reward you straight away. You know, you may feel that sensation of being proud, but it won't reward you. Like with anything psychologically and physically, there's usually a lag result behind it.
Speaker 1:Mhmm.
Speaker 2:So as you're doing this more, eventually, your mind will start to go, alright. Let's release a little bit of, like, some nice feelings here. Let's release a little bit of maybe serotonin, maybe a little bit of oxytocin, and just allow ourselves to lean into this a little bit more. And then that will reinforce it then as well long term. But, yeah, that's a great insight.
Speaker 2:And it's the Headspace app that you use, Oshin, isn't it?
Speaker 1:Headspace is I think I've done nearly three thousand minutes in total. How many ever days or hours that is? Yeah. I'm but but now you've given me the the little gentle nudge to get back doing it every morning like I used to.
Speaker 2:Yeah. I do. Absolutely. Absolutely. That's good.
Speaker 2:Okay. So, Jean, you put one here into the Zoom chat. How many errors have you to listen? Only joking. That was brilliant.
Speaker 2:Thank you. It's ages since I used Insight Timer. I actually forgot about it. So going to get it again. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And, like, Insight Timer, love because it gives you ratings as well because so often I will click into people. And what I love with Insight Timer as well, which they've recently bought in, is previews. So before I just have to click into one and I'd listen for two seconds. Like, do I like your voice? Is your voice going to annoy me?
Speaker 2:And then I'd be like, listen in, turn it off. Because sometimes you get, like, you just it's just your vibe. Right? I would get the California girls like, okay, guys. We're gonna sell in.
Speaker 2:Okay? I was like, no. Can't do it. But there's certain people whose voice I absolutely love. I love Tara Brock.
Speaker 2:I love her voice. Really like her approach to things as well. There's another girl recently I found on us who does central nervous system regulation stuff. Her stuff is lovely. But what I like about it is that they will all have ratings next to them.
Speaker 2:So it's a general consensus, and then you can rate it afterwards. So if you're if you're time sensitive and you're looking for one that's going to be fast, like the 4.9, go straight for them and look for the time that is available as well. So usually I'm going by ratings and then it's like, Okay, I have fifteen minutes. Let's do a ten minute one. And at least then I know I can definitely be able to get it in.
Speaker 2:Okay, fantastic. I hope you enjoy it, Jean, as well as as you start trying it. Let me know how it goes. Okay, our next question. So so when it starts working, what do we feel?
Speaker 2:So it's different for everybody, right? So some people will feel relaxation. What I personally feel is a sense of slowing down and release, which is usually what I need. What it will sometimes kind of unveil to me as well is truth, Right? Because sometimes what can happen is as we're moving quickly throughout life, you will get strong emotions.
Speaker 2:Right? So things like anger, right? Tiredness, as I said to you, they will all be at the forefront. And as we slow down sometimes by slowing down, the fast emotions tend to dissipate. Right?
Speaker 2:So anger will tend to dissipate things like irritability, excitement. They may tend to come down a little bit and we get to see the more quieter emotions that are under the surface. Right. So maybe loneliness, sadness and nostalgia. Right.
Speaker 2:They can all be under the surface quietly. And when we can have that, like I was explaining to somebody the other day about emotional intelligence and the difference between intellectualizing emotions versus actually feeling them and processing them. This is a great way to feel your emotions because self awareness is fantastic. But if you're telling yourself, you know what? I feel sad.
Speaker 2:And when I feel sad, I think like this. And when I think like this, then I behave like this. That's fantastic awareness. But that's not giving the full cycle of what psychologically you need in order for emotional intelligence not for you to thrive in life. That's you intellectualizing.
Speaker 2:But when we can feel them. So if you're on a meditation, you start crying. If you're on a meditation, your heart starts racing with anger, whatever it is that you physically letting your body actually feel the emotion that's underneath it. So then you're allowing it to be processed, then you can close this at the end of the meditation and move along your day. And that is so, so powerful to have.
Speaker 2:But again, it will be different for everyone. Usually a sense of calmness comes from this clarity and great tool as well for burnout, for both kind of like reducing the risk of burnout because it gives you those stop caps to slow down so you don't basically streamline yourself into burnout as well. I've seen you said I felt a massive sense of calm and awareness, but also my ability to manage emotions and control situations better at work. Yes. So again, that kind of slowing down so you're not as reactive That is, well, help you kind of process kind of like, how do I feel about that situation?
Speaker 2:So you don't take those impulsive action steps afterwards.
Speaker 1:After like the the three or four months of doing it consistently, when I was at like the fifteen, twenty minutes, I actually like started to get towards the back end of them nearly like outer body experiences nearly. And that's when I was like holy shit like this is real meditation. And I used to come out of them feeling so energetic whereas before I retired. You know? So, yeah, that was when I was like, shit, this is actually working.
Speaker 1:Woah.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah. Because it's that breath, isn't it? Like, breath can actually be so powerful. And Ashina, have you ever done a sound bath?
Speaker 2:No. Oh, you'd like a sound bath. A sound bath is where we kind of like pair meditation with these big don't know what they're called, sound bowls. But it is so lovely. If you like that and if you want that kind of like experience, it's lovely.
Speaker 2:And you're there for about forty five minutes. Some of them are an hour and a half, but they're lovely. And they turn off all the lights and they do candles or these cool visuals on the ceiling and stuff. It's a good laugh. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Definitely give it a go. Sarah, you said, thanks, Jean. This is entirely new to me. Never retried it. So really good to be properly introduced to it.
Speaker 2:Fantastic. And by doing it here, it reduces that kind of like needing to do it on your own, which is that kind of what we call a pain threshold barrier of I don't know how to do it. I'm going to get it wrong by doing it here. We've now popped the bubble on us. Hopefully you can keep it going.
Speaker 2:So, guys, if there's any other kind of like coping skills or any topics at all that you would love to explore, me and Oshin, we're here to support you. Tell us maybe what topics you would love to hear. Anything at all. You can let us know in the group and let's get you all thriving in ways that will truly nourish you both now, but also in the future. All right, guys, have a beautiful one.
Speaker 2:Thank you, Jean. See you later. Thanks.