The Full Story
Mindful Meditation
Guided Meditation Series
I collaborated with Health Partners to create this free 5 part guided meditation series. Each episode is under 10 minutes and focuses on a different topic.
Regular meditation practice has been scientifically proven to result in a number of long-term mental health benefits, including:
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Reduced stress and anxiety levels
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Improved concentration
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Improved sleep
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Boost in mood and helps foster a more positive outlook on life
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Increase in pain tolerance
I hope you enjoying listening to this as much we enjoyed creating these! Please feel free to reach out to let me know how you go with them.
Episode 1: Full Body Scan
Focus on your body's physical sensations to give you a sense of calm and connection with the present moment. Length: 6 min My name’s Sarah Davies, and I’m a psychologist and I’ll be guiding you through this full body scan meditation. Let’s start by finding a comfortable position where you can sit or lay down. Allow your body to feel relaxed yet supported. Shoulders are soft, back is straight. You can close your eyes or keep them slightly open. Today, we will practice a full body scan. Taking a full, deep breath in for 3 - 1, 2, 3. Hold. And a long, deep breath out for 5 – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Begin by bringing your attention to your body. Notice the feeling of the weight of your body on the chair, or the floor, wherever you are. And, as you breathe in, notice how your chest and stomach expand to allow the air to fill your lungs. And as you exhale, feel your body naturally relax more deeply. Now bring your attention to the top of your head, noticing any sensations at the crown, down the back of the head, to the sides, to the front of your face. Notice your jaw. Are you holding any tension here? Let your face be soft, relax the muscles around your eyes, mouth and jaw. Remembering to continue taking deep breaths in and out. Now notice your neck and your throat. Let them be soft. Notice your shoulders and arms, feel any sensations as you allow your tension to move from your shoulders down to your upper arms, the elbow, to your forearms, hands and fingers. Noticing any tightness, any temperature sensations. Noticing what the fabric of your clothing feels like against your skin. Continuing to breathe in and to breathe out. Now bring your attention to your chest and abdomen, feeling the movement in your chest as you breathe. Bringing your attention to your stomach, noticing if your stomach is tense or tight, and just let it soften. Noticing the upper back and the lower back. If you're holding any tension there, also let that release. Now continue traveling down to your legs, your thighs, your knees, calf and shin, your ankles, and finally bringing your attention to your feet. Noticing the sensations of your feet against the ground. Noticing any weight, sense of temperature, and feeling of energy perhaps present in the feet. And as you continue breathing in and breathing out, now notice the whole body from the top of your head all the way down to your toes. Staying with this sense of the whole body for a few more breaths. And as we close, continue remaining aware of your body as best as you can, finish with a full deep breath in and a long deep breath out.
Episode 2: Guided Breathing
Slow down and bring yourself back into balance with mindful breathing, a great tool to practice during a busy day. Length: 7 min My name’s Sarah Davies, and I’m a psychologist and I’ll be guiding you through this guided breathing meditation. Let’s start by finding a comfortable position where you can sit or lay down. Allow your body to feel relaxed, yet supported. Shoulders are soft, back is straight. As your body settles and your eyes close, bring your awareness to your breathing. Notice the breath coming in, and the breath going out. Follow the breath with your awareness… follow the breath all the way in… and follow the breath all the way out… not trying to change it in any way. Just breathing in… and breathing out. Breathing in, feeling the breath as it passes through your nostrils. Breathing out, feeling the breath as it leaves your nose. Keeping your awareness lightly and gently on your breath. Breathing mindfully in the present moment. While breathing in, think “I know I am breathing in”. While breathing out, think “I know I am breathing out”. If thoughts come in, as they always do, acknowledge the thoughts, without judgment, and let them go… let them drift away like clouds floating across the sky… and bring your attention back to your breath, back to your breathing… back to the present moment. Breathing in… I know I am breathing in. Breathing out… I know I am breathing out. Each time your attention moves away from the breath… distracted by a thought about something you have to remember to do… or something that is bothering you… notice the thought, acknowledge the thought, and then let it go… and bring your awareness back to your breath, back to the present moment. Letting your full awareness be on the breath… as it comes in… and as it goes out… noticing the familiar rhythm of the breath. Breathing in, “I calm my body”. Breathing out “I smile”. When you bring your awareness to the breath in this way, you are connecting the mind and the body in the present moment. “Dwelling in the present moment… I know this is a wonderful moment.” Continue to mindfully breathe in this way for as long as you like. Following the breath all the way in. Noticing the slight pause at the turning point as the in-breath becomes the out-breath and following the breath all the way out. Noticing the brief pause at the turning point as the out-breath becomes the in-breath. Be aware of the steady familiar rhythm of the breath. As we bring this meditation to an end, keeping your eyes closed for just a little while longer. Take a moment to notice how you are feeling… your body… your mind… your spirit. If you like, offer gratitude for this time you have taken for yourself… to be quiet… to breathe… and bring yourself back into balance. Slowly come back into the room… aware of your body … opening your eyes whenever you are ready.
Episode 3: Gratitude Mindset
Unlock the power of gratitude, and learn how to easily put this practice into motion. Length: 7 min My name’s Sarah Davies, and I’m a psychologist and I’ll be guiding you through this gratitude meditation. Before you start this meditation, get settled into a comfortable position that will allow you to feel relaxed yet alert. You can sit on the floor or on a chair; just be sure to sit in a way that your spine can be straight and upright. When you’re settled, take a deep and cleansing breath. As you exhale, close your eyes. Let’s begin by simply becoming aware of your breath as it is, without trying to change it. Can you notice if your inhale is longer than your exhale, or vice versa? Try counting the length of each in-breath and out-breath, noticing the rhythm with a sense of curiosity. Now begin to even out your inhalations and exhalations, so that they are the same length. Now bring your attention to what you can hear. Without labelling the sounds, simply notice your ears’ ability to hear. Give thanks to your ears for working so well, and for allowing you to hear everything that makes up this moment. Thanks to your ears for letting you hear the voice of your beloved, your favourite song, and the birds singing outside. Now notice your sense of smell. Offer your appreciation to your nose for letting you smell fresh baked biscuits and the flowers on a tree as you walk on by. Without your nose, you couldn’t taste your favourite meals, or breathe in the ocean air, so give thanks for your ability to smell. To your taste buds, now offer your gratitude. To your tongue and mouth for letting you taste your favourite drink and the array of food that nourishes your system. Offer your heartfelt thanks to your sense of taste for letting you engage with all the flavours of the world. Now notice what you feel with your skin: the temperature of the air on the parts of you that are exposed, the texture of the clothing that is keeping you warm. The skin that lets you feel the texture of sand at the beach, and sense a breeze on your neck. Wrapping yourself in warm blankets when you’re cold, and enjoying the cool air from a fan when you’re hot. Thanks to this skin for helping you feel your life. And now to your eyes. Keeping your eyes closed, can you send waves of gratitude to these magical eyes for letting you see the world around you? For making it possible to make eye contact with your best friend, to see the smiling face of a child, and the community that you have chosen to surround yourself with. To your eyes, which let you see art, nature, and beauty in all its forms. To whatever degree your eyes let you see, thank them for all they do—for letting you take in the world around you through the windows of your soul. Take a deep breath and notice how you feel in your heart. Connect to a feeling of expansion in your chest, as you let yourself truly savour the full spectrum of your senses. Now let it go. Check back in with the balance of your inhales and exhales. Breathing in 2,3,4 and breathing out 2,3,4. Next, bring to mind someone in your life who is easy to love. Picture this person sitting in front of you. See them smiling at you, and through your heart space, thank them for being in your life. As if wherever they were at this very moment, they could receive your gratitude, shower them with love, simply for existing. Take another deep breath, and connect to this moment. With that, take a final deep breath, and smile. Bring your hands to your heart in a prayer shape, and seal your meditation with this gesture of respect and devotion. Notice how you feel, and set the intention to bring this gratitude forward into your day as you rise again tomorrow.
Episode 4: Come Walk With Me
Learn how to use the simple practice of walking to centre yourself and focus on the now. Length: 7 min My name’s Sarah Davies, and I’m a psychologist and I’ll be guiding you through this mindful walking meditation. For this meditation, choose a quiet open, outdoor space or path. We’ll begin standing. Close your eyes with your feet hip-width apart, and your arms hanging loose by your sides. Wherever you are, root your feet to the ground, and feel the opposing energy that transfers from the earth, up through your spine and out through the crown of your head. Notice how the more you press down into the earth, the taller you feel. Let breath awareness guide your attention towards your body. Focus on the connection between your feet and the ground, the sensation in your legs and lower body. Spend a few cycles of breath here, simply noticing what is. Where the body is. How the body feels. With your eyes still closed, slowly shift back and forth a few times from your heels to the balls of your feet. Notice what arises in your awareness with this small movement. Then return to neutral, get centred. And shift side to side. Just a small sway of your weight from the right foot to the left, back and forth. Notice what arises in your awareness with this small movement. Come back to centre, and focus your energy again on noticing the connection between your feet and the earth. The sensations of your lower body, your thighs, knees, calves, heels, ankles, the soles of your feet and your toes. Maintain this awareness of your felt sense of the body as you slowly open your eyes. Still standing, for a few cycles of breath, as you take in the information of the body, in spite of the distractions of all that you see. When you’re ready, begin slowly walking forward. Take as much time as you can with each movement, and each part of every movement. Notice all the details you can. The shift of your weight forward. The shift from heel towards toes. The lift of the heel. The lift of the foot. The movement of your foot through space. The placement of the foot. The shift of weight. As you move through space, walking forwards, how is your intent to walk forward related to the movement itself? Which comes first? The lift of the foot, or the intention to lift the foot? Which part of the process is intentional? Or is the body acting on its own? As you walk forward through the space around you, be curious about the process. Curious about the movement itself. At which point does the shift of weight begin? At which point does the lifting of the foot begin? At which point does it end? At which point does the lifting of the foot become the placing of the foot? As you slowly step forward, notice when the body is still and when it is moving, and allow for the boundaries between movement and stillness to break down. As you slowly step forward, notice the separation between movement, and awareness of that movement. Notice the connection between movement, and awareness of that movement. Allow for the boundaries between body and mind to break down. As you slowly walk forward, at which point are you in contact with the earth, and when are you not? Is there ever a point in which you are not held by the earth? Allow for the boundaries between your body and the elements around you to break down. Continue with the movement. With awareness. With contemplation. Allow the body, its movement through the emptiness of space, and the dance between the two, to show you what’s real and what is not. Continue until you finish your walk. Spend a few moments standing still. Close your eyes, and come back to the sensation of feet rooted to the ground. Allow yourself to feel held. Notice the energy that the earth gives back to you when you surrender to the earth, and release your heaviness down. Notice your breath as we bring your walking meditation to a close. Remember that you can practise this mindful approach to walking whenever you move about your day.