30 Day Mediation | Day 21 | Meditation for Extreme Stress

Hey friends and welcome to day 21 of your 30-day meditation. You can begin to find a little time to gather your comfortable position today, whether you're utilizing a block or a blanket, lying down, or using a bolster or pillow. Those are all wonderful options and just be sure that you are in a safe, secure, quiet space that you feel comfortable in for the next 10 to 15 minutes. You can begin with a nice deep breath in through your nose, fill up your belly, and a long open mouth exhalation. Sigh it all out. Now find a nice bear hug, squeezing your shoulders up by your ears. Deep breath in, hold yourself tight, and on the exhale gently release your grip, allowing your shoulders to roll all the way down your back, allowing your arms and your palms to melt down to your sides, and they can rest softly on your knees or they can stay by your sides. Just begin to settle into this safe space. You can place both hands on your heart or just one hand on your heart and one on your belly, taking in your breath, acknowledging your heartbeat, removing your tongue from the roof of your mouth, relaxing your jaw totally, allowing some space to be in between your teeth, letting your eyelids get heavier, bringing your gaze inwards, bringing some more awareness to the rising and the falling of your chest, just allowing yourself to be present in this moment of stillness and silence, quiet and safety. As you notice your existence in this space, begin to thank yourself for taking a few moments of time to yourself. It's these small dedications over time that are not easy but so important and so special. As you find an inhale, you hold your breath for five counts and then release it for five counts as well. So inhale for one, two, three, four, five, and slowly exhale for five, four, three, two, one. Perfect. Let's do that again. Inhale for one, two, three, four, five, but hold it at the top here for just a little bit of time. Hold this breath in and now slowly release for five, four, three, two, one. You can open mouth, release your breath, breathe normally here, and let's begin. It's important to know that anxiety is completely normal and stress is completely normal. What you're experiencing right now is simply the human body's survival mode. Your body wants to protect you and this is how it does that. We were created to live and stay alive. It's in our DNA. It's totally natural. Find an inhale here and an exhale. Release the entire breath when you exhale. What you're experiencing right now is your body's fight or flight mode. This psychological response is natural but when it's applied continuously it leads to a stressful lifestyle and from there this can lead to diseases that become unnecessarily introduced. Inhale and fully exhale. Right now we're going to create the opposite effect on your fight or flight response and to be honest we're actually doing it right now already. By you taking this time to meditate you have already begun reversing these effects, reversing these diseases. You're already lowering your muscle tension in your body. Your blood pressure is already beginning to decrease. Inhale and exhale. Your heart rate is beginning to return to a much more normal state and guess what? You've even lowered your oxygen consumption. Let's find another deep inhale and a full exhale. Beautiful. Continue to soften your eyelids and if your tongue has found its way back to the roof of your mouth let it just be released to lay softly in your mouth. If your teeth are clenched open your mouth slightly and when you close it only let your lips touch together allowing some space to stay between your teeth. If you find ideas begin to enter your mind or if you see patterns and habits it's totally normal. Just catch yourself when you start planning and comparing and calculating and judging. Try to bring awareness to when you dwell on these memories and let them be released on an exhale. Let yourself be in this moment and allow any thinking to just go. It's only for a moment. It's totally okay. They can float away without any attachment as you reassure yourself that even if you just stop thinking for a few moments it really will be okay. Try to listen only to your breath and nothing else. Search for the sound of your heartbeat. If you are talking to yourself in your head it's completely normal but try and redirect that conversation back to your awareness of your breath. You have permission to live in this moment without calculating what else you could be doing instead. You're encouraged and invited to remember that you do deserve this time from your hectic life. You do deserve space from your frantic thinking that you're so accustomed to. Inhale and exhale. Bringing your breath back to soft inhales and exhales and with your eyes closed you can begin to gently turn your head side to side. Maybe you find some neck rolls here releasing any tension, any stress and as you leave this place remember one last time that you can return here anytime you wish even if you only have five minutes or ten minutes. It may only be for a moment but it will remind you that you are the owner of this peace. It is yours and you can take advantage of it at any point in time. Bringing your palms together to your forehead to remind yourself that your mind is the most powerful part of you. Bringing your palms to your lips to remind yourself to speak positively and encouraging to others and even more importantly to yourself. And then bringing your hands to your heart to remind yourself that we love others because God first loved us. We have a purpose and a reason for our existence here on earth. You're not a mistake or a coincidence. You're very good at being human and you are fearfully and wonderfully made. You may flutter your eyes open. Thank you friends for joining me in our meditation today. I pray that you feel empowered and know that you are blessed and can laugh without fear of the future. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.