Developing Self Compassion (Guided Meditation)

Okay, so now I'm going to invite you to breathe about five breaths per minute. That's the standard breath.

And you're going to focus on this grounding the body slowing down becoming, feeling slightly heavier.

On the out breath, your out breath is your parasympathetic in breath is sympathetic. So when you breathe in, your heart rate speeds up slightly, when you breathe out, speed slows down slowly.

But when you get into this, there are lots of lots of different breathing patterns, which will do slightly different things.

You can extend it, so some people like to do five and 759, even. So five seconds in, nine seconds out.

But to start with the most basic pattern for which there is research is five seconds in hold five seconds out.

Again, the idea is to be sensory focusing in the experience.

Okay, so here we go, then I'm going to count into three out two, three into three, four out 234 into 345, out 2345. I'm going to give you some guidance as we go through. So starting then making sure your posture that your diaphragm is open, the breath comes down into the diaphragm, fills your lungs and gently leaves through your nose. And the idea is the depth of the breath, the frequency of the breath and the rhythm of the breath. So the breath needs to be in rhythm and out rhythm. Now sometimes people like to imagine the sea sound of a very gentle sea slapping against the shore. Anything like that, that helps you is fine.

Okay, so here we go. Then in two, three, out two, three, in 234 out 234 in 2345, out 2345. So settle into that rhythm, but the most important thing is the feeling of the body in a rhythm and the feeling of a body slowing down.

So when the out breath really focused on that idea of mind slowing down said in your mind in a very gentle, friendly, light, everything is safe, everything is fine.

Mind is slowing down. Now this isn't to become relaxed and sleepy, this is to stay alert, but just settling in mind and body. Okay, so I'm going to give you a little bit of time just to practice that.

So the idea is, is practice is breathing, if you practice it every day, even just for a couple of minutes. You know, even just sitting on the loo whatever or in the bath in bed, getting the hang of this breathing and slowing the settling in the body, this groundedness if you can, while you're walking, you can do it walking, being very aware of how you're breathing, how you're holding your body.

The next thing then is as you're breathing focus on the idea of a friendly face. And a friendly voice in contrast to neutral.

So I'm going to ask you to spend 20 seconds just creating very new, sorry 20 seconds creating just a neutral face and a neutral voice and you're going to say hello to yourself on the outbreath so as you're breathing out say hello and name yourself so my name is boss was B Hello Paul. Then when I asked you to switch to friendly does create a friendly facial expression. Expressing friendliness to somebody you care about joyfulness happy to see them and the voice tone is the same.

So when you do that had the friendly face and the friendly voice tone is Hello Paul. And you use your own name obviously. Okay, then if we get into 20 seconds, just creating an Neutral just holding a neutral face and a neutral voice expression. Okay, now switch to friendly. I really tried to create a sense a feeling of friendliness in your face and in your voice.

Okay, now go back to neutral and back to friendly gain really focusing on the sensations in your face if you can, and that real, the sense of the friendly voice turned around.

Okay, so now from this position friendly face friendly voice 10 created a sense into yourself. What your ideal compassionate self would be, how would you be? How would you think how would you act? How would you be going through life?

Now don't worry if you feel but I could never do that doesn't matter. It's almost like an act of creating a row creating a row. Really think about the South you would like to be just imagine yourself as this is no different really than if you demand yourself as a wonderful tennis player or piano player and need to screen images of you as a compassionate person.

Your ideal compassion self friendly voice, facial expression grounded in the body. Able to be assertive you need to be enjoying helping people.

Now think just so what would it be like if I cultivated this part of me that's there maybe a little fragile, maybe just a shadowy sample, maybe quite well formed or whatever it is.

Would it be like if I really started to live from this inner potential?

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