Meditation Tech of the Week:
The Body Scan
Continuing our series of foundational Meditation Techniques (or "tech"), the Body Scan deepens your Grounding Visualization (READ MORE) experience through use of progressive muscular relaxation and mindfulness.
To preform a Body Scan:
- Take a deep breath (to go inward mentally)
- As you exhale, notice how your body feels in general: your posture, areas of tension or stiffness, and areas of warmth
- Still breathing deeply, begin to mentally scan over your body slowly, starting with the top of your head, downward
- Be thorough; scan every muscle, organ and limb. The more specific you are, the better
- With each thing you scan, allow it to feel heavy or as if it was made of water
- Continue doing this to the tips of your toes - Extra credit: after this, imagine your hair, clothes and environment around you becoming heavy and liquid too
This technique is deeply relaxing, and great for aiding in falling asleep or coping with anxiety such as public speaking.
Students of mine have said they often never finish scanning the whole body because they are fast asleep. 🙂
Try it out right now, and Comment below!
Tell us how you feel before you begin, and then write how you feel afterwords.