ARTFUL MEDITATION

Self Care

This Artful Meditation series is focused on deepening your ability to truly care for yourself. 

Part I: Visualization

Find a comfortable seated position and gently begin to close your eyes. Begin to bring your awareness into your body, feeling your body grounded, supported and relaxed. Begin to deepen your breath, which will anchor you throughout this visualization.

This visualization will be focused on tuning into your inner needs and cultivating greater self-care in your life, using the body as a tool to hear what care you need?

Close your eyes and begin to visualize the care you give to others in your life. Then visualize a recent act of care for another, noticing any feelings, words or sensations that arise in the body?

Next, close your eyes again and visualize the care you give yourself, noting at feelings, words or sensations that arise in the body. Then ask yourself: how can I best care for myself in my life?

Once have the answer and when you are ready, slowly begin to bring your awareness back into the body, tuning into your breath again, and begin to open your eyes.

Part II: Expressive Arts Activity

Supplies: You will need a pen, a sketchpad, and a variety of drawing materials of your choosing for this activity.

Directions: First, draw a large circle in the center of your paper. Inside the circle, begin to draw the self-care your currently give to yourself? Outside the circle, begin to draw the care you give out to others in life, such as family, friends, coworkers, community, world, etc?

Next, compare the care you give to others versus the care you give to yourself? Are both sides balanced? Are there any similarities? Are there any differences?

Lastly, draw a new scenario of care in your life, one in which the care you give out to others and the care your give yourself is balanced. After completing your drawing, write out three small ways you can bring this new scenario of care into your life?

Part III: Meditation

You will need 15 to 30 minutes for this meditation.

Find a comfortable lying down position and gently begin to close your eyes. Begin to bring your awareness into your body, feeling your body grounded, supported and relaxed. Begin to deepen your breath, which will anchor you throughout this meditation.

As you start to feel a little more relaxed with each breath, begin to tune into your body. This meditation will be a body scan focused on expressing gratitude to each part of your body.

Begin the body scan at your toes and work toward the crown of the head, pausing to express gratitude along the entire journey of the body.

If you mind wanders, first return to the breath, and then resume the body scan where you left off.

Once you get to the crown of the head, do one final body scan down to the toes, noticing any differences from when you started?

Namaste