Welcome, zen friend, to today's Drop of Zen, a short guided meditation designed to help you drop in and feel more calm and grounded. On today's Drop of Zen, I have a meditation that you can do anytime you're feeling anxiety. Let's get started by finding a quiet place that you can either sit or lie down in. So if you're driving or cooking a meal, why not wait and try this meditation later, when you can really get quiet and still and make a little time for yourself? Just begin by either closing your eyes or a soft gaze downward and we'll notice what we notice. See where the chair, the floor, the bed beneath you, whatever you are on, see where it meets you, where your body's making contact with it, notice any sounds or scents around you, notice any smells, and then we'll start to drop more inward and I'd like for you to bring your attention to any feeling of anxiety. Notice where you feel it, notice what it feels like. We are not going to try to make that feeling of anxiety go away, but instead we are just going to be with it and be really neutral and curious, as if you are at a beach and just looking out at the soft waves and just noticing them. That same way, with that same energy, is what I would like you to bring to this exercise. So bringing your attention to that sense of anxiety. Notice where it is, notice what it feels like Maybe there's an image that comes into your head and you're really seeing it. Just notice however it shows up for you, again, with just curiosity and neutrality, not trying to make it go away, but just being with it, as if you are a passenger in a car, just looking out the window and just watching things go by, just noticing what you notice.
Speaker 1And notice. Does the anxiety stay the same, the sensation of it? Does it change locations or stay in the same location? Let's see what's happening with it. Just noticing it, just being there with it. No agenda, just taking time to make that connection, to sit with your anxiety, not trying to make it go away, but also remembering that whatever you're feeling won't stay there forever. Just like those ocean waves, emotions roll in and emotions roll out and they're always changing.
Speaker 1So we'll just stay with that sensation of anxiety for another minute or so, just like you're watching the clouds above you, not trying to control them, but just noticing them, just watching them In that same way, just continuing to notice any sensation that you feel, with the anxiety Staying with it Whether it's moving around or it's in the same place. Noticing whatever you notice, and then begin to bring your attention back to the room around you. We'll take a nice deep breath in here and a long, slow exhale out. Stay here for as long as you'd like and, when you're ready, go ahead and bring yourself fully back to the present moment by opening your eyes. I'm so glad you joined me here today. Until next time, friend, I hope you'll continue to take some time today and every day to do something kind for yourself.