Softening Anxiety by Grounding in the Present Moment. Anxiety often involves the mind being pulled back to the past or ahead to the future. Returning to the present, where we can feel the breath and the body, can offer a moment of steadiness. Next time you notice your mind is in the past or future, you might return to the present with the following mindfulness exercise:
Here’s a Sample of the “Softening Anxiety by Grounding in the Present Moment” Guided Meditation Script:
Beginning either seated or lying down, with eyes opened or closed
Choosing a posture that feels safe and comfortable to you
Turning your attention inward toward your breath
Breathing in and out through your nose,
And remaining present with the felt experience of the breath
As you watch breath move in and out through your nostrils
Staying with this one breath in,
And with this one breath out
As you look upon the breath with curiosity,
Letting the detail of what you notice keep you right here, and right now
As you look upon the breath with open acceptance,
Letting a sense of awe help hold you in this one moment
(pause 3 breaths)
And then expanding awareness from the breath, to the body as a whole
Still aware of breath, remaining present with the sensation of breath throughout the body
Feeling the rise and fall of your shoulders
Or the expansion and contraction of your belly
Or an overall sense of floating upwards, and downwards,
On each cycle of breath
Holding your attention to wherever it is in the body
that you notice the breath the most
Letting curiosity and an open, spacious attention
Keep you rooted in breath and body awareness
Allowing for a sense of awe, which helps keep us connected to that which we notice
And then beginning at the top of your head
Asking yourself, what else is present here, in the body, other than the breath?
This exercise is meant to complement, not replace, care from a doctor or therapist. If anxiety is getting in the way of daily life, please reach out to a mental health professional.
