Good evening everybody and welcome to our Sunday meditation this month of August with myself and Doctor Mike Scanlon. So I hope you've all had a lovely weekend so far. You're nice and comfortable and ready to relax for the next half an hour for our Sunday meditation.

So I'll just go to. Here we go. So this evening, Mike is going to guide you through the safe place of meditation, which sounds lovely.

I haven't heard this one, so I'm looking forward to it myself. And then I will guide you through what's called a hollow body scan. So I know we did a body scan last month and we have been doing a few lately.

This one is a little bit different and there is a, a little bit of a visualisation at the end of the meditation. So it'd just be interesting to see how people experience the visualisation, whether it aids them in their body scan and . It would just be interesting to get some feedback from just the differences.

So we've been doing quite a a variation throughout the month of our Sunday meditation. So this one, as I say, is a little bit different and we just want to work with. There the body scans are good for for sleeping and for relaxation.

So last month was very much focused after we did our high energy with the summer meditation of bringing that energy down and just completely relaxing and releasing this one. If we can, more focusing on the emotional side. So obviously with emotion we experience that in our bodies physiologically and it's about listening to what's going.

With our body and becoming more perceptive so that we can lead towards mindful response, a response to those emotions rather than reacting. So I'll talk a little bit more about that later with the body scan. But first of all, I will leave you with Mike's first meditation, the safe place meditation.

So sit back, relax and enjoy. Thank you everybody. And thank you very much, Megan.

It's really nice to be back with you. I missed last week. I think I was, cycling, mindfully around France, and I was pretty mindful actually.

I was, I was pleased. And today, it's a, it's a new one, I guess, for, for you guys, because this is a, a meditation that I use, before the first session of And psychological trauma therapy if I'm working with someone who's got post-traumatic stress disorder or has had a real scare, but actually the idea of this one, this one is, is it prepares you to be able to sort of engage in trauma therapy, which can be really quite difficult sometimes. Now if we can find a safe place, the safe place can be somewhere we can return to when we're feeling a little bit sort of.

I worried a little bit scared when we find ourselves feeling anxious or on edge. It's one of those really lovely ones that you can just go back to and find exactly as it says, a real psychological safe place that you can just cue yourself into, and the cueing yourself into means that when we finish the meditation, what would be helpful is if you give your safe place a name. And then what you do is you just need to say that name and the name and the words and hearing that, that, that those words should and very often can just take you straight into that place of calm and that's what we're after.

So I'm really hoping people will enjoy this, but I'm really hoping people will also find it very, very useful going forward as well. So let's start. So What I'm gonna suggest is that if we just start by finding that meditative positioning of being comfortable but not too comfortable.

And because this is really requires us to visualise, it's usually better if you can to just close your eyes. Just allow your eyes to close. And just allow yourself now to settle.

And just begin To notice your body. Noticing your brain. Just bringing attention.

To how you're feeling. I'm just asking yourself quietly. How does it feel?

To just take time. Just be with myself. As I just left my body.

Begin to relax by Releasing any areas of tension that we might find. By just breathing. And we do this by Just taking a lovely slow.

Deep breath. And if there is any tension in our bodies, just noticing that as we exhale. Letting go of the tension.

On the outbreak. So I just ask you to Just where is your body? Feeling tense.

At the moment, go find it. There's a bit of tension in my back of my neck, so I'm gonna take my attention there. And just place your attention on the area.

As you take another breath in. As you breathe out, just see if you can feel that part of the body. Just softening.

On the outgrow. Just allowing your breathing. To vary gradually.

Calm And slow down. And as you do this. What I'd like you to try and do is just to think.

About a time in your life. When you've been in a place. That you can visualise and that place is a safe place, so it would be a memory of Possibly a holiday memory works rather nicely.

But a memory of being safe, relaxed, at ease, with no sense of hurry up or must do. And perhaps You're either on your own. Or you're with people that matter to you.

And those people are having a good time. Just see and allow yourself. To picture this safe place.

In your mind's eye. Just bring a sort of curiosity to that. Wonder why?

My mind has chosen. This memory. Or this place.

As a safe place. Maybe you're in a beautiful garden. Or in the mountains or.

In an open field of the woods. For the beach. Or maybe a room.

In somebody's house where you recall feeling safe and happy and secure. And picture somewhere that feels calm. And stif And serene, somewhere where you feel.

Safe, happy. And protective. And now as we concentrate.

To see if we can build the image of your safe place. So to begin with, just notice the colours. In this safe place.

The different hues. And shades. Notice what season it is.

In this memory or in this visualisation. What sounds? Can you hear?

If there's water, Can you hear the sound of water? What smells? Can you find?

Sweet or pungent or refreshing. And what sounds? Inhabi This safe place of yours, are there birds?

Are there sounds of nature. All the sounds of laughter. Find the sounds.

And the smells. And the pictures. That's accompany this safe place.

Now just notice. If there's a sense of The ground. And Is it sand you're standing on?

Is it soft leaves? Notice that there's a breeze. What it feels like on your face.

Is the temperature In your safe place warm. Oh cool. Allow yourself to take in all of the senses.

As you begin to build. This safe place. Now take yourself back.

In your mind, And place yourself once more. In that place of safety. And happiness.

And calm. And serenity. Place yourself there again.

And imagine yourself either sitting Or lying Just inhabiting. That safe place. And feel your body.

As it rests. In this place of safety. Just allowing Any tension you may be feeling.

To dissipate. As you Connect with the sounds. And the feelings, and the pictures, and the sensations.

Of your safe place. And now look about you once more. And notice the colour of the sky.

Feel the warm rays, if it's sunny. And what else do you notice are the clouds? Are there leaves?

What season are we in? And that's where Connecting This wonderful, safe place. Just notice that our breathing.

Is calm And regular And relax. And after you've thoroughly visualise this place. And reconnected with your safe place.

Just acknowledge that your. Kind of ready to leave. And very gently.

Allow yourself to come back. Into the room that you're meditating in. But most importantly of all.

Just recognise that you're leaving your safe place for now. Acknowledging that you can return. To your safe place at any time.

You lie. And as you gradually open your eyes. Hold on.

Smilingly, holding it lightly to that relaxed. Sense that you've found. Continue to breathe smoothly.

And rhythmically. Take a few moments to. Just reflect, Tom.

A safe place that you're found. And finally find a name. A Q Name that can cue you back into this safe place and just say that name out aloud now.

And allow your brain to connect with the sound of that cue word. And just not notice that you can say the word. And just by saying that word.

You can gently. Take yourself right back in. To your very special, safe place.

So your safe place is now available to you. Whenever You need. To go there.

So when we're ready, Very gently. Mecca. And The idea of the safe place is that if we practise it and practise it and practise it, then we can be having a bad day, you know, we can have just to finish seeing a very difficult client or somebody who's been just unkind or obnoxious to us, and we can.

Watch them disappear out of the door, and before we invite the next person in, we can stop and we can cue ourselves into our safe place and in seconds. We can be back there. And in seconds we can get a restoration of equilibrium.

And calm, it's just such a safe and healthy thing for us to do as humans. Everybody should have a safe place. And I'll pass you back now to Meg and I'm really looking forward to this one because I don't know the hollow body scan.

So it's gonna be a, a journey of adventure for me too. Thanks very much, Mike, that was lovely. So yes, we'll do, we'll move on to, now you're in a nice relaxed state, we'll move on to the hollow body scan.

So as always, it's nice to lie down for this one, but if you prefer to sit, keep stay in a seated position, then that's absolutely fine also. So just doing any adjustments. That you need to to make yourself feel a little bit more comfortable, perhaps your previous position.

Isn't as comfy as when you started it just making any movements that you need. If you can, if you're lying on the ground, try and take the feet wider than the knees just to allow the hips to rest and relax, the arms. With the palms facing up just beside the body.

Just helps to keep that openness in the chest and allow the shoulder blades to relax down the back. And if you're in a seated position trying to find that nice upright. Alert but a relaxed position that Mike always guides us through.

Lengthening from the sick bones all the way up to the crown of the head. And then when you're ready, just gently close the eyes if that's comfortable for you. And return back to that comfortable breathing, just being aware of the breath as it enters in and out of the body.

Nice long controlled in breath and out breath. Just allowing yourself to arrive back into the body and back to the breath. So for this meditation.

I'm going to imagine that our body is completely hollow. We're gonna use the breath as the focus of this meditation and as the air moves into the body. Imagining that it's hollow and the air is filling up the cavity of the body all at once.

So we breathe in. And we breathe out. So that sense of the body being hollow just helps to visualise the air as it enters and it's filling up each part of the body.

And as the air as you exhale it begins to exit. As you breathe in and out, filling up this cavity, this hollow cavity of air on the inhalation, just noticing any sensation in the body. These sensations that may arise.

And remembering with your body scan, it doesn't matter about experiencing these sensations, about experiencing relaxation, it's just about paying attention, becoming an observer, so. Try not to come to become too attached to any of these sensations, any of these feelings. It's just a guidance, so it doesn't matter if nothing comes up.

The most important part is just paying attention. I'm gonna guide you through various parts of the body as we breathe in. So let's start with the abdomen just breathing into the space, breathing into the stomach, into the tummy area.

Noticing it rise and fall with the breath as it enters in and out of the body, filling it up on the inhale. And then exiting on the exile. Now visualising the air moving through the arms, down the arms to the hands, all the way to the tips of the fingers, you breathe in, the air travels all the way down.

As you breathe out. Travels all the way back up. The gain Observing, feeling, noticing any sensations?

Did you allow the breath to travel into the body. Into the arms and back out. They begin to experience tingling in the fingers in the arms.

They may feel Cathy, they may feel like each person's individual experience is their own. And keeping the focus on the upper limbs, upper part of the torso. Noticing as you breathe in, notice the downward flow of the air as you inhale.

And the upward flow of the air as you exit. So keeping the focus of the arms, the chest, the tummy area. Sending the breath down on the inhale.

And up on the exhale. Filling up the body, that hollow cavity with air. Now we travel the focus down, bringing your awareness to the legs.

Do you breathing, feeling up thighs, knees, calves, feeling up the legs all the way down to the feet, to the toes. OK failing The bottom half of the body on the air inhale. The air exhale feeling maybe that lightness as the air.

Exits out the body. OK noticing any sensations, any lightness, heaviness, tingling in the toes? Which just maybe a sense of relaxation.

But most importantly, if any emotions, any sensations arise, just observing them. And in the same way as you inhale, noticing that downward flow of the air through the legs to the soles of the feet. And the upward flow.

On the exhale. And on the next breath, breathing, we can travel the awareness all the way back up to the top of the body to the head, skull, the jaw, the eyes. The whole top of our body, the brain.

Nose, mouth, ears? The whole head. Bring the awareness all the way up to the head.

Gain noticing any sensations as you breathe into this hollow space. Breathing in and out and coming back to that flow, that downward flow on the inhale and that upward flow on the exhale. You just any sensations around the eyes, the forehead, the back of the head?

Maybe the mouth, the jaw. In mind, won't you just come back. To the breath.

And now just observing the whole body, bringing attention to the whole body at once. The whole of the body, the heads, the arms, the torso, the legs, from the crown of the head to the tips, toes, the sole of the feet. And with every breath, you inhale, the whole body feels.

With air and as you exhale. Feeling the body cleanse as you get rid of any stagnant air. Release out the body and again coming back to that flow, that downward flow on the inhale maybe enters the crown of the head all the way down to the soles of the feet and as you exhale that upward flow from the soles of the feet all the way up to the top of the head, the crown of the head.

Taking with it Any negativity, cleansing the whole of the body. Just observe and what it feels like to Be aware of the whole body all at once. The whole of the body.

To finish, I'll just invite you to pick a relaxing colour, so the colour that you associate with feeling relaxed. Feeling safe. Feeling cosy, just picking a colour, the first one that comes to mind.

And using that to associate with the breath, so. Colour that you've picked on the inhaler as the breath travels down the body. Bringing that colour with it.

So if it's a yellow or an orange or maybe it's even blue, purple, that colour travels all the way from the crown of the head that down would flow to the soles of the feet, and as you exhale the as the air travels back out of the body, so does the colour. Maybe exploring with this breath and with the colour and just moving into every dark corner of the body. Breathe that colour into your hollow body.

And just sit and observe, lie and observe any responses, any sensations. We just pay attention. And in your meantime, just take Couple more breaths.

Deeper breaths, feeling that chest and tummy rise. It's more conscious, deeper breathing. Begin to either you can move the head, the neck, the toes, the fingers wriggling.

Just coming back To the body, subtle movement. Back gently, if your eyes were closed, gently begin to open the eyes. And well done, that was our hollow body relaxation and.

Body, body scan rather. So the back the very end where where I invited you to pick a colour. It's just something that you could possibly use every day.

And so if there's a part in the day where you feel a little bit tense or a little bit stressed, just coming back to the breath and sometimes it's nice to have a visualisation of colour that you associate. Very, I suppose it's quite an Symptom mic with, it'd be nice mic actually, you know, with a safe place and coming to that safe place, the link with the colour as well, yeah, I could see, and I tell you what I loved about that one, it felt vaguely tidal, you know, with the air coming in and coming out and it that that really that really worked for me because my safe place was by the sea. Oh, lovely.

My safe place my Q word is Tenby, you know, in, in, in, Pembrokeshire just Tenby and I'm there. And then I found myself sort of really that worked so nicely together because I got that real sense of the tide as, you know, ebbing in and out and that was, that was lovely. Thanks, Meg.

Oh, you're welcome. Yeah, it was just one that. Taed with me that colour and just it's a very quick one that you can do very quickly as well as if you do and you, as you say with the safe word, just say that word and take yourself to that place.

Yeah, no, I think the two go together great. Mhm. Oh, we've, we've got a question thank you.

Thank you very much for for your comments. So that that was thank you perfect. I'm glad you enjoyed that.

Thank you very much. If anyone does have any questions at all, always know that you you can pop those into the Q&A. We've got, we have just over half an hour, but if you do have any, please feel free to pop those in and as always you can email us anytime if anything comes up tonight or perhaps later on in the evening or tomorrow, always feel free to you know, to, to send us any questions or.

Experiences Do you know I needed that today as well, so, so did I. It was lovely, really, really nice. I'm always worried about when I do your meditation mic that I might I might not come back in time for the next one.

So yeah, thank you everybody for taking part. That was lovely. It was lovely.

It's always lovely to join on a once a month on a Sunday. So thank you everyone for joining. Thank you so much, Mike, as always, and we look forward to, our next meditation, which will be our September meditation.

I make, just make sure that, remember I'm doing that Lands End to John O'Groats from the 8th. Yes. And, and, well, 10, it's 10 days, so I start cycling on the 8th and whenever I get back.

So, make sure it's, after. I think I get back on the 18th, which is a Sunday, so maybe the Sunday after that might be an idea. OK, we do have the dates, so I will, I will check those tomorrow and I do apologise because I don't have them right now unfortunately.

But I'll, I'll check the dates and then if if Mike is on his . If you're on your bike ride, then I will, I'll get in touch and then I'll, I'll let everybody know via email if we do change the date Oh no thanks mate. That's wonderful.

Thanks for letting me know. Wonderful. So we'll be in touch if there are any changes with next month's meditation, and I hope you have a lovely rest of your Sunday evening evening, and you're able to stay in that nice relaxed state and a wonderful week ahead.

So thank you so much again. Thanks so much, Mike. Bye.