Deep Relaxation Meditation

Download as .pdf

By Quána Madison, Clyfford Still Museum educator and mindfulness teacher

Time: 5 minutes

Before Exercise:

• Invite students to get into a comfortable position–standing, sitting, or lying down.
• Students may close their eyes if they feel comfortable. If doing this exercise virtually, consider sharing an image of a calming landscape or artwork for students to softly focus on.

Read the below script at a slow pace and with a calming voice:

• Get into a comfortable position.
• Close your eyes if you feel comfortable, or softly look at something in the room, or on the screen (if a calming image is shared).
• You are going to visit a peaceful place in your mind.
• Imagine a peaceful space where you feel safe, comfortable, and totally relaxed.
• Your relaxing and safe space may be inside or outside…maybe it’s a garden, a beautiful landscape, a favorite place you’ve visited before, somewhere you’ve always wanted to go, or somewhere imaginary.
• As you enter this peaceful space, picture letting go of your anxieties, worries, and your fears.
• When you are in your peaceful space, stress and tension melt away. Feel them leaving your body.
• Look around your peaceful space, and notice the details.
• What do you see around you? What colors do you notice?
• What do you smell in your peaceful space? What do you hear?
• Reach out and touch something in your space-what does it feel like?
• In this space, nothing can harm you. There is no to-do list or anything to worry about.
• Notice your toes, feet, and knees feeling more relaxed.
• Now notice your legs, hips, and lower back relaxing.
• Notice feelings of ease in your stomach and chest.
• Notice your heart softening and filling with love and compassion.
• Notice your shoulders and upper back releasing tension.
• Relax your face, your jaw, your eyebrows, your forehead.
• Your body, mind, heart, and spirit are gently embraced by tenderness, care, and love.
• Hold onto this feeling of being relaxed.
• Remind yourself that you can come back and relax in this peaceful space in your mind any time.
• Say to yourself, either out loud or silently, ‘I am at peace. I can relax here. I can come to this peaceful inner space whenever I want.’
• When you are ready, open your eyes.