LifestyleMEDITATION FOR KIDS: BEDTIME RELAXATION

When life gets busy (which happens lots of the time for many of us!), or perhaps a little tough, it’s a great idea, if you can, to find time and space for some quiet moments to relax and reflect – with the kids too!

With this in mind, we’ve asked for inspiration from the incredible Gemma David, founder of The Quiet Heart and a Chinese Medicine practitioner, mental health trainer and facilitator, yoga and meditation teacher and speaker.

Gemma has produced a number of unique kids’ meditations especially for Alex and Alexa, to help in specific situations.

This meditation has been designed for you to share with your child to help get to sleep after a busy day!

Access it on your phone or whichever device you use, and read it aloud – or simply have it to hand as a guide to help you enjoy some relaxing moments together. Hopefully you’ll find that, in time, it becomes part of your everyday routine.

Make sure you read it slowly and allow for your child to absorb your words – perhaps you’d even like to join in with them to help them with some of the movements.

Please note, if your child is suffering with prolonged anxiety, please seek the help of a professional.

Now is the time to get comfy and ready for a good night of sleep. Are you lying down in your bed? Do you have everything you need around you? Good. Let’s begin. Let’s release all the energy from our bodies after a busy day, so we can sleep, safe and sound in our beds.

Take some slower breaths in, and out, and feel your whole body begin to get soft. Does it feel good to be in bed? Feel your head resting gently on your pillow, your body warm and safe under your duvet or blankets.

Now, let’s take a gentle big breath in and then scrunch up all the muscles in your feet and legs, tightly, tightly, hold your breath and your muscles… then let them relax and as you breathe out, give a big sigh… ‘ahhhh’.

Take another big breath in and squeeze your feet, legs and this time also squeeze your bottom and your tummy, make all the muscles really tight….then let them relax on the out breath and give a big sigh… ‘ahhhh’.

Take another gentle breath in and squeeze your feet, your legs, your bottom, tummy, arms and shoulders – hold this then on the out breath let everything relax with a big sigh… ‘ahhhh’.

Then take one final gentle big breath in and squeeze all the muscles in your body really, really tight, including your face, hold your breath and then release everything on the outbreath with a big ‘ahhhh’.

Does that feel good? Do it one more time if you’d like or have a big yawn….But know that you’ve let all your busy energy from the day go and you can now allow your body to rest here, and go to sleep. Night night.