Being present: 5-minute breathing meditation

About this practice

5 minutes to meet being present with less of a fight. A breathing practice, after a bad day. A guided session of about 5 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: being present

Life happens in the present while attention is busy elsewhere. Nothing is missing except the noticing.

It tends to show up as:

Days blurring together
Feeling absent from your own week
Only registering moments in photographs

Sensory attention is the shortest route back. Sound, contact and breath are always in the present.

Doing this after a bad day

Do not review the day during it — that is what tomorrow is for
Something physical first, then this
Keep it short and end it deliberately

A bad day does not need a verdict. Closing it without a post-mortem is allowed.

How breathing works

A breathing practice uses the breath as the object of attention and as the control lever. Because exhaling slows the heart through the vagus nerve, it acts on the nervous system directly rather than through thinking.

Keep the exhale longer than the inhale — that is the active ingredient
Count the exhales and start again whenever you lose count
Do not force depth; let the breath find its own level

What happens, minute by minute

0:00Keep your eyes open if you like, resting on one point of the floor a metre or two ahead.
0:16If the breath feels tight, do not deepen it. Just watch it, and let it find its own depth.
0:32Let your body be exactly as tired as it is.
0:44We'll work through this slowly. If you lose the thread, the thread will wait.
0:58Let the exhale fall out rather than pushing it.
1:09Let each breath out be a small letting go of the muscles around your ribs.
1:23Feel your upper back against whatever is behind it.
1:34Now feel both feet at once. That's a lot of contact with the world.
1:48Notice your whole body as one shape, sitting or lying here.
2:00Stay here a little longer.
2:09Keep the exhale a little longer than the inhale. That is the entire technique.
2:23If you're sleepy, sit up a little. Or let the sleepiness be there.
2:36You do not have to solve the wandering back to now in these few minutes. Your only job is to keep breathing while it is here.
2:55Give the life happening while you worry a shape, a colour, a temperature. Turning it into something specific makes it easier to hold.
3:13Feel your breath move down your back, all the way to your lower ribs.
3:27Say to yourself: this is uncomfortable, and I can stay with it for one more breath. Then take that breath.
3:44If your mind is quiet, don't grab at it. Quiet comes and goes too.
3:58I'll be quiet for a moment. Stay with the breath.
4:10There is no target number here. Only the next breath, and then the one after it.
4:25Let your breathing be completely ordinary again.
4:35Let it be this simple.

Questions people ask

What does this session help with?

Life happens in the present while attention is busy elsewhere. Nothing is missing except the noticing. Sensory attention is the shortest route back. Sound, contact and breath are always in the present.

Where and when should I do this one?

Do not review the day during it — that is what tomorrow is for. A bad day does not need a verdict. Closing it without a post-mortem is allowed.

What actually happens during the 5 minutes?

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.