This practice is part of the
Time Required
5 minutes, three to six days per week. Research suggests that people who practice the body scan for longer reap more benefits from this practice.
How to Do It
The body scan can be performed while lying down, sitting, or in other postures. The steps below are a guided meditation designed to be done while sitting. You can listen to audio of this three-minute guided meditation, produced by UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC), in the player; if it doesn't play, you can find it here or download it from MARC's website.*
Especially for those new to the body scan, we recommend performing this practice with the audio. However, you can also use the script below for guidance for yourself or for leading this practice for others.
- Begin by bringing your attention to your environment, slowly looking around and noticing that you are safe in this moment.
- Bring your attention into your body.
- You can close your eyes if that’s comfortable for you or maintain a soft gaze, with your eyes partially closed but not focusing on anything in particular.
- You can notice your body seated wherever you’re seated, feeling the support of the chair or the floor beneath you.
- Take a few deep, long breaths, within the range of what is comfortable for you.
- And as you take a deep breath, bring in more oxygen, enlivening the body. And as you exhale, you might experience a sense of relaxing more deeply.
- You can notice your feet on the floor, notice the sensations of your feet touching the floor. The weight and pressure, vibration, heat.
- You can notice your legs against the chair, pressure, pulsing, heaviness, lightness.
- Notice your back against the chair, supporting you. If you are not able to notice sensations in all areas of the body, that is OK. We are more connected to certain areas of the body than others, at different times of the day.
- Bring your attention into your stomach area. If your stomach is tense or tight, can you allow it to soften? Take a breath.
- Notice your hands. Are your hands tense or tight? See if you can allow them to soften.
- Notice your arms. Feel any sensation in your arms. Do your best to allow your shoulders to be soft.
- Notice your neck and throat. Try to allow them be soft. See if you can invite a sense of relaxation in.
- Try to soften your jaw. Do your best to allow your face and facial muscles to be soft.
- Then notice your whole body present. Take one more breath.
- Be aware of your whole body as best you can. Take a breath. Slowly open up the eyes, without focusing on anything in particular. Allow the head and neck to gently rotate, taking in the space you are in. When you feel ready, you can return to your normal gaze.
* You can also listen to a 45-minute version of the Body Scan that the UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness uses in its trainings in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.
Why You Should Try It
This exercise asks you to systematically focus your attention on different parts of your body, from your feet to the muscles in your face. It is designed to help you develop a mindful awareness of your bodily sensations, and to relieve tension when possible. Research suggests that this mindfulness practice can help reduce stress, improve your well-being, and decrease aches and pains.
Why It Works
Our body can sometimes be a source of pain and negative emotions, whether they are caused by injury or disease, or experiences of discrimination and prejudice. The body scan provides a rare opportunity for us to experience our body as it is, including any difficult feelings that come up, without judging or trying to change it.
It may allow us to notice and release a source of tension we weren’t aware of before, such as a hunched back or clenched jaw muscles. Or it may draw our attention to a source of pain and discomfort.
Our feelings of resistance and anger toward pain often only serve to increase that pain, and to increase the distress associated with it. According to research, by noticing the pain we’re experiencing, without trying to change it, we may actually feel some relief. Even if the pain doesn't go away, we can take steps to shift our relationship to pain and our relationship to our body in general.
The body scan allows us to work with these types of negative feelings. This practice may also increase our general attunement to our physical needs and sensations, which can in turn help us take better care of our body and make healthier decisions about eating, sleep, and exercise.
Evidence That It Works
Carmody, J. & Baer, R. A. (2008). Relationships between mindfulness practice and levels of mindfulness, medical and psychological symptoms, and well-being in a mindfulness-based stress reduction program. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 31(1), 23–33.
Body Scan is one of the practices included in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). Developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn and based on Buddhist teachings, MBSR is a six- to 10-week program that teaches various mindfulness techniques through weekly sessions and homework assignments. More information about this program is available in Kabat-Zinn’s book Full Catastrophe Living.
People in Massachusetts who attended an MSBR program showed increases in mindfulness and well-being, and decreases in stress and symptoms of mental illness, at the end of eight weekly sessions. Time spent engaging in the Body Scan was associated with increased psychological well-being and greater levels of two components of mindfulness—non-reacting to stress and observing thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations.
Who Has Tried the Practice?
Additional studies explore how the Body Scan benefits people outside the U.S.:
- Terminal cancer patients in Hong Kong improved in overall mental health and reported feeling more peaceful, happy, and calm after 90 minutes of the Body Scan.
- Japanese people increased in self-compassion and decreased in symptoms of depression and anxiety after an eight-week mindfulness program that included the Body Scan.
- University students in South Korea experienced reductions in self-criticism and psychological distress, along with improvements in self-reassurance and mental health, after participating in a six-week program that included Body Scan, Mindful Breathing, and the Loving-Kindness Meditation.
Research suggests that MBSR, which includes the Body Scan, benefits the mental health of various groups, including the following:
- People in different cultures and countries, such as bilingual Latin-American families, university students in China, disadvantaged families in Hong Kong, low-income cyclo drivers in Vietnam, males with generalized anxiety disorder in Iran, Indigenous people in the Republic of Congo, and Aboriginal Australians.
- Women around the world, including pregnant women in China, rural women in India who experienced still-birth, at-risk women in Iran, Muslim women college students in the United Arab Emirates, American survivors of intimate partner violence, and socioeconomically disadvantaged Black women with post-traumatic stress disorder.
- People with certain diseases, such as New Zealanders with rheumatoid arthritis, male patients with heart disease in India, patients with diabetes in South Korea, cancer patients in Canada, breast cancer survivors in China, and HIV-positive individuals in Toronto, San Francisco, Iran, and South Africa.
More research is needed to explore whether, and how, the impact of this practice extends to other groups and cultures.
Keep in Mind
A 2015 study found that MBSR “improved depressive symptoms regardless of affiliation with a religion, sense of spiritually, … sex, or age.” However, other studies suggest that MBSR may not benefit everyone equally:
- When MBSR was administered in Massachusetts correctional facilities, male prisoners experienced less mental health improvement than female prisoners.
- MBSR may not be beneficial in all cultural contexts. For Haitian mental health practitioners and teachers, MBSR contradicted some of their cultural worldviews and everyday practices. Brazilian medical students who participated in MBSR experienced no significant changes in mental health or quality of life.
Sources
Diana Winston, Ph.D., UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center
Steven D. Hickman, Psy.D., UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness
References
Adelian, H., Sedigheh, K. S., Miri, S., & Farokhzadian, J. (2021). The effect of mindfulness-based stress reduction on resilience of vulnerable women at drop-in centers in the southeast of Iran. BMC Women's Health, 21, 1–10.
Fogarty, F. A., Booth, R. J., Lee, A. C., Dalbeth, N., & Consedine, N. S. (2019). Mindfulness-based stress reduction with individuals who have rheumatoid arthritis: Evaluating depression and anxiety as mediators of change in disease activity. Mindfulness, 10(7), 1328–1338.
Gallegos, A. M., Heffner, K. L., Cerulli, C., Luck, P., McGuinness, S., & Pigeon, W. R. (2020). Effects of mindfulness training on posttraumatic stress symptoms from a community-based pilot clinical trial among survivors of intimate partner violence. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(8), 859–868.
Gayner, B., Esplen, M. J., DeRoche, P., Wong, J., Bishop, S., Kavanagh, L., & Butler, K. (2012). A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction to manage affective symptoms and improve quality of life in gay men living with HIV. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 35(3), 272–285.
Greeson, J. M., Smoski, M. J., Suarez, E. C., Brantley, J. G., Ekblad, A. G., Lynch, T. R., & Wolever, R. Q. (2015). Decreased symptoms of depression after mindfulness-based stress reduction: Potential moderating effects of religiosity, spirituality, trait mindfulness, sex, and age. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 21(3), 166–174.
Hecht, F. M., Moskowitz, J. T., Moran, P., Epel, E. S., Bacchetti, P., Acree, M., Kemeny, M. E., Mendes, W. B., Duncan, L. G., Weng, H., Levy, J. A., Deeks, S. G., & Folkman, S. (2018). A randomized, controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction in HIV infection. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 73, 331–339.
Ho, R. T. H., Lo, H. H. M., Fong, T. C. T., & Choi, C. W. (2020). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention on diurnal cortisol pattern in disadvantaged families: A randomized controlled trial. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 117, 7.
Hoffman, D. M. (2019). Mindfulness and the cultural psychology of personhood: Challenges of self, other, and moral orientation in Haiti. Culture & Psychology, 25(3), 302–323.
Jung, H. Y., Lee, H., & Park, J. (2015). Comparison of the effects of Korean mindfulness-based stress reduction, walking, and patient education in diabetes mellitus. Nursing & Health Sciences, 17(4), 516–525.
Kabat-Zinn, J., De Torrijos, F., Skillings, A. H., Blacker, M., Mumford, G. T., Alvares, D. L., & Rosal, M. C. (2016). Delivery and effectiveness of a dual language (English/Spanish) Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program in the inner city - A seven-year experience: 1992-1999. Mindfulness & Compassion, 1(1), 2–13.
Kabat-Zinn, J., & Hanh, T. N. (2009). Full catastrophe living: Using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. Delta.
Lavrencic, L. M., Donovan, T., Moffatt, L., Keiller, T., Allan, W., Delbaere, K., & Radford, K. (2021). Ngarraanga giinganay (‘thinking peacefully’): Co-design and pilot study of a culturally-grounded mindfulness-based stress reduction program with older First Nations Australians. Evaluation and Program Planning, 87, 12.
Le, T. N. (2017). Cultural considerations in a phenomenological study of mindfulness with Vietnamese youth and cyclo drivers. International Perspectives in Psychology: Research, Practice, Consultation, 6(4), 246–260.
Li, J., & Qin, X. (2021). Efficacy of mindfulness‐based stress reduction on fear of emotions and related cognitive behavioral processes in Chinese university students: A randomized controlled trial. Psychology in the Schools, 1–17.
Majid, S. A., Seghatoleslam, T., Homan, H. A., Akhvast, A., & Habil, H. (2012). Effect of mindfulness based stress management on reduction of generalized anxiety disorder. Iranian Journal of Public Health, 41(10), 24–28.
McIntyre, T., Elkonin, D., de Kooker, M., & Magidson, J. F. (2018). The application of mindfulness for individuals living with HIV in South Africa: A hybrid effectiveness-implementation pilot study. Mindfulness, 9(3), 871–883.
Neto, A. D., Lucchetti, A. L. G., Ezequiel, O. S., & Lucchetti, G. (2020). Effects of a required large-group mindfulness meditation course on first-year medical students’ mental health and quality of life: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 35(3), 672–678.
Noh, S. & Cho, H. (2020). Psychological and physiological effects of the mindful lovingkindess compassion program on highly self-critical university students in South Korea. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 2628.
Parswani, M. J., Sharma, M. P., & Iyengar, S. S. (2013). Mindfulness-based stress reduction program in coronary heart disease: A randomized control trial. International Journal of Yoga, 6(2), 111.
Roberts, L. R., & Montgomery, S. B. (2016). Mindfulness-based intervention for perinatal grief in rural India: Improved mental health at 12 months follow-up. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 37(12), 942–951.
Samuelson, M., Carmody, J., Kabat-Zinn, J., & Bratt, M. A. (2007). Mindfulness-based stress reduction in Massachusetts correctional facilities. The Prison Journal, 87(2), 254–268.
SeyedAlinaghi, S., Jam, S., Foroughi, M., Imani, A., Mohraz, M., Djavid, G. E., & Black, D. S. (2012). Randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction delivered to human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients in Iran: effects on CD4⁺ T lymphocyte count and medical and psychological symptoms. Psychosomatic Medicine, 74(6), 620–627.
Speca, M., Carlson, L. E., Goodey, E., & Angen, M. (2000). A randomized, wait-list controlled clinical trial: The effect of a mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction program on mood and symptoms of stress in cancer outpatients. Psychosomatic Medicine, 62(5), 613–622.
Takahashi, T., Sugiyama, F., Kikai, T., Kawashima, I., Guan, S., Oguchi, M., . . . Kumano, H. (2019). Changes in depression and anxiety through mindfulness group therapy in Japan: The role of mindfulness and self-compassion as possible mediators. BioPsychoSocial Medicine, 13, 10.
Thomas, J., Raynor, M., & Bahussain, E. (2016). Stress reactivity, depressive symptoms, and mindfulness: A Gulf Arab perspective. International Perspectives in Psychology: Research, Practice, Consultation, 5(3), 156–166.
Tsang, S. C., Mok, E. S., Lam, S. C., & Lee, J. K. (2012). The benefit of mindfulness‐based stress reduction to patients with terminal cancer. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 21(17–18), 2690–2696.
Vinesett, A. L., Whaley, R. R., Woods-Giscombe, C., Dennis, P., Johnson, M., Li, Y., Mounzeo, P., Baegne, M., & Wilson, K. H. (2017). Modified African Ngoma healing ceremony for stress reduction: A pilot study. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 23(10), 800–804.
Waldron, E. M., & Burnett-Zeigler, I. (2021). The impact of participation in a mindfulness-based intervention on posttraumatic stress symptomatology among Black women: A pilot study. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 14(1), 29–37.
Williams, J. M., & Kabat-Zinn, J. (2013). Mindfulness: Diverse perspectives on its meaning, origins and applications at the intersection of science and dharma. Routledge.
Zhang, J., Cui, Y., Zhou, Y., & Li, Y. (2019). Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on prenatal stress, anxiety and depression. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 24(1), 51–58.
Zhang, J., Zhou, Y., Feng, Z., Fan, Y., Zeng, G., & Wei, L. (2017). Randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) on posttraumatic growth of Chinese breast cancer survivors. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 22(1), 94–109.
The Body Scan Meditation helps us become more aware our bodies, an awareness we often neglect. Are you attuned to the present moment? Take our Mindfulness quiz to find out:
Comments
and Reviews
Veronica Hdaidh
Quero agradecer ao Dr. O. WATER pelo medicamento à base de plantas que me deu a mim e à minha filha. Eu estava a sofrer de surtos de VIH e herpes simples em todos os meus genitais quando dei à luz a minha filha e foi assim que a minha filha apanhou a doença indiretamente de mim. Quero utilizar este meio para dizer a todos que a solução para a nossa doença chegou, por isso gostaria que contactassem este grande curador para o seu endereço de e-mail: DRWATERHIVCURECENTRE@GMAIL.COM e pelo Whatsapp +2349050205019. Estou muito feliz hoje porque eu e a minha filha estamos curados do VIH e do herpes. Agora estamos negativos após o uso do seu medicamento à base de plantas, e o meu médico especialista confirmou isso. mais uma vez digo um grande obrigado ao Doutor O.WATER pelas suas mãos curadoras sobre a minha vida e a minha filha.
Henriette Amunazo
FUI CURADO DO VÍRUS HERPES SIMPLEX PELO DR. WATER, O GRANDE HERBALISTA. 🌿☘️ Estou muito feliz por partilhar este testemunho com o mundo porque geralmente há muitas dúvidas sobre a cura do vírus HERPES simplex. Isto é real, levem isto a sério, o meu nome é HENRIETTE AMUNAZO e estou muito feliz por hoje poder dar este testemunho ao mundo e também ajudar pessoas que foram condenadas tal como eu fui. Quem acreditaria que uma erva pode curar o HERPES completamente do corpo? Nunca acreditei que isto resultasse, gastei muito dinheiro a comprar medicamentos no hospital para suprimir surtos, chegou uma altura em que tudo o que queria era que a morte viesse porque estava falido e já tinha fortes surtos do vírus do herpes. Um dia, estava a navegar na internet fazendo perguntas online só para saber mais sobre os últimos desenvolvimentos no setor médico para ver se ainda havia esperança, então deparei-me com uma publicação sobre este grande homem chamado DR WATER através de uma amiga online que deu publicamente um testemunho sobre como também foi curada do vírus herpes simplex 2 por este médico herbalista que é bem conhecido pela sua forte prática herbal antiga para a cura de HERPES, HIV, VERRUGAS e CANCRO. No início duvidei tanto da mulher como do médico, assim como muitos que vêem este post duvidariam, porque clinicamente estava provado que era impossível, mas depois decidi tentar, por isso enviei-lhe um e-mail. Não acreditei muito nele, só queria dar-lhe uma oportunidade. Ele respondeu ao meu e-mail e precisava de algumas informações sobre mim, por isso enviei-lha, ele preparou um medicamento à base de plantas (CURA) e enviou-o através do serviço de entrega online. Ele deu os meus dados à Courier Office. Disseram-me que em 3 a 5 dias receberia o pacote e depois de o receber, tomei o medicamento conforme prescrito por ele, no final dos 13 dias que o medicamento durou, disse-me para ir ao hospital para fazer um teste, e eu fui, surpreendentemente depois do teste o médico confirmou-me livre do vírus do herpes simplex, pensei que fosse uma brincadeira, fui a outros hospitais e também me confirmaram que estava livre do herpes, direi que foi como um milagre. Esperei para ver se teria novos surtos e já lá vão 2 meses desde que não tive nenhum. Obrigado senhor por me salvar a vida, mesmo que não possa ver esta publicação, nunca deixarei de testemunhar o impacto que causou na minha vida ao restaurá-la quando estava a ser estigmatizado e até evitado por familiares e amigos. Prometo que testemunharei sempre as suas boas obras. se tem vírus herpes simplex, é paciente com HIV, diabetes, vírus do papiloma humano ou verrugas genitais, contacte-o e tenho a certeza que será curado, contacte-o através de: e-mail: Drwaterhivcurecentre@gmail.com ou ligue/whatsapp: +2349050205019 ESTAS SÃO AS COISAS QUE O DR WATER É ESPECIALIZADO . HERPES . VIH/SIDA . CÂNCER . VERRUGAS GENITAIS . CÁLCULOS NOS RENAIS . ÚLCERA . HEPATITE B&C . TRANSTORNO DA TAXA PORTUÁRIA . DIABETES . CANCRO DE PRÓSTRATA . MIOMA, CISTO . INFERTILIDADE [MARIDO OU ESPOSA]
nelly tyson
Hello everyone. Dr. Osalu Herbs is a good remedy for herpes Virus , I was a carrier of herpes virus and I saw a testimony on how Dr. Osalu cured Herpes Virus, I decided to contact him, I contacted him and he guided me. I asked him for solutions and he started the remedies for my health. After he finished he sent me the herbs which I took for 2 weeks before asking me to go for a check up and getting there. I could not believe that I was confirmed HSV 2 Negative after the test,Today I am so happy because i'm free from herpes virus with the help of Dr. Osalu Thank God now everything is fine, I'm cured by Dr. Osalu herbal medicine, I'm very thankful to God for making it possible. you can reach him on his email, i strongly recommend him to any one out here looking for a cure . drosaluherbalhome@gmail.com or call/whats-app +2348078668950. website: https://drosaluherbalhome.wixsite.com/drosaluherbshome
Stacy Lynn Sager
Giorgia Lucchi
A
The Greater Good Toolkit
Made in collaboration with Holstee, this tookit includes 30 science-based practices for a meaningful life.
The Greater Good Toolkit
Made in collaboration with Holstee, this tookit includes 30 science-based practices for a meaningful life.