Dea Rivera

Mindfulness teacher

Breath Awareness

At times our mind can resemble a baseball game- Which sportscaster are you listening to?

Baseball Mind

So you associate what you do with who you are? Maybe it's time to make a different association. 

Being Vs Doing as We Age

Learn to take a self-compassion break throughout your day-you deserve it! 

Self Compassion Break

Challenge yourself with this practice of breathing and counting, focusing solely on the breath.  It's a simple practice, but not easy. 

10 Mindful Breaths

Sending loving kindness to yourself and others can be a nurturing practice that brings ease into your day. Give it a try.

Loving Kindness

This practice is designed to help you investigate your body though sounds and sensations as your awareness deepens. 

Sound Body

Use this practice as a way to work with difficult emotions and body sensations. It can be a gentle reminder that everything is ever changing. 

Difficulties

Quiet your mind with this practice as you visualize a lovely stream alongside you.  It may be helpful when your mind feels busy or emotions feel strrong

Thoughts on a Leaf

Slowing down your routine activities can be sweet.  Start with this practice & begin to slow down and savor all aspects of your experience. 

Slowing Down

Relax and bring more awareness to your body with this seated body scan. 

Seated Body Scan

Truly listening is the greatest gift we can give others.  With this practice, you may be surprised at how beneficial listening can be to you as well. 

Listening

This practice invites you to notice body sensations as you sit, settle in and explore all the decisions you make as you move into a standing position.

Standing Mindfully

If you have been overwhelmed by emotion when hearing about all those suffering from the latest natural disaster, you may benefit from this practice of loving kindness.

Natural Disaster Needs Loving Kindness

Try this nurturing practice when you are overwhelmed with emotion and longing for ease. You may be pleasantly surprised by the effect on your mind and body.

Self-Hug

Wake up to the moment and connect your senses with this mindful walking practice. It may be just what you need to start your day off with awareness. 

Morning Walk

Become more aware of sensations and feelings that arise with your cell phone use. A level of awareness provides you with a choice amidst your habitual use.

Mindful Mobile Use

A daily mindful eating practice to help you explore habits and thoughts around food and autopilot-eating. 

Mindful Mouthful

A useful practice to help notice when you are running on autopilot. Learn to make a conscious choice to be in the present moment.

Autopilot

A guided mindfulness practice on Forgiveness Releasing and letting go- A true act of self care.  

Forgiveness Practice

This practice is about pointing our attention towards the sense of sight- Exploring and strengthening our capacity to become aware of our environment through our eyes. 

Awareness of Sight

This practice is about feeling and letting in compassion and love while embracing your suffering or discomfort. 

Acceptance

With compassion and love, embracing your suffering, discomfort or tension and opening yourself up to your connection to the world around you. 

Loving-Kindness for You

This practice is designed to allow you to settle into the breath as you become still- It's simple, but not easy. 

Breathing

When we exaggerate tensions in the body and then slowly release them, we suddenly become aware of the sensation of ease and relaxation. Try this tense & release practice to build awareness of where you hold tension so that you can release it throughout your day. 

Releasing Tension

Allow compassion to surround & support you in this practice as you imagine being encircled by the most loving beings you have ever met or  or can imagine.

Circle of Love

This brief guided practice will assist you in feeling your breath as you begin to notice the tendencies of the mind- returning to the breath over and over again. 

Experiencing the Breath

Using the breath to become aware of habitual reactions of mind and body when faced with a stressful situation.  Our body is constantly sending us messages- information in the form of sensations, thoughts or feelings.  Accept what is there with kindness.

Reactions

Parents can be so rushed getting everyone out the door in the morning that they can miss an opportunity to connect with their children. Try creating a new habit: embracing, aligning your nervous systems & taking 3 slow-deep-breaths together, before anyone heads out the door.

Leaving Connected-Mindful 3 Breaths

We can be mindful and present during the mundane morning rituals of our day.  Try this "brushing practice" to become a touch more aware of yourself and your thoughts while you are cleaning your pearly-whites. 

Brushing Mindfully

This session is designed to help you become aware of the clouds in your mind- through the subtle movements of the breath- Notice them, with curiosity and let them float on by without judgment. 

Cloudy Mind

Reset your nervous system, with a smile. This practice invites the body to awaken with a smile in your heart-filling it with lightness, creating ease as you become aware of your breath. 

Smile

Because it is so common to get distracted when we start a mindfulness practice, it can be beneficial to use a way to note & count the breath as a stabilizing support. See if this practice invites more ease to your body and mind. 

Note & Count Your Breath

Notice how you can be aware, conscious & attentive to the feeling of your breath. You don’t have to control the actual breath, but awareness will go where you direct it.  Use this practice to learn to trust your breath. 

Trust the Breath

Enjoy this practice of being aware of how interconnect we all are.  As alone and cut off as we sometimes feel, the truth of our existence is that we are all interconnected. None of us really lives apart and independent. 

Interconnectedness

The practice of gratitude is a powerful way to bring more happiness, well-being and resilience into our lives.  It’s done by using thinking to generate a positive mind state, then dwelling in the effects of that positive mind state. Give it a try!

Gratitude

We greet the breath with awareness and interest- the way we might see a friend in a crowd. We don’t have to shove aside everybody else. Our energy, our enthusiasm and our sense of connection is going towards that friend. In just that way, we pay attention to the breath.  

The Breath

Becoming still and quiet can allow us to notice that awareness is right here- Pablo Neruda said it eloquently in his poem, "Keeping Quiet"... Breathe as I count to twelve.

Keeping Quiet

A helpful practice in coping during difficult experiences & situations: RAIN: Recognize, Allow, Investigate, Non-identification.

Rain

Settle in with this relaxing practice to find balance between your breath, body and mind- checking in, beginning again, again. 

Beginning Again

Butterfly

Good Luck Bad Luck

Happiness

Starfish

Weight of Water

This 3 minute-mindfulness practice invites you to tune into your body just as it is in this very moment. Awakening to all your senses and noticing your environment. 

Tuning into Sitting

Mindfulness of breathing happens when we tune in to whatever we find when we sit and allow our body to breathe just as it is. Exploring sensations calling out and pulling our attention as we find breath in our bodies and following it just like waves on a beach- gently rolling in and out.

Body Breathing

Imagine your initial broad awareness followed by a reducing of focus, then expanding once again -in the shape of an hourglass. This practice can be incorporated into the busyness of your day to provide a feeling of being balanced and centered. 

3 Step Breathing Space

Inspired by Jack Kornfield, this visualization will bring you through your bathroom mirror to recognize your playful spirit and unlimited potential and talents within. Shift into compassion to find love for yourself, trust for yourself and truly know yourself. 

Stepping Through the Mirror

Making resolutions & setting goals are  tricky at times.  We can play games, bargain and blame others as we make excuses for our lack of progress. Have you ever done that? Sometimes there is an awakening that happens -causing us to see clearly what is blocking our success.

Yoga Resolution

This ancient tale illustrates how how similar we experience sorrow and loss with the understanding that life and death are a part of being human. 

Grief & the Mustard Seed

This tale of unknown origin describes two wolves within a warrior that are in constant battle. Is it possible you have two wolves within you?

Two Wolves

This tale of comparing the jungle where courage, tenacity and belief in one's self bring results.

Marsha's Elephant

A tale of caution in holding on to possessions that appear desirable but fail to meet our greater needs in the end.

Happy Monkey

When there is a willingness to open the heart to what we have been closed to - it is courageous. Begin to forge a new relationship from the heart with yourself and with others.

Courage

By sensing the vitality in the body one can notice that the breath has a strength all its own. Using imagery, becoming aware of this strength & energy in the body can be extremely beneficial. 

Strength

The commute home from work can take a turn at any moment.  Knowing the right treatment is one thing, embodying that is another. 

The Right Treatment

A tear can hold much meaning when it comes from the ones we love. This story is for those of us struggling to find balance with all we find important in our everyday lives.

My Wish

Cultivating JOY is an essential skill that we all posses, but tend to forget about.  Use this practice to get in touch with the felt sense of joy in your body through the sensations of well-being. 

A tale inspired by the 13th century Persian poet and philosopher, Rumi. This wise and worldly story may invoke modern day philosophical questions about love, possession & freedom.

Merchant & the Parrot

Settling into the present moment, softening the body and slowing the breath is a skill that deserves practice. I invite you to notice the subtle shift after completing this settling of breath.

Settling into Presence

A story of genuine love & respect for your purpose-whatever that may be at the moment. Find out by asking the question, does this serve and honor me?

Honor the Body with Cake

The wise mind is suspended between reasonable mind and emotional mind- learn to find a sense of calm and awareness and chose to rest here in this place of inner wisdom- of wise mind.

Wisdom

The process of creating is one that can be allusive to many, yet we are constantly creating in our lives weather it's a fine meal, a story or an adventure.  This story my bring light to maintaining the flow of creativity in your own life. 

Creativity

This guided visualization is designed to help you release the build up of energy and stress in your body. This could be the most effortless cleanse you have ever had and it could prepare you to receive just what you need.

Energy Cleanse

A project in the rain forests is developed only to take an interesting turn.  Maybe there is a lesson in it for you. 

The Amazon Project

Few letters are timeless with meaning, encouragement and truth.  This is one of practical, rational advice- inviting the present moment with open palms. 

Letter from Grandma

What small thing could you do this holiday season to fulfill the wish of another? Is there something you can give whole-heatedly? Let the Blue Santa encourage you to move in that direction.

Blue Santa

The top of the mountain is the destiny for a proud women seeking enlightenment. Is this type of journey is absolutely necessary? 

Woman Seeks Enlightenment

Black Elk can teach us to acknowledge the beauty and wisdom that surrounds us in our sacred space. 

Black Elk

This is a story about Proxima B, a newborn baby girl was simply named the letter B.

Proxima B

Final Cab Ride

This is a story about a beautiful young girl named Dawn who lives near an Old Woods.

East of the Sun and West of the Moon

This is a story about a nascent garden...

A Nascent Garden

The mythos of Sakyamuni and his direct relationship with the supporting ground beneath him, will allow for the natural calm and relaxation of the body-mind to emerge. 

Earth as Ally

This amours tail of poet and his love will slowly sooth you into slumber.  

Love's Existence

This brief guide to accepting and ultimately loving yourself is inspired by the words of Charlie Chaplin. May it be of benefit. 

As I Began to Love Myself

Coping with the anxiety and uneasiness of school closures is important. Here are some guidelines to encourage self-care during this time. 

School Is Closing?

A pandemic calls for social isolation but does not include emotional isolation. During these uncertain times allow these words to help open your heart.

Pandemic

This guided self-compassion break may be just what you need when suffering arises. 

Time for a Break

This legend has been said to have been shared around the campfire of Lake Superior by a chief of the Chippewa tribe in the 1800's explaining the continual developments of nature.

Shadow of the Moon

An Aboriginal tale of beauty and diversity providing an understanding for sprouting color and growth from the earth.

Why the Tribes Speak Different Tongues

This Roman myth of two brothers dates back to 753 BC. and depicts the founding of Rome.

Tracks by Dea Rivera