Do not listen to this recording whilst driving or operating machinery.
Now I'd like you to sit or lie comfortably and just close your eyes gently.
As you do so I would like you to slow down your breathing.
Breathing in deeply and out.
And another breath in and out.
And as you continue to breathe in deeply and breathe out deeply,
You'll notice how your body starts to relax,
You feel safe.
And as you gently release any stress from the day or the week you also thank your body for all that it does for you behind the scenes.
All the bones and muscles and glands and organs all doing so much for you all the time.
And these few moments are a way for you to say thank you.
Doesn't that feel great?
And as you relax your body more and more your mind also gently starts to relax.
Any thoughts that come up just move them aside and ask them to come back later if necessary.
Now is the time just to relax.
So any thoughts you can just ask them to move to the side and just relax deeper.
You now find yourself in a beautiful open field on a summer's day.
A gentle breeze is in the air and as you look up to the blue sky you see tiny cotton clouds just drifting playfully across the sky.
What a lovely beautiful perfect day that reminds you of summer days when you were a child.
Free of all worries you just went through the world,
The world was your oyster.
As you take off your shoes and socks now I want you to start walking gently on this wonderful soft surface.
Looking at the flowers and listening to the birds.
Perhaps you can hear children giggling in the distance.
And as you walk gently on this wonderful day you feel so free.
You feel so you and it's absolutely wonderful.
As you're walking you notice a low fence surrounding this area and on the other side of the fence you can see some colors just bobbing in the distance.
You're not sure if it's large flowers or what it might be but you want to go and find out.
As you go up to the fence you open the door and the gate and you go through the gate closing it carefully behind you and hearing that click.
On the other side of this fence there are more trees.
It's like a gentle little forest area.
You can hear a stream trickling in the distance but you walk towards the color that you saw just a few moments ago to find out more.
As you walk through this beautiful slightly cooler place now with the security of the trees and that cozy lovely summer feeling.
You walk through the trees and at some point you come out to a small area where the sun is peeping through and there's a lovely little bench just waiting for you.
And attached to that bench you see what it was that you noticed from a distance all those colors and it's a bunch of beautiful balloons.
What an extraordinary thing to find in the countryside.
Each balloon has been loosely attached to the back of the bench and on the bench seat as you sit down with awe in your face and in your eyes you notice a pencil and some pieces of paper.
Isn't life amazing?
As you sit there you know what needs to be done.
You pick up a piece of paper and a pencil and on the first piece of paper you write down one thing that has been causing you stress or anxiety in the last week or the last day.
You quickly write down what that was or the name of the person.
You fold it up into four and you tie it to one of the balloons and release it into the sky.
As that beautiful colored balloon lifts up into the sky you watch it taking that stress with it.
What a beautiful release and what a beautiful sight.
You watch how something that caused you stress now looks so beautiful as it disappears over the trees into the distance.
And now perhaps you take another piece of paper and write another thing that has been weighing you down.
Go on write it down.
Now again fold up the paper,
Attach it to the string of the next balloon,
Take the balloon off the back of that bench and release it into the sky again.
What another beautiful moment.
Watch it go up and up and perhaps you have another one and another.
And perhaps you have no more areas anymore that are weighing you down but you still have a few balloons there.
Wouldn't you love to see them flying through the sky?
Take the rest of the balloons into your hand and with each one that you now release send gratitude out there for a person in your life or for yourself and for something that you've achieved.
Feel the joy and happiness in this moment as you're releasing not only things that weighed you down but wonderful wishes you release them into the air.
Wishes for yourself,
Wishes for other people,
Gratitude,
Dreams.
Be creative and watch those balloons flying now joyously through the sky.
What a wonderful special moment.
And as you sit there now looking up at the beautiful sky filled with your balloons you wonder what the little children might be thinking who look up now and see all those balloons in the sky.
And there is a moment of consciousness as you look at those balloons and you realize that it was your choice to release what was holding you down and stressing you and it was your choice to release those dreams and wishes for others and for yourself.
What a wonderful choice to have and what a wonderful choice to have.
To make for yourself.
As you sit in this very very special spot you realize how much of your life is down to choice and no matter what may be going on around you on the outside,
At home,
In the workplace,
In the media you decide what goes on within.
And this very special spot that you are in today you can come back to any time you like.
Nobody has to know you're here.
Isn't that wonderful?
And as you sit so happily on this lovely bench now feel the joy inside of you rising.
The excitement has space to feel and move.
And all those stressful situations that have perhaps caused you anxiety have now been released into the air and have left so much more room to breathe now.
Do you notice that?
You just feel much freer,
Much more yourself.
Wouldn't it be wonderful to feel like this more of the time?
Do you hear the leaves rustling and the birds twittering away?
The sun gently now on your face and on your arms and your feet.
You smell a waft of lovely flowers and roses and very far in the distance you can hear a tractor.
What a wonderful moment of peace.
And now after a few moments and the last balloon can be seen in the distance.
What a special moment you have had.
What a special experience.
What a special creation.
But it's time now to get up and walk back to where you started from.
So in your own time I'd like you just to pick up that pencil and any spare paper that might be there and pop it in your pocket.
And now just start to walk back through that little foresty area.
That cozy safe foresty area,
How lovely.
And as you walk towards that gate,
You open it again with that loud click,
Closing it safely behind you as you now go back into the field from which you came.
You walk back now feeling so much lighter than before,
Lighter and freer,
Excited about the next day and excited about the things that are going to come up in that day,
The surprises,
The wonderful surprises.
And as you walk back to the place from which you began,
You ask yourself,
How many colours will you see today that will remind you of your beautiful balloons and they will remind you of the choice you made to release some of the weight and you released wonderful wishes into the air.
How great that felt and you can do it any time you like in your heart.
And now you sit down at the space where you found yourself at the beginning of this journey,
Looking up at that beautiful blue sky with those fluffy little clouds scattered here and there.
And you relax.
And you start breathing now a little bit deeper and perhaps a little bit quicker too.
As you come back slowly and gently becoming aware of your body and moving your toes and fingers again,
Perhaps moving your head gently from side to side.
And when the time is right,
Please open your eyes and welcome yourself back into the room,
The seat or the lying position you were in and back into a wonderful,
Wonderful time.
