Stress Relief Meditation

In this 20-minute stress relief meditation, you’ll be guided through gentle breath awareness, a soothing body scan, and calming visualization techniques designed to release tension and restore a sense of ease. This practice activates your body’s natural relaxation response, helping you let go of overwhelm and reconnect with inner calm. Perfect for moments of stress or anxiety, this meditation invites you to pause, breathe, and find peace within.

Transcript

Welcome to today's meditation.

If you've been feeling the weight of the day or the pressures that life sometimes brings,

This is your time to set all of that aside.

Today we're going to find that place of relaxation and peace.

We'll be lowering our stress levels,

Easing tension in the body,

Soothing the nervous system,

Letting go of stressful thoughts and allowing our bodies to soften into a state of calm.

I'm Chibzo Kereke and I'm here to guide you through today's meditation.

We'll begin by focusing on the breath,

Then we'll move into a gentle breathing exercise to engage the body's natural relaxation response and then we'll slowly move through the body,

Releasing tension as we go.

By the end of this meditation you'll feel more at ease,

More grounded and ready to continue your day with a sense of peace and calm.

Let's begin by finding a comfortable position.

Don't worry about getting into any perfect posture,

I just want you to be as comfortable as possible.

Most people feel more relaxed by closing the eyes but feel free to open the eyes if that feels more relaxing to you.

For some of us,

Particularly those who have suffered from chronic stress,

The nervous system can sometimes go into high alert when we close the eyes and our mind can get even busier.

So feel free to crack open the eyes slightly to let some light in if thoughts or emotions become too uncomfortable.

If we are keeping the eyes open,

Just make sure that we have a soft gaze,

A soft focus.

We're also welcome to lie down if we want to and if we're feeling sleepy or tired and we have something to do later,

We might want to set an alarm,

Just in case you get so relaxed you fall asleep.

Otherwise,

Just lay back and enjoy.

Okay,

Let's begin.

I invite you now to bring awareness to the breath,

Noticing your inhale,

Noticing your exhale.

Perhaps we can feel the cool air coming in through the nostrils as we breathe in,

As the lungs,

The chest,

The stomach expand.

Then we might notice a short pause as the breath changes direction,

As the body softens and relaxes and the warm air leaves the nostrils and the body sinks deeper into the chair or into the bed.

We breathe in and the body expands and we breathe out as the body softens and relaxes and sinks deeper.

When stress starts to creep in,

Whether it's stressful thinking,

Physical tension or uncomfortable emotions,

A common tendency is for us to have a rapid,

Shallow breath.

But when we slow down our breath,

When we control the breath and deepen the breath,

We allow the body's natural relaxation response to kick in.

There's a simple practice we can use to bring ourselves back to feelings of calm and safety.

So now,

The next minute or so,

I invite you to do some balanced breathing.

Now a good way of doing this is to do a little count inside our mind,

Making sure that our inhale count is the same as our exhale count.

So why don't we do some balanced breathing together.

Let's breathe in for a count of five and breathe out for a count of five.

You can follow my count for a few breaths and then you can continue doing some more at your own pace.

Okay,

Let's breathe in,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Breathing out,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Breathing in,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Breathing out,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Breathing in,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Breathing out,

Two,

Three,

Four,

Five.

Now it's up to you what you count to,

Whatever's comfortable.

So you can reduce the count to four or increase the count to six and there's no need to be precise.

And if you like,

You can drop the counting completely and just breathe slowly in and slowly out.

So let me be quiet for a few moments so we can do this by ourselves.

And we might already be feeling changes as we settle into this relaxing practice of slowing down the breath.

We might start to feel a sense of warmth or tingling sensation spreading through the body or perhaps a gentle release of tension.

These are signs that your body is beginning to relax and let go of stress.

And now,

Whenever we're ready,

We can allow our breathing to return to its natural rhythm.

And now we're going to shift into a second way of relaxing and move into the progressive relaxation section of the meditation.

We're going to be slowly moving our awareness through the body,

Relaxing each part as we go and releasing tension wherever we find it.

I invite you now to follow my instructions.

Let's begin by relaxing the feet.

Relaxing the feet.

Relaxing the ankles.

Relaxing the lower legs,

The shins,

The calves.

Relaxing the knees.

Relaxing the upper legs,

The thighs,

The hamstrings.

Relaxing the entire legs,

Both legs.

Perhaps we might be noticing nice feelings of warmth or tingles or pulses moving into the area that we're relaxing.

Relaxing the hips.

Keeping the breathing relaxed as we do so.

Relaxing the lower back.

Relaxing the middle of the back.

Relaxing the upper back,

The shoulder blades.

Relaxing the spine.

Relaxing the entire back.

Perhaps we're noticing feelings of relaxation spreading through the body,

Maybe feelings of warmth or vibrations or tingles.

Moving our awareness around to the belly,

Relaxing the belly.

Perhaps we can feel the belly rising on the inhale,

Softening and relaxing on the exhale.

Relaxing the chest.

Relaxing the ribcage.

Relaxing everything inside the ribcage.

Moving our awareness to the shoulders and relaxing both shoulders.

Relaxing the arms.

The upper arms,

The elbows.

The forearms,

The wrists.

Relaxing the hands.

And moving our awareness to the neck and the throat.

Relaxing the neck and the throat.

Relaxing the back of the head.

Relaxing the jaw.

The cheeks.

Relaxing the tongue inside the mouth.

Relaxing the eyes,

The eyelids.

Relaxing the temples.

The forehead.

Relaxing the entire face.

Relaxing the top of the head.

And now I invite you to expand your awareness,

To include the whole body from the top of the head to the tips of the fingers and tips of the toes.

Noticing all of those feelings of relaxation that have spread across the body,

The tingles,

The warmth,

The pulses,

The vibrations.

The stiller we become,

The more we can feel this alive body,

The more we can feel the subtle shifts,

The stress releasing.

There's lots going on inside the body.

When we're feeling stressed or anxious,

We're so often in our heads,

We just don't pay attention to how the body feels.

We're letting go.

Letting go of stress,

Letting go of tension,

Allowing our body to find its balance.

As we're remaining alert,

Awake,

Present,

As our body and our mind become increasingly relaxed and centered and peaceful.

The stress leaves the body,

The breath slowing down,

The body relaxing,

The mind calming.

And as this practice comes to an end,

Knowing that you can come back here again,

This place of relaxation and peace and safety.

Notice what the body feels like and notice what the mind feels like.

Hopefully we're feeling a little less stressed and a little more calm and peaceful.

But even if we're not feeling more relaxed,

It could be one of those really difficult days and we might notice that we've even more stress in the mind and body.

But that's okay too.

By acknowledging how we're feeling,

We're creating space to give ourselves some extra care and compassion.

So if you're feeling a bit stressed,

Sad,

Anxious or overwhelmed,

Allow yourself to take it easy today.

Try and find something soothing or relaxing to do.

And remember,

The hard tasks can always wait until tomorrow.

Stress is a part of life,

But it's helpful to remember that much of it comes down to how we perceive things.

Sometimes we get so caught up in our worries and responsibilities that everything starts to feel overwhelming.

But if we take a step back,

We can sometimes realize that not everything needs to be taken so seriously.

Now,

Of course,

Some challenges are significant and we can't always make light of them.

But we can practice easing our grip on the smaller things,

The everyday stresses that don't need to weigh us down as much as they do.

This meditation is a step toward that shift.

We're not dismissing our stress or pretending it doesn't exist,

But we're simply inviting ourselves to see things with a little more softness,

A little more lightness.

In time,

This practice helps us approach life with more ease and flexibility,

And even on the days when it feels difficult,

It's still a step in the right direction.

And keeping our eyes closed,

I invite you to tune in to any changes in the body and mind.

What's different now to the start of the meditation?

Maybe you're feeling more relaxed,

Or perhaps there's a sense of lightness or openness in the chest and maybe the mind feels a bit more spacious.

Perhaps you notice a growing sense of safety and calm within the body.

And take a moment to notice whether this practice has left you feeling relaxed or more energized.

If you feel energized,

This might be a great practice to do in the morning to set a positive tone for the day.

If it feels more soothing,

It could be ideal to use at night to help wind down from a stressful day.

I invite you now to bring awareness to sounds.

Sounds inside the room,

Sounds outside the room.

We can gently wiggle our fingers and toes.

And shortly the meditation will come to an end,

But you're welcome to rest in silence for as long as you like.

And whenever you're ready,

You can gently crack open the eyes and come back to the room.

And remember,

Whenever we notice stressful thoughts or tension in the body arising,

The breath is always there for us.

We can always come back to this place of rest and relaxation,

A place of calm and safety in the present moment.

Have a wonderful day,

Or if you're listening to this before bed,

Sweet dreams.

Reviews

wonderful , thank you !

This felt like a gentle warm hug, and just what i needed today🙏🏻 thank you so much for this moment in time with you ✨

Thank you, really relaxing and wonderful meditation 🙏🏼☮️

Thank you 🙏

Excellent practice for any time of the day, I’ll definitely listen again, so smooth, gentle and relaxing ☺️ thank you so much 😊