Meditation For Negative Self-Talk

Use this meditation to help release and quiet your negative self-talk, or when you need to recommit to speaking to yourself in a kind and helpful way.

Transcript

Go ahead and take your seat and sit comfortably.

Your feet can be flat on the ground with your hands resting on your thighs or you can be on a cushion seated cross-legged with your hands resting on your thighs.

And take an upright posture so you're alert but you're not uncomfortable.

And you can close your eyes or gaze softly downward a couple inches in front of you.

And take a couple moments here to settle into the space,

Into the room,

And notice any sounds you hear.

And relax your body.

Can lift your chest slightly so it's easier to breathe.

And you can tuck your chin and relax your shoulders down.

If during this practice you need to shift your position,

Feel free to do so mindfully.

And if you want to open your eyes,

Do so,

Then close them again and return to the meditation.

Begin by taking three long,

Slow,

Deep breaths.

Inhaling slowly and deeply through your nostrils.

Inhaling slowly and fully through your nostrils.

This sends a signal to your body to relax even more deeply.

Now return to your natural breathing.

There's no need to control it or regulate it in any way.

Just let it be natural and easy breath.

Feel your present experience.

Become aware of your body,

Your emotions,

Your doubts,

Your thoughts,

Whatever they are.

Even the sounds you hear as sound is never a barrier to meditation.

This is a practice to learn to welcome everything.

To resist nothing and expect nothing.

Bring your attention to the sensations of your natural breathing.

And notice the cool air as you inhale and the warmer breath as you exhale.

Now rest your attention on the pauses between the breaths.

Your breath might speed up or slow down.

Let it be natural,

Easy breath.

Now contemplate compassion.

See yourself and repeat the following phrase silently.

May I be free from suffering.

May I be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

Use this phrase as your anchor.

And if you notice you're distracted by a thought or a storyline,

A physical sensation,

A sound,

Simply refocus back to the phrase,

May I be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

It doesn't matter how many times you have to do this.

May I be free from suffering.

May I be free from suffering.

Now envision someone you love and extend this compassion to them.

May you be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

If you notice you're distracted by a thought or caught up in a thought,

You may be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

Label it thinking and come back to the phrase.

Now envision someone you feel neutral toward.

Maybe someone you see every day on the bus in line at the grocery store and extend compassion to them.

May you be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

Remember,

This is a practice to learn to welcome everything,

To resist nothing and expect nothing.

Now,

Envision someone who challenges you or who when you're around,

You feel less than in some way and extend compassion to them.

May you be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

May you be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

Now let your compassion expand beyond boundaries.

May all beings be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

May all beings be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

May all beings be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

Let go of the words now and rest in the feeling.

The feeling in your mind and in your body.

And it's possible you don't feel anything.

And if you don't feel anything,

Sit with this as well.

There's no right or wrong.

There's no good or bad.

You're welcoming your experience as it is.

Sitting in silence with your eyes so closed,

Consider the moments where you speak to yourself in an unkind,

Unhelpful and hurtful way.

Let interactions rouse this type of self-talk.

There's no need to judge.

Now extend compassion to yourself again with the phrase,

May I be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

And with your eyes so closed,

Take a few deeper breaths now.

And before opening your eyes,

Say to yourself silently,

I commit to speaking to myself in a kind and helpful way.

To be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

I commit to speaking to myself in a kind and helpful way.

To be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

I commit to speaking to myself in a kind and helpful way.

To be free from suffering and the root of suffering.

And when you're ready,

Slowly stretch out into the space and blink your eyes open and just notice the shapes and the colors around you.

And move back into activity slowly and mindfully.

Reviews

Metta meditation as a remedy for negative self-talk. I will be doing this meditation often.

Very well done. Thank you

A lovely meditation. This meditation definitely help stop the negative self talk.

I really liked it. It gave the healing I needed for my negative self talk to myself.

Ahhh, "the root of suffering" i never thought to add that part. Those days of suffering from negative and degrading self talk don't come often anymore, but when they do they are heavy and dark. I hope i can remember to use this gentle meditation when they arise again. Thank you so much💚

Beautifully done. Very helpful.

Excellent way to find stillness and find kindness and peace for oneself! Thank you!!! 🙏🏾

I like that one. Its a practice that I do often wile driving or waiting or just around a lot of people not out loud but to my self, I wish them happiness and freedom of suffering. Never have wished it upon myself tho, thank you

This is now in my Bookmarks. Very nice meditation. Compassion for others and yourself. Namaste.

I thoroughly enjoyed this meditation today...Namaste🙏🏽

My new mantra - thank you.

Very relaxing, a nice combination of a little instruction with pauses for silence. I will come back to this meditation.

Very helpful! Thank you!

I am free of suffering.