Release Anxiety and Stress

This meditation helps you connect to the rythm of your breath to gently relax and release tension in your mind and body.

It helps you form a new habit of letting go. So when you feel stress, anxiety or tension coming on, you can relax into your breath. Simply by learning how to tune into your own body, the impact of this meditation is felt well after the meditation is completed.

A simple but powerful mindfulness of breath meditation with gentle waves in the background.

Transcript

At the sound of the bell,

Simply begin by closing your eyes.

And if it helps,

Place your hand on your abdomen or chest so that you can feel the physical sensation of breathing.

And just begin by taking three slow,

Long,

Deep breaths.

Regulating the breath just slightly so that you breathe long and deep.

And feel the breath going all the way down into the abdomen,

Filling the abdomen completely.

And then just let the breath go.

Allow the breath to be released with ease.

So three slow,

Long,

Deep breaths.

And as you breathe,

Feel the body slowing down naturally.

And then after that third breath,

Just allow the body to breathe of its own accord.

Let the body find its own rhythm.

And just let that breath flow effortlessly.

There's no need to control the breath,

To question if the breath is right or wrong.

Let the body breathe all the time without any intervention.

Here we want to train the mind just to let go,

To relinquish control.

So simply tune into the body by watching,

Observing this simple process of breathing.

Just let it happen.

Allow yourself to let go and enjoy the feeling,

This natural sense of ease of simply being with every breath.

Every breath you take,

Follow this process with your mind.

So observe every breath as it flows in and then out of your body.

And use the power of your mind to be 100% with each breath.

Just feel the body breathing without control.

But instead just feel the breath.

Be with each breath.

Tune into your body for a change and just pay attention to the process of breathing.

And feel the body slowing down,

Slowing down more and more with every breath that you take.

And as you look closely at every breath,

Observe the natural sensations and natural movements that are created in your body as you breathe.

You don't have to make anything happen.

Instead just stand back and observe what sensations,

What movements naturally arise in your body as you breathe.

Do you feel the wind of your breath around your nostrils?

Is there a sense of coolness,

Perhaps heat?

Maybe a tingling?

Do you feel perspiration?

What sensations naturally happen?

What do you feel in the body as you breathe?

What movements are created?

Watch closely with this mind.

With each breath just notice,

Pay close attention.

Do you feel the nostrils flare?

The abdomen,

Chest rising and falling with every breath?

And with the mind to each of these sensations,

Each of these movements.

And notice how each breath is just a little bit different.

And remember if the mind begins to wander,

That's okay.

This is the way the mind habitually works.

This is the way we have trained it to kinder wander off on us.

It takes off on you.

So you may get distracted by a sound,

A sensation in the body like an itch or a pain,

Or perhaps a thought that's created in your mind.

All of these are simply distractions.

The important thing here is to be aware,

To catch your mind when it wanders off.

Then acknowledge.

Whatever that distraction is,

Simply notice it,

Acknowledge it.

There's no need to fight against it.

Simply say,

Ah yes,

The mind has wandered over here.

And then decide every time to bring the mind back to the breath,

Each and every time.

Be persistent with this mind,

Very gentle,

But very,

Very persistent.

Bring it back every time.

And remember,

You are making progress.

Your mind wanders around in circles all day long,

Out of control.

Here we train the mind,

Discipline the mind,

Create a strong mind,

A powerful mind.

So it doesn't matter if the mind wanders a hundred times.

What's important is that we bring the mind back every time to the object of meditation,

In this case the breath.

Always coming back to focus 100% on the breath,

Laser focused mind,

Watching every breath,

Experiencing it,

Feeling it,

Being with it,

Getting to know it in this new way.

So be gentle,

At ease with yourself,

But vigilant with this mind,

Persistent every time,

Coming back to the breath when the mind wanders away.

And again,

Allow yourself to feel this great sense of ease as your body just takes in the breath and then lets it go,

Releasing.

So keep the mind alert,

Attentive,

Pay close attention to these sensations,

Movements created in the body as you breathe.

And really use your breath to feel this deep sense of relaxation.

There may be areas where you feel a bit tight or constricted in the body,

Maybe your neck,

Your back,

Your shoulders.

So the next time you breathe in,

Imagine that you're breathing into this area of the body,

The area of the body where you feel a bit of uncomfortableness.

Simply breathe into that area,

Giving it space,

Giving it oxygen.

And as you breathe out,

Imagine you are releasing all of the tension in this area,

Just letting it go with the out-breath.

So as you exhale,

It's like you surrender your muscles to gravity.

As the breath is released,

Feel that area soften,

Feel all the excess tension in the body being released every time you breathe out.

So use this breath to release tension,

Tension that you feel in the mind and the body.

Breathe into this area.

Imagine the breath naturally dispersing,

Cleansing this area,

Freeing it from any tension,

Agitation,

Pain.

And then as the breath leaves the body,

Feel that area becoming lighter and more relaxed.

Let the tightness of your body melt away with every exhalation.

Each out-breath is like a little gentle gust of wind that blows away any tension in the mind or the body.

The wind gently sweeps away any tension,

Stiffness,

Tightness or pressures that you feel in the body and any stress or busyness in the mind.

And all that is left within you is this overwhelming feeling of ease,

The sense of ease and deep relaxation.

Now bring your awareness especially to the area of your face and begin to notice the muscles around the chin,

Mouth,

Jaw,

Forehead.

These areas are often tight.

So feel these areas one by one loosening up,

Softening every time you breathe out.

Feel that deep sense of relaxation in these areas,

A sense of spaciousness,

Openness and feel those muscles in your face soft and relaxed.

Breathe all the tension out.

Let it go with the out-breath.

And actually feel it leaving your body.

Again,

Like this little gentle gust of wind,

It just blows the tension away and you feel it,

You release it completely.

Feel that releasing within the body.

Let it go.

No,

You don't need it anymore.

Don't try to grasp on.

Let it go.

Release.

And I will leave you in silence for several minutes on your own.

During this time,

Keep your mind very alert,

Attentive to the process of breathing,

But also allow yourself to feel this great sense of ease,

Deep relaxation and feel the physical sensation of releasing,

Releasing tension,

Agitation,

Activity in the mind and the body every time you breathe out.

It's almost like that feeling when you're fading off to sleep,

The body just naturally releases all tension,

All mental activity and physical pressure just are released.

You feel the mind and body completely letting go,

Except here we pay careful attention to the breath.

So you keep this mind very alert,

Attentive mind,

Strong mind,

Catching the mind every time it wanders away,

Always bringing it back to the process of breathing.

And just let the sound of the waves gently guide you in following your breath.

Allow your breath to naturally follow the sound of the waves and just allow yourself to lightly take in any words that you hear as if they're just dropping into the back of your mind.

Remember you don't have to try to do anything.

You simply need to be and enjoy the ease of following your breath and feel that physical sensation of releasing every time you breathe out,

Just letting go.

I am willing to let go.

I release all tension.

I wake up every morning feeling refreshed and renewed.

I release all fear.

I am willing to let go.

I let go with ease.

I let go.

I let go.

I let go.

I let go.

I let go.

I let go.

I release all tension.

I release all fear.

I am willing to let go.

Every night I experience restful and rejuvenating sleep.

I wake up every morning feeling refreshed and renewed.

I let go with ease.

I let go.

I fall asleep quickly every night.

I naturally sleep in peace and wake in joy.

It is easy for me to sleep through the night.

I sleep like a baby.

And in a moment I will ring the bell three times and you can rise from the meditation.

But it's important that you do this in your own time.

Only open your eyes when you feel ready to do so.

Reviews

Thank you Julie, for this deep and beautiful practice which is a real re-set at a difficult time. Namaste

Love this meditation for anxiety and stress thank you

Being somewhat hard of hearing I am always looking for guided meditations that are clear and articulate with background sounds that don’t detract from the speaker’s voice. Yours is the best I have heard.

Beautifully done. Good for a morning meditation too as well as for before sleeping

Fantastic! I've been lax in my meditation practice and had a very short time to unwind. This was perfect!

Thankyou this Meditation is helping me to relax and feel better in my self:-)

Very well relaxed after this session. I will do it again

Amazingly well guided meditation! I'll do it again. Thank you, Julie!