Anxiety & Stress Relief Guided Meditation

Stuck in a rut of anxiety, stress, and worry? This loving and inspiring meditation will help you shift your perspective and feel better. Note: If this is your first time listening, please listen to the short introduction at: https://insighttimer.com/natalieevemarquis/guided-meditations/anxiety-and-stress-relief-introduction

Transcript

To begin,

Take several long,

Slow,

Deep breaths.

And as you do,

Allow your body to sink into the surface you are sitting or lying on.

Just allow the chair,

Sofa,

Or bed to fully support you.

Become aware of any tension in your body and just let it all drain away.

Breathe in one long,

Slow,

Deep breath and exhale one long,

Slow breath,

Allowing yourself to sink into a comfortable state of relaxation.

Doesn't it feel so good to relax and let go?

Now bring your awareness to your mind and the thoughts you are thinking.

If you're like most of us,

You'll notice that your mind is always busy,

Always thinking.

That's what the mind does.

But for now,

Just be aware of the thoughts and what your mind is thinking about today.

Whatever you're thinking is okay for now.

You might notice how what you're thinking creates emotions.

Notice how you are feeling emotionally.

Whatever you're feeling is okay for now.

Next,

You might notice how your body feels in response to what you are currently thinking and feeling.

Notice the sensations in your body and know however you feel is okay for now.

So now bring your awareness back to your thoughts and this time bring to mind one of the things you worry about quite a lot.

Allow yourself to think that worrisome thought for a moment or two.

Notice how your body feels when you think that thought.

You've probably already spent quite a bit of time worrying about all the what ifs and what could go wrong.

But now I want you to stop thinking for a moment.

Instead of worrying what if this goes wrong,

Ask yourself this miraculous question.

What if it were better?

That's right.

What if it were better?

What would a better experience look and feel like?

And imagine that now.

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how does this make you feel?

And now that you've imagined that better experience,

I invite you to ponder what an even better experience would look and feel like.

So imagine that now.

What would even better be like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see and notice?

What do you hear?

And how does this make you feel?

And what if something really amazing happened?

Something that was even better than this?

What would that experience look and feel like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how does this make you feel?

And what if this amazing,

Even better experience released a new gift or talent in you?

What might that new talent or gift be?

And how would that make you feel?

And what if you broke all records and became the first to fill in that blank became the first to what?

What might that be?

What would it feel like to break all the records and be the first?

How does that make you feel?

And what if something even better than all of these combined experiences happened?

What would that look like?

What would you be doing?

What do you notice?

And how does it make you feel?

Doesn't thinking like this feel really good?

Now once again,

Bring your awareness back to your feelings and back into your body.

Become aware of your feelings and aware of the sensations in your body.

Notice how your energy has shifted.

Do you feel lighter,

More relaxed,

Perhaps even a little more optimistic?

And isn't that fabulous?

Now what was one other worrisome thought you had?

Bring it to mind and ask yourself,

What if it were even better?

What would better look and feel like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how do you feel?

And now that you've imagined that,

I invite you to ponder what even better would look and feel like.

What would an even better experience look and feel like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how does it make you feel?

And what if something really amazing happened that was even better than all of this?

What would that look and feel like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how does it make you feel?

And what if this experience released a new gift or talent in you?

What might that be?

How would it make you feel?

And what if you broke all records and became the first to fill in the blank?

What might that be?

If you became the first and broke all the records,

How does being the first make you feel?

And what if something even better than all of these combined experiences happened?

What would that look like?

What would you be doing?

What do you see or notice?

What do you hear?

And how does it make you feel?

Very good.

You've done a great job.

Now as you practice this exercise over and over,

You are retraining your brain to seek and be open to new empowering possibilities.

This is because the brain has a reticular activating system which acts as a gatekeeper and a filter.

The reticular activating system takes what you focus on and creates a filter for it.

It then sifts through all the existing and incoming data and presents only the pieces of information that are aligned with that filter.

The what if it were better question creates a new filter.

This new filter seeks out and helps you find positive possibilities and solutions which is way more helpful than worrying,

Isn't it?

And now I invite you to slowly become aware of your breath again.

Just be aware of breathing in and out.

You might begin to wiggle your fingers and toes a bit.

Take a big stretch.

And when you're ready,

Open your eyes and begin your best day ever.

Reviews

This made me feel so good. I hope to do this meditation more regularly

This meditation is my fav one ever on this app! It makes my heart feel so filled with love and joy. Thank you so much for this amazing meditation!

Thank you for holding space for me to see what if things gets better because, you know what? Well they might! It's so obvious yet I have been dwelling unconsciously into negative thoughts for days if not weeks. Great reflexion and soothing meditation! Thank you 🙏

Wow! What a great way to relax. This really made me feel at ease. 🙏🏻💕

I find meditation so far very helpful for therapy for epilepsy and art I would highlyrecommend

I loved this mediation. Breaking the worry cycle by shifting to positive what ifs really helped. I will listen again and continue to practice this approach. Thank you!

Love this meditation.

This really helped shift my mindset from negative and worried to positive and hopeful about the future. Thank you!

This is perfect for anyone who is suffering from annexity. Really helps. Key question "What if it was better?"

Utilissimo. Rilassante. Mi sento meglio

Very positive. Thank you

What an experience!

Wonderful! As a chronic worrier, I never thought to look at my fears in a positive manor. This has been helpful! Thank you so much for creating this meditation!

This is an excellent, eye-opening meditation on how our minds can hijack our sense of well-being and how to stop habitual, negative thought patterns. Thank you. I will listen again. 🙂

Very helpful! Thanks!

Found a new one to add to my bookmarks! Thanks🙏

Really helped release all that negativity and shift to positive energy, thank you so much 🙏🏽

I have been in a bad worry cycle with work. This helped so much!!

Of the hundreds of mediations which I've listened to over 3 + years utilizing Insight Timer, this one is arguably the most helpful of them all. People truly need this type of calming and rational meditation to help all who suffer from anxiety and the many stressors of life. I am impressed and very grateful for what you do.

Blessings to you and your many followers.