Let Go Of Perfectionism & Anxiety | Sleep Meditation

During my work, I regularly encounter people who suffer from perfectionism and its symptoms. This inspired me to write this session. Another source of inspiration are the books of Brenee Brown, who explains all the sides and downsides of perfectionism and encourages us to embrace our imperfections.
I am happy to join her in that. Imperfections are beautiful and they make us human. By fully accepting the wonderfulness of imperfection, you experience so much more happiness and space. You worry less and enjoy life more.

I wish you to allow yourself imperfections.and fully embrace these. That you are aware of how much everyone around you loves you - just the way you are ---- and finally that you sleep well.

Royalty-free music by Chris Collins

Transcript

Never listen to recordings like these while driving or using machinery.

Only listen in a safe environment.

Welcome to this guided session I have designed especially for you,

To let go of perfectionism,

So that you can find peace within.

Perhaps you sometimes feel the pressure to do things perfectly,

Or the urge to constantly improve yourself,

Or to live up to high expectations of others or of yourself.

But today,

Starting right here and now,

You can free yourself from that kind of worry.

Perfectionism can feel like pressure,

Because you're always striving for the highest possible score,

And you're always doing your best,

And it seems like your own switch-off button is gone,

Out of reach or out of sight,

As if you have to keep performing.

But the simple truth is that you are enough,

Just as you are.

In this session,

You will be guided step by step into deep relaxation,

To a state where you create space for gentleness,

Self-acceptance and inner peace,

And finally shed the burden of perfection,

And explore,

On both a conscious and subconscious level,

What you can let go of,

In order to experience more perspective,

Reality and peace.

Hello,

My name is Paola Pissou,

And in my daily work I've met and worked with people who struggle with perfectionism,

And all the thought and action patterns that come with it.

This touched me and inspired me to write this guided meditation,

In which you will reach a state of deep relaxation,

Simply by using techniques to help you relax on a deep level,

A level where your subconscious mind is open to receive all the positive suggestions,

But only if you choose to,

If you open up and cooperate with me,

So to speak.

And you can consider my voice to be yours.

In this way we are companions for a short while,

And I take it as a great compliment to be your guide during this session.

During this guided journey you will reflect.

Reflect on your tendency towards perfectionism with the aim of letting go.

To let go of what is hindering or blocking you,

What prevents you from reacting spontaneously to different situations.

As I said,

This meditative journey is full of positive suggestions and reflections,

With the aim and purpose of looking at yourself with more self-love and realism,

Reducing your perfectionism and all the phenomena associated with it.

While you rest comfortably,

I guide you through relaxation techniques that you can follow effortlessly,

As well as visualizations to help you let go of control,

So that you can experience greater contentment and peace.

The day is over and there is nothing left to fix or to prove to anyone or anything.

Let this moment be an invitation to turn your focus inward and look at yourself without any judgement.

Lie down as comfortably as possible and let the day go by.

Take a few deep breaths in and a few powerful breaths out.

Let all tension melt away with each exhalation.

And as you begin to relax,

Your muscles begin to sink into rest.

Let's continue this journey of relaxation and release from the pressure of perfection.

You've just settled into this neutral,

Comfortable position.

And if you want to rearrange something,

Because you want to lie a little more to your liking,

Just do so.

The alarm clock is set and everything is ready for tomorrow,

So that when you wake up and start your day,

You can do so with ease.

Your eyes are open and you're looking at the ceiling.

Your feet are side by side and your hands are palms down on the mattress.

Take a deep breath through your nose all the way down to your belly.

Hold the breath there for two counts and exhale through your mouth with a deep sigh.

As you relax,

Go deeper and deeper.

Once again,

Inhale deeply through your nose all the way to your belly.

Hold it there for two counts and exhale through your mouth.

That's right,

You may already sense the relaxation in your body increasing.

Now,

One last time,

Inhale deeply through your nose.

Let your belly come up,

Hold it for two seconds and let it out through your mouth as you relax deeper and deeper.

I kindly invite you to return to your normal,

Natural breathing rhythm,

As you feel and sense for a moment how much more at ease you already are and aware of all the subtle changes.

You lie in this neutral,

Comfortable position while looking with your eyes wide open at the ceiling.

Choose a spot and stare at it in a gentle way.

Your feet still next to each other,

Uncrossed,

And your hands are still resting on the mattress,

Palms down,

While you are staring at the ceiling with your eyes wide open.

And I ask you to do something a little different this time.

See if you can do this without blinking your eyes while you keep your head still.

Please keep it completely still.

See if you can look at the very end of the ceiling behind you and keep staring without blinking your eyelids.

See how far you can get while you're staring as far behind you as you possibly can.

And you might feel the urge to blink growing.

Do you feel the desire to close your eyes because it's so much more comfortable and pleasant?

Well,

Do so.

Now close those heavy eyelids and as you close your eyes feel the blissful invitation to sink into comfort.

And notice how the relaxation spreads,

How it expands throughout your being while you sink deeper into the mattress ever more at ease.

Lying here with your eyes closed and probably you will want to keep them closed as the relaxation increases so much.

And we're going to increase this delightful feeling even more during this journey where you can let go of your perfectionism and fall asleep easily.

Now that you are lying so comfortably with your eyes closed,

Please relax all the small muscles around your eyes.

Just relax all the fine little muscles there around and behind your eyes so that they seem to sink further into their sockets.

All the small and fine muscles around your eyes.

Yeah,

Make them feel soft and gentle,

Friendly if you like,

Totally at ease.

And how enjoyable it is to lie here with your eyes closed.

And now that the area around your eyes is so completely relaxed it's technically impossible to open them,

They seem to be sealed.

You can test this not now but in a moment by slightly raising your eyebrow.

Just relax the area around your eyes completely.

Relax all the fine muscles.

And when you're completely sure they're relaxed you can raise your eyebrows and notice that when the area around your eyes is completely relaxed the eyes stay closed,

They stay shut.

And now that you're aware of that give yourself all the permission you can to go deeper.

All the way down and down.

Lower yourself even further into repose.

With your eyes still closed as the relaxation expands more and more.

All the way down.

Unwinding into rest.

Let it all go and then sink even deeper into the soft supportive surface you're lying on and melt away as never before.

And allow that during this journey,

This session,

My voice to be as if it were your voice,

Your inner voice,

The voice of someone you trust completely.

Or perhaps similar to the voice of a close friend or a trusted advisor with wisdom you've experienced before.

Just allow my voice to be your guide on this journey.

Just concentrate on it effortlessly.

And all the sounds you hear in and around you will only enhance your sense of deep relaxation and assist you in focusing,

In concentrating even more on all the wise and supportive words my voice is offering you.

Now I ask you to become aware of how your head is resting on the pillow.

Feel that your head makes contact with the fabric as you breathe calmly.

How pleasant and comfortable your head is lying there.

And feel so overwhelmingly good that you let your head sink even further into the pillow.

The soft pillow that supports and comforts you.

Feel your shoulders touching the mattress a little further down.

Notice where your shoulders make contact with the surface underneath.

Perhaps you feel the urge to spread your shoulders a little further apart to feel an even larger area.

That feels so good and relaxes you even more as you descend ever further into comfort.

Become aware of the whole area where your shoulders touch the mattress.

Breathe in and send your breath to the area around your shoulders.

And as you exhale feel that last little bit of tension there as you release it.

Take this moment to become aware of all this.

Feel where your buttocks are on the mattress.

Squeeze your muscles there for a moment and then relax.

Notice the relief that's now expanding in this area.

Feel where your bottom touches the mattress and become aware of every piece of fabric,

The soft sheet under your body,

Right there.

And while you sink further down the stiffness disappears.

And feel your whole body go into a slowly expanding relaxation.

Feel where your thighs are resting on the sheet and feel the soft fabric touching your legs.

You can feel the mattress underneath through the fabric.

Sense how this surface supports you.

Your legs get increasingly comfortable.

Your calves touch the fabric.

Feel which part of your lower legs are in contact with the surface underneath.

And feel your muscles unwinding there with each exhalation.

The calf muscles release tension and you sink deeper and even deeper into the mattress.

Now be aware of where your feet are touching the fabric.

And allow all the muscles in your feet to relax.

Release all the tension there whilst you breathe out.

Yes,

That's good.

Just knowing that your whole body has calmed down considerably,

I'm going to help you achieve even more physical relaxation.

Breathe in.

Feel how calm your body is right now.

Breathe out and go further,

All the way down.

Extend your relaxation.

Once again,

Inhale.

And notice how peaceful your body is right now.

Exhale.

Surrendering and letting go.

Expanding your relaxation.

You're now so comfortable and physically relaxed.

Deeply relaxed.

And now it's time to slow down your thoughts.

Just let them go as if they were clouds in the sky that are slowly and surely disappearing into thin air.

Just drifting into a blissful dream state.

And all the sounds you hear in and around you will only add to your relaxation and make it even easier for you to listen,

To stay on your own path during this journey.

Imagine you're sitting on the top of a mountain.

It's early in the morning.

You're sitting on a rock looking around you.

And your gaze falls on a plant with beautiful leaves to your right.

The leaves are full of morning dew and you see a drop of water slowly trickling down,

Rolling down from the top of the leaf.

It reaches the tip of the leaf and then falls.

You become enchanted by this spectacle.

It seems as if you're absorbed in the next drop.

You can see it rolling,

Feel it rolling.

The drop gets bigger and bigger and seems to cascade.

You feel it falling while you sink deeper and deeper.

Your thoughts are fading,

Fading away more and more as tranquility descends upon you.

You're just aware of a third drop.

You breathe calmly as your thoughts drift away with the drop.

Drifting away quietly.

It's so wonderfully quiet in your mind.

Just let your thoughts drift,

Dissolve.

So peaceful,

Serene and calm.

And so often thoughts create pressure.

Pressure in your body,

In your mind.

Sometimes it's like there's a beehive in your head.

All the bees buzzing around asking for attention.

For your attention.

And now the buzzing has stopped.

Sometimes a single bee buzzes but only for a short moment.

Just like thinking in terms of black and white has stopped.

But thinking in terms of success and failure has stopped.

It's erased.

Completely erased.

Now that you're in a state of bliss.

This feels so good.

So good.

What a relief.

As you settle even further into rest.

There's such a palette of colours in addition to black and white.

And all colours are beautiful and just as good as they are.

They are just right.

For all colours have their own qualities.

And I kindly ask you here and now to visualise a colour while you're breathing calmly.

A colour that represents your calmness and serenity.

And when your thoughts start to wander like a little bee humming,

Breathe in this colour.

The colour that represents your calmness and serenity.

And gently bring your attention back to the here and now.

To my voice,

The sounds,

The kind words.

Breathe in this colour and as you breathe out,

Relax even deeper.

Let yourself drift into leisure.

You're still sitting on the rock on the mountain.

Looking up,

It's getting lighter.

The sun is rising.

The last patches of darkness disappear.

A path appears and in the distance you can discern a pittoresque cottage.

This dwelling,

This home looks so beautiful and so inviting.

You get up and walk down the winding path.

You descend step by step,

Feeling more relaxed with each step and enjoy the surroundings.

The light of the rising sun is spreading over the nature which surrounds you.

This light and these colours are so overwhelmingly beautiful and give such a sense of space.

Space around you and space within you.

You arrive on a plateau and witness a beautiful wide view.

There's a wooden bench.

You rest here for a while and find yourself.

Realising how much you ask of yourself during working hours.

That you always want to deliver the best.

How much you ask of yourself.

The thoughts that come with it and that you want to let things go.

It's time to let go.

Now it's the right time.

You walk to the edge and spread your arms.

It's like releasing a dove.

You set it free.

You let it fly into the open.

An experience that gives you a sense of freedom.

The dove symbolises the release of always wanting to do so well while you're at work.

It feels so good to let go.

You spread your arms and watch the bird fly away into the air.

So far and wide.

You watch the bird slowly disappear.

A tiny speck on the horizon as your relief expands and grows.

Become aware that you are already experiencing so much more ease and relief.

And you're in contact with the feelings of relief flowing through your being.

Just become aware of them.

As the sun shines on your face and caresses your cheeks.

You walk further down the path and descend all the way down to what you're aiming for.

With such a peaceful and serene feeling inside.

So wonderfully peaceful and remarkably calm.

You arrive at steps carved into the rock.

Ten steps.

Thousands of people have walked the same path,

Taken the same steps.

The steps are deeply worn,

Caused by all those footsteps.

And with each step you take you feel a deep desire.

A deep desire to relax your shoulders,

Your whole body,

Your mind.

A deep desire to completely unwind.

And you realize that with each step you take you're certainly reaching the levels of relaxation that you're aiming for.

Ten.

You take the first step and descend.

Ten steps down to the deepest relaxation ever.

Nine.

Relaxing more and more.

And eight.

Calmer and calmer.

Seven.

Each time your mind wanders you visualize the color that brings relaxation,

Calm and serenity.

And six.

Feeling so calm and serene.

Five.

Going further and deeper into relaxation.

And four.

Almost all the way down now,

The last few steps.

And three.

You see the pittoresque cottage about fifty steps away from you.

Two.

You continue to descend.

Calm and at ease.

One.

You take the last step and feel your feet firmly on the ground.

There's a bench next to the last step and you take a seat.

Before you walk to the pittoresque cottage your eyes fall upon smoke rising from the chimney.

You enjoy the view.

A fresh breeze gently caresses your face and you realize in what way you always want to please everyone.

Everyone you love.

Everyone you care about.

Family.

Friends.

Colleagues.

Is it ever good enough?

Everything so perfect.

Your home.

Your figure.

Your clothes.

Your food.

Your perfect life.

Your whole life just has to be perfect.

And all your thoughts and actions are aimed at making it as perfect as possible.

Your mind is full of thoughts and actions.

Full of schedules,

Details,

While you run,

Organize and arrange.

And all the people around you,

They just love you for who you are.

They care about you.

They like to see you relax a little.

Slow down.

Slow down.

Just because they love you.

And you long for peace and to be free of this kind of perfectionism.

You long to sink deep into calm and let go of everything.

You know you want this and that it will happen very soon.

You get up and walk to the huge wooden front door of the cottage,

Only a few steps away.

5.

With each step you feel the desire for more ease growing.

4.

You're so close now.

More and more peace and tranquility.

3.

Everyone who loves you wishes you the best possible recovery.

2.

You push open the door and 1.

You see a beautiful armchair,

A crackling fire.

All there just for you.

And you lie down.

The fabric feels so soft.

A fur that you sink into completely.

It's so nice and warm and pleasant.

You feel so much comfort.

The temperature is just right.

You are grateful and so calm at the same time.

You watch the flames.

They have a message for you.

They whisper.

See yourself in the flames.

See yourself in your quest for perfection.

It seems like some kind of addiction.

Running and wanting to do it right and properly.

Always busy in your mind and making sure and paying attention to whether you are good enough and that you're doing well enough.

It seems like you want to protect yourself from blame,

Reproach and pain.

As if you are ashamed.

As if you or what you're doing doesn't measure up to your own standards,

Doesn't measure up in any way.

As if perfectionism is some kind of self-protection.

It feels like a heavy load.

A weight that you are carrying on your back,

On your shoulders.

It feels so obstructive.

Perform,

Entertain and maintain perfect.

It keeps you from spreading your wings free.

And you want to spread your wings and feel free.

Free from the burden.

It's time for a change.

Enough is enough.

Just take the weight off your shoulders.

Now.

And place it respectfully into the fire.

It has protected you.

It has brought you a lot.

But now it's time for a change.

The time has come.

Time to gain more peace,

Contact,

Relaxation and to be at peace.

Peace with yourself.

The flames lick the burden so that it slowly melts away.

Slowly but surely it melts away.

Your shoulders and back feel so much lighter.

Breathe consciously into your shoulders and back.

How good that feels.

You watch the flames in peaceful serenity.

Watching them.

Watching.

While you drift further into this liberating feeling and surrender to the calmness.

Your mind is completely at ease.

Still and peaceful.

As the burden melts further and further away.

Smaller and smaller.

Until it's completely gone.

Gone.

Disappeared.

Well done.

This is really a great release.

A welcome redemption.

Breathe in.

And experience what this feeling of lightness brings to your whole being.

As you breathe in.

Breathing calmly.

The flames are there as if they were omnipresent.

They are whispering that it's time for a new positive perspective.

They whisper reinvent yourself.

Whispering.

Appreciate yourself for you are good just the way you are.

People love you for who you are regardless of who you want to be.

How you are seen and experienced by others is beyond your control.

No matter how much time and energy you put into it.

People see what they want to see.

Not what you want them to see.

You are better off loving yourself and following your own desire,

Your own path.

You can be more courageous by accepting that you have your imperfections like everyone else.

How wonderful is it to love yourself and to be more connected to yourself and the world around you.

Create your own free environment and repeat the following sentences to yourself as a gift to yourself.

I'm perfect,

Perfect with all my imperfections and I embrace all.

Welcome all with all my heart.

I'm a beautiful and special human being.

I'm perfect,

Perfect with all my imperfections and I embrace all.

Welcome all with all my heart.

I'm a beautiful and special human being.

You take a deeper breath in and as you exhale let go of perfection.

And again releasing all the imperfection associated with it as you exhale.

You take a deep breath in.

Yes,

Well done.

Let it all go.

Release profoundly with each exhalation.

The flames crickle and whisper once more.

Give yourself a beautiful gift.

Just think more positively about yourself.

Feel better about yourself and all your achievements.

Accept.

Accept yourself fully.

Completely.

Just accept.

And notice how that acceptance expands in your whole being.

Be kind to yourself.

Be compassionate.

Be warm and understanding.

And if you ever mention the slightest sense of failure again,

Be kind to yourself immediately.

Full of compassion,

Warm and understanding.

You're doing well enough.

Slow down a little.

It will still be enough.

You stare into the beautiful coloured flames.

And suddenly you notice a shape.

A beautiful shape.

A figure with bright and sparkling eyes.

Smiling.

Inviting.

But most of all,

It's the fantastic energy that it radiates that attracts you so much.

This energy is so overwhelming,

So inviting.

And as you absorb this figure even better,

You suddenly realise that it's you.

These flames reflect you.

Free from worries and concerns.

Radiant.

Happy.

Enthusiastic.

All self-judgement has disappeared.

And this realisation feels so all-encompassing fine.

Light.

Subtle.

Completely free.

You're a little tired now,

After this experience,

This journey.

You stare beyond the diminishing flames.

What remains are glowing pieces of coal and little scraps of wood.

It's so breathtakingly beautiful.

Staring at the flames getting smaller and smaller.

The wood falling apart into little pieces.

It looks like the fire is going to sleep too.

You can see some remaining flames on the left or right.

One coal still glows a little.

And you feel peaceful.

So peaceful.

You're gently glowing from the inside out.

And slowly,

Slowly and surely you are drifting into sleep.

So relaxed.

So calm.

Drifting into sleep.

As the last flame whispers softly.

Just before it disappears.

Sleep tight.

Dream on.

Sleep well.

Good night.

Sleep tight.