Settling into a comfortable position,
Either sitting or lying down,
Begin by drawing your attention to your breath.
Let go of any urge to control or modify your breath in any way.
Simply observe your breath.
Follow your breath on your inhale and your exhale.
Notice the breath as it enters your nostrils and the back of your throat.
Notice the breath in your chest.
Notice the gentle rise and fall of your belly on your inhale and your exhale.
Allow the focus on your breath to settle your body and your mind.
Feel your body grow heavy with relaxation.
Release any tension in your legs,
Your arms,
Your chest and shoulders.
Let go of any tension in your jaw as you continue to deeply relax.
From this very relaxed state,
I'd like you to call to mind something that was said to you which was negative,
Harsh or hurtful.
Something that caused you upset,
Sadness or pain.
Notice any emotions that arise thinking about these things that were said to you.
I'd like you to imagine holding a deflated balloon between your fingers.
Visualize the color of the balloon.
Feel the texture and temperature and sensation as you imagine rubbing the balloon between your first finger and thumb and keeping those words and emotions in mind.
Imagine bringing the balloon to your lips.
Take a deep breath in and on your exhale,
Release the words that were said to you that caused you upset,
Sadness or pain.
Visualize the letters of each word like big fat cartoon letters leaving your body with each exhale.
As you continue to breathe and fill the balloon with the words,
Allow the emotions you felt to also fill the balloon.
When you are done,
Imagine tying a little knot in the balloon.
Looking at the balloon,
See all of the words inside.
Imagine them floating around.
Call to mind the emotions once again as you see these words.
Open your first finger and thumb and release the balloon.
Watch it float higher and higher into the air,
Taking the words and emotions further and further away from you.
Notice how you feel now,
Having released all of those negative words and emotions from your body.
Notice your breath and your body heavy with relaxation.
From this very relaxed state,
I'd like you to call to mind something that was done to you or a situation you experienced that was negative,
Harsh or hurtful.
Something that caused you upset,
Sadness or pain.
Notice the emotions that arise thinking about this negative experience.
I'd like you to imagine holding another balloon between your fingers.
Visualize the color of the balloon.
It can be the same or different from the first.
Feel the texture and temperature and sensation as you imagine rubbing the balloon between your first finger and thumb.
Keeping this negative experience and their emotions in mind,
Imagine bringing the balloon to your lips.
Take a deep breath in and on your exhale,
Release the negative experience that caused you upset,
Sadness or pain.
Visualize the letters of each word describing the actions,
Like big,
Fat,
Bright cartoon letters leaving your body with each exhale.
As you continue to breathe and fill the balloon with the words,
Allow the emotions you felt to also fill the balloon.
When you are done,
Imagine tying a little knot in the balloon.
Looking at the balloon,
See all of the words describing the negative experience inside of the balloon.
Imagine them floating around inside.
Call to mind the emotions once again as you see these words.
Open your first finger and thumb and release the balloon.
Watch it float higher and higher into the air,
Taking the negative experience and emotions further and further away from you.
Notice how you feel now,
Having released this negative experience and the emotions from your body.
Notice your breath,
And your body heavy with relaxation.
From this very relaxed state,
I'd like you to call to mind something you said to yourself which was negative,
Harsh,
Or hurtful.
Something you said to yourself when you were upset,
Sad,
Or hurt.
Time you called yourself stupid,
Or not good at something,
Or not enough.
Notice the emotions that arise thinking about these things that you said to yourself.
I'd like you to imagine holding a third balloon between your fingers.
Visualize the color of the balloon.
Again,
The same color or different,
Feel the texture,
And temperature,
And sensation as you imagine rubbing the balloon between your first finger and thumb.
Keeping those words and emotions in mind,
Imagine bringing the balloon to your lips.
Take a deep breath in,
And on your exhale,
Release the words that you said to yourself when you were upset,
Sad,
Or in pain.
Visualize the letters of each word like big fat cartoon letters,
Leaving your body with each exhale.
As you continue to breathe,
And fill the balloon with the words,
Allow the emotions you felt to also fill the balloon.
When you are done,
Imagine tying a little knot in the balloon.
Looking at the balloon,
See all of the words inside.
Imagine them floating around.
Call to mind the emotions once again as you see these words.
Open your first finger and thumb,
And release the balloon.
Watch it float higher and higher into the air,
Taking the words and emotions further and further away from you.
Notice how you feel now,
Having released negative words that were said to you,
Negative things you experienced,
And negative things you said to yourself.
Notice how relaxed and calm you feel,
How easy and free your breath feels in your body.
Hold onto this sense of calm and peace as you begin to reorient yourself with your surroundings and gently blink open your eyes.
