CBT For Anxiety - Name It To Tame It (Regulate Emotions)

This short, science-backed meditation guides you through the powerful CBT and mindfulness technique known as “Name It to Tame It.”

In just five minutes, you’ll learn how to:
• Gently identify body sensations
• Label emotions without judgment
• Notice unhelpful thoughts with clarity
• Create distance between you and the feeling
• Reduce emotional intensity using awareness instead of effort

This practice is perfect for moments when you feel anxious, stuck in your head, or emotionally overloaded.
Instead of fighting your inner experience, you’ll learn to observe it — and in that space, emotions naturally soften.

No experience is needed.
Just a quiet moment, a curious mind, and a willingness to pause.

Use this meditation anytime you need a quick reset, a grounding tool between therapy sessions, or a way to stay present during stressful moments.

You’ll finish feeling clearer, steadier, and a little more in control of your inner world.

Transcript

Find a comfortable position,

Sitting or lying down,

And allow your body to settle into the surface beneath you.

Take a slow breath in through your nose,

And a long,

Gentle exhale through your mouth.

With each breath,

Feel your body soften a little more,

Your shoulders dropping,

Your jaw releasing,

Your hands unclenching.

Let the outside world fade just enough so you can turn inward,

You're not here to control anything.

Just to notice.

Begin by bringing your attention to your body.

Notice any sensations that are present,

Warmth,

Pressure,

Tension,

Fluttering,

Or stillness.

There's no need to judge or change what you feel.

Simply observe,

As if you're gently scanning your internal landscape.

If you notice tightness in the chest,

Say silently.

Tightness.

If your stomach feels heavy,

Label it.

Heaviness.

If there's restlessness in your fingers or legs,

Restlessness.

Just naming the sensation begins to soften its intensity.

Now let your awareness move from your body to your emotions.

Ask gently,

What emotion is here with me right now?

Perhaps it's anxiety.

Maybe frustration,

Sadness,

Overwhelm,

Or uncertainty.

Whatever arises,

Greet it with the same calm acknowledgement you would offer a friend.

Say softly in your mind,

This is anxiety.

Or this is sadness.

Or simply,

This is a feeling.

Notice how naming the emotion creates a little space.

A gentle separation between you and the feeling.

You are the observer.

The emotion is the visitor.

Now turn your attention toward the thoughts connected to the feeling.

Let them appear without pushing or pulling.

If a worry pops up,

Name it.

Worrying thought.

If your mind starts predicting the future,

Future thought.

If you hear self-criticism,

Judging thought.

Labeling doesn't mean you agree with the thought.

It simply means you're noticing it.

And noticing takes away its power.

Each label is a soft boundary that says,

I see you,

But you are just a thought.

Take a slow breath in.

And as you exhale,

Imagine taking a small step back from the sensation,

The emotion,

And the thoughts you've named.

Notice how much space opens when you stop wrestling with what's inside you.

Say quietly,

This is a sensation.

This is a feeling.

This is a thought.

Nothing more,

Nothing less.

See how everything you named starts to move,

Shift.

Or soften.

Not because you forced it.

But because you allowed it to simply be seen.

This is the heart of name it to tame it.

What we observe,

We no longer have to fight.

Take one final steady breath in.

And exhale slowly.

Grounding back into your body.

Feel the support beneath you.

The ease in your breath.

And the quiet clarity that comes from naming your inner experience.

Repeat softly to yourself.

I can notice what I feel without being overwhelmed by it.

When you're ready,

Gently open your eyes.

Move through the rest of your day.

With the reminder that labelling is always available.

A simple,

Powerful way to calm the mind and steady the body.