✨ Finding Calm Within: A Meditation for Anxious Minds ✨

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This guided meditation offers a compassionate approach to anxiety, creating space for gentle release and return to the present moment through breath awareness and body scanning techniques.

• Acknowledging anxiety as a valid experience, not something to push away
• Using the breath as an anchor with extended exhales to activate the relaxation response
• Moving through the body to identify and release areas of held tension
• Naming specific fears without letting them take over
• Recognizing that you are the awareness behind your anxiety, capable of release and worthy of peace
• Returning to daily life while maintaining the calm awareness cultivated in meditation

Take a moment today to practice this meditation whenever anxiety arises, remembering that peace is closer than you imagine.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome.
If you're here, it's likelybecause something feels
unsettled.
Maybe you're carrying a knownfear, something specific that's
weighing on you, or maybe it'sharder to name, just a general
feeling of restlessness ortightness that seems to live in

(00:21):
your body.
But whatever form your anxietytakes, whether it's loud or
quiet, sharp or dull, consistentor irregular, it's completely
valid.
You are not overreacting, youare not alone.

(00:45):
Your nervous system is simplydoing its job, trying to protect
you.
And this meditation is notabout pushing anxiety away.
It's about meeting it withcompassion.
It's about allowing it tosoften, breath by breath, moment

(01:10):
by moment.
This is a space to gentlyrelease and return to yourself,
to the present, to possibility.
Let's begin Find a comfortableposition, either seated or lying

(01:38):
down, just let your hands restnaturally and allow your eyes to
close if that feels safe, andtake a moment to simply arrive.
There's nowhere else you needto be, nothing you need to

(02:07):
figure out, just permission,permission to be here, welcome.
Let's begin by bringingawareness to your breath.
You don't need to change it,just observe the inhale and the

(02:37):
exhale, just let yourself bebreathed, observe how it happens
naturally, without any effort.
And now let's partner with ourbreath in a beautiful

(03:00):
collaboration where we allowourselves to gently lengthen
your exhale.
Inhale through your nose andexhale through your mouth with a
sigh, again, again, inhalingand exhaling With each breath.

(03:36):
Invite ease, allow each exhaleto be offering release.
Now we'll move through the bodygently, just noticing where we

(04:01):
might be holding tension oremotion, starting at the top of
your head.
What do you notice?
Can you soften just a little?

(04:24):
Journey down to your forehead,unclench your jaw, relax the
space around your eyes,recognize that there's always

(04:47):
just a little bit more softeningavailable to you than you
thought there might be.
Drop into your neck andshoulders now and get curious.
Are you holding anything there?
Let it fall away with your nextexhale, inviting release,

(05:14):
opening the door to spaciousness.
Feel into your chest now,allowing the breath to move in
and out.
Notice if there's tightness.
No need to force it, justnotice and breathe.

(05:36):
We're going to move down now toyour belly.
Let it soften, allow it to riseand fall freely.

(05:58):
If you're feeling any tensionthere, go ahead and invite it to
expand even more.
So beautiful the way our bodycan expand and contract.

(06:25):
Bringing attention now to yourhips, feel and acknowledge the
support beneath you.
You don't have to hold on toeverything.
Your body knows how to supportyou if you allow it relax and

(06:57):
trust.
Now let's scan through yourthighs around your knees, down
your shins and your calves toyour feet, draw your awareness

(07:34):
to the backs of your legs andyour spine and your neck and
your head.
If you're lying down and noticethe contact with the ground or
the surface where you lie Stable, rooted, nothing will fall out

(07:58):
beneath you if you just allowyourself to relax.
If you just allow yourself torelax, accept the support that
is already there.
Take a deep breath here inacknowledgement of your

(08:19):
beautiful body and the surfacethat holds it Stable and
grounded.

(08:57):
If there's a specific fear orworry that's been living in you,
invite it in now and allow itto gently rise into your
awareness.
You don't need to analyze it,just recognize it.
If it helps to give it a simplename, go ahead.

(09:21):
Be fear, overwhelm, unknownfailure, sadness, whatever it is
.
Let it be seen.
Let it be seen without lettingit take over.

(09:44):
If your anxiety feels morevague, like a mist that you

(10:13):
can't quite clear, that's okaytoo.
Just drawing awareness isenough.
Return now to the breath, toyour anchor, to your ally.
Inhale and exhale Again,imagining each exhale as a

(10:48):
release.
What can you let go of just fornow?
Inhale and exhale, letting go,releasing.

(11:19):
Stay here for a moment atchoice of what you would like to
let go.
Even if it's just for thismoment, no worries, it can be

(11:55):
powerful to do this, torecognize that you absolutely
can let go and, when you'reready, let your breath settle
into its own natural rhythm andbegin to bring awareness back to

(12:18):
your body.
And begin to bring awarenessback to your body, wiggling
fingers, toes, gently movinghowever feels good.
If you're lying down, sometimeswhat I like to do is stretch my

(12:38):
arms way up over my head andflex my feet and reach my heels
in the opposite direction, maybegiving yourself a gentle twist,
whatever feels right, comingback to a neutral position.

(13:01):
Now, if it feels right, goahead and place a hand over your
heart or your belly.
You can also place one hand onyour heart and the other on your
belly, whichever feels right toyou, whichever feels right to

(13:23):
you, and I want you toacknowledge your bravery.
You showed up, you stayed, youlistened, bravo, you listened,

(13:44):
bravo, bravo.
And now carry this reminder youare not your anxiety, you are
the awareness behind it and fromthis place of awareness, you

(14:08):
are capable of release, you areworthy of peace, and peace is
much closer than you can imagine.
And you've got everything.

(14:28):
When you're ready, gently openyour eyes, returning to the room

(14:48):
and to your day slowly, justbecause you're not meditating
anymore does not mean thisfeeling goes away.
This feeling is within you.
It's just that you drewawareness around it.
That's how we experience things.

(15:09):
You are here, you are safe andyou are enough.
Namaste, my friend.