Stress Relief: Listen to This Free 10 Minute Guided Meditation by Jennifer Michaels

A Guided Meditation to Relieve Stress
Stress can accumulate quietly. We may notice it in tight shoulders, a clenched jaw, a busy mind, shallow breathing, or the feeling that we are always preparing for whatever comes next. Sometimes what the Body-Mind-Heart-Soul-Spirit complex needs most is simply permission to stop.

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​Allowing the Body to Soften
​Rest does not always mean sleep. Sometimes rest is ten quiet minutes of consciously allowing the body to soften, the breath to deepen, and the mind to become still.

Giving Yourself Permission to Rest
When we are stressed, it can feel as though there is always something that needs to be done, said, solved, or figured out. Meditation gives us an opportunity to temporarily put all of that down.

There is nowhere else to be.
As we bring awareness to the breath and slowly move our attention through the body, we begin noticing where we may be holding tension without even realizing it. The forehead can soften. The jaw can release. The shoulders can drop. The muscles surrounding the spine can relax. We aren't forcing relaxation. We are simply creating the conditions that allow it.

Listen to the Stress Relief Guided Meditation
This approximately ten-minute guided meditation was created to assist in releasing stress, anxiety, and worry while welcoming greater calm, peace, grounding, and restoration.

Find a comfortable seated or lying position, close your eyes if that feels good to you, and allow my voice to guide you through the practice.
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Relax the Body and Mind, Release Stress, Anxiety and Worry

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​Planting Seeds of Restoration
One of my favorite parts of this meditation comes near the end, when we imagine peaceful, calming energy flowing from the body toward the Earth and planting seeds of restoration.

The intention is that the peace we experience during meditation doesn't have to end when the meditation ends.

We can carry some of it with us.

We can return to the breath during the day. We can notice when the shoulders have risen and allow them to fall. We can soften the jaw. We can place a hand over the heart. We can remember that even in the middle of a busy day, there can be a quiet place within us.

And we can return to the meditation whenever we need a little help finding our way back there.
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If i may be of Service

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​Book Private Sessions
If you're looking for additional support along your path, I'm here to be of service. With over 20 years of experience, at The Art of Love Counseling, I provide Holistic Counseling, Spiritual Life Coaching, Energy Healing, and Meditation, as well as, Immersion Sessions for deeper healing.

Explore Professional Training
Additionally, I offer personal and professional Training and Mentorship for Clinical and Mental Health Therapists and Counselors, as well as anyone who feels called to become a Spiritual Life Coach, Energy Healer, or Meditation Instructor.

Healing Art & Books
Many people also find my Healing Artwork and Books to be inspiring companions on their own journey of healing, growth, and spiritual awakening.

With Gratitude
Thank you for taking this time to be here, to breathe, to rest, and to care for yourself. I hope this meditation brings a little more peace, ease, and restoration into your day. For a little bonus support, scroll down to experience my healing art for stress relief and to read the full transcript of this guided meditation.


Love, 
Jennifer
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​​​​​​Jennifer Michaels, M.A., RYT200
Founder of The Art of Love Counseling ⎹ Mooresville, NC
Holistic Counselor, Spiritual Life Coach, Energy Healer, Artist & Author of What is Love? My Question... God's Answer
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P.s. View my Healing Art for Stress Releif

For more stress relief, feel the energy of this beautiful healing painting Meditating Orbs, from Jennifer's Healing Collection.

Meditating Orbs, a 30 × 48-inch acrylic on canvas healing painting by Jennifer Michaels.

Schedule a Studio Visit

⚪️

stress relief Guided meditation full transcript

I’ve included the full transcript below for those who prefer to read, reflect, or move through the meditation at their own pace. Return to any of the words or practices whenever you need a little more peace, grounding, and restoration. Enjoy...

​Find a nice, comfortable seated or lying position. Close your eyes, drop your shoulders, and relax your jaw.

We'll take about ten minutes or so here to go into a deep, restorative relaxation.

This assists in releasing stress, anxiety, and worry, allowing you to come back feeling restored, refreshed, and centered.

And so, let us begin by focusing on the breath, allowing the arms and the legs to get heavy.

Notice as you're breathing in and breathing out. Notice as the belly rises and falls.

You may like to say to yourself on the inhales, I am breathing in, and on the exhales, I am breathing out.

As you do this, you can allow the mind to relax and be still.

Just allow any thoughts that you're having to gently come and go, bringing your awareness back to the breath and back to my voice.

We'll set the intention that with every word that I say and every breath that you take, the mind and the body can relax more and more.

Go ahead and scan through your body, noticing if there is anywhere you're holding tightness or tension, anywhere that you can release and let go.

Softening.

Relaxing.

Let's start at the top of the head, paying attention to the muscles in the forehead, the top of the head, and the sides of the head.

Resting and relaxing.

Resting and relaxing the eyes, allowing the eyelids to get heavy.

Pay attention to the temples, allowing the temples to relax, the ears to relax, the nose and the mouth and the cheeks to rest and relax.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Notice the energy at the back of the neck, the sides of the neck, and the shoulders, allowing the shoulders and the neck to relax.

We're welcoming more calm and more peace and releasing any stress, any worry, any fear.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Following my voice.

Relaxing the biceps and the triceps. Relaxing the elbows and the forearms. Relaxing the wrists, the palms of the hands, the backs of the hands.

Relaxing the fingers.

Bring your focus and your attention to the back of the neck, and let the entire spinal column and all the muscles on either side of the spine relax and let go.

Pay attention to the upper back, the mid-back, and the low back.
Allow the back to release, to relax, and let go.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Just knowing that there is nothing right now that you need to do or say or think about.

Notice your inhales.

Notice your exhales.

Take this time for yourself to be still.

Come back to the chest, to the heart.

Relax the chest.

Relax the heart.

Let this soothing, relaxing energy flow gently through the heart space, relaxing the sides of the body, the upper belly, and the lower belly.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Releasing any old energy.

Welcoming fresh and restorative energy into the hips.

Relaxing the upper legs, the hamstrings and the quadriceps. Relaxing the knees. Relaxing the shins and the calves.

Relaxing the ankles.

Be proud of yourself for taking this time to be still and relax.

Relax the tops of the feet and the bottoms of the feet.

Breathing in and breathing out.

Scan through the body one more time, up and down, and just notice:
Is there anywhere else you can release and relax?

As the body relaxes, imagine that you're breathing in peace and breathing out peace.

Breathing in calm and breathing out calm.

As you do, that peaceful, calming energy moves into the space around the body—above the body, below the body, to the right and to the left, in front and behind.

Peace and calm inside the mind.

Peace and calm inside the heart.

Peace and calm inside the body and outside of the body.

Imagine that beautiful, calming and peaceful energy flowing from your body toward the Earth and planting seeds of restoration in such a way that they continue to grow even outside of this meditation.

Let these calming, centering, grounding energies from Mother Earth flow back up to your heart space.

You might like to bring your hands to your heart.

Wiggle your toes.

Wiggle your fingers.

Send yourself some gratitude for taking this time to be still, to go within, to rest and relax.

Know that you can come back to this meditation anytime that feels good to you.

You may like to bring a smile to your face, allowing that smile to uplift you and anchor in all the beautiful work that you've done here today.
Stretch your arms.

Stretch your legs.

Feel rested and restored for whatever comes next.

Come back to this meditation as often as needed.

Thank you so much for being here with me today.

Be well.

Come Back Whenever You Need ItYou don't have to wait until stress becomes overwhelming to rest. Taking a few minutes to become still can simply be part of caring for yourself.

Come back to this meditation whenever you would like to release, ground, breathe, and begin again.

May you feel rested.

May you feel restored.

May you feel centered.
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May you be well.
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